Restarting red-flagged Britcar race was ‘right decision’
Restarting a red-flagged Britcar Endurance race behind the safety car was ‘the right decision at the time’, according to the series’ managing director – as the decision gave some teams a ‘free’ pitstop and affected the outcome of the championship.
The opening race at Brands Hatch last weekend was suspended mid-way through after Tom Barley crashed at Paddock Hill.
Several cars had yet to make their pitstops, while others were in the pits at the time the red flag was shown.
The decision was taken to restart behind the safety car, with cars in the order they were when the red flag was shown. That meant drivers who had already made a pitstop – but now at the back of the queue – had an advantage on those who hadn’t pitted, as they had to make their stops under race conditions. But Claire Hedley, boss of Britcar, believes that everything was done to ensure it was a fair contest.
“It was the clerk of the course’s decision at the end of the day,” she said. “For safety reasons the decision was to restart the race from the position it was stopped.
“All the teams were happy with the decisions made, they had the chance to appeal and none of them did. I’m not saying it was 100 per cent the right decision but it was the right decision at the time.”
The pairing of Darron Lewis and Tom Knight were one of the cars to suffer from the red flag and finished second in class, losing valuable points in the hunt for the championship, which was decided in Ross Wylie/witt Gamski’s favour following Sunday’s second race.