F1 Ferrari: Sainz on fire, controversy after stewards’ statement

The Red Bull Ring security team’s note is causing the F1 world to debate.

It has created controversy the harsh statement by the safety team at Spielberg regarding what happened to Carlos Sainz during the Formula 1 Austrian Grand Prix. The Spanish driver after the engine failure of his Ferrari had been forced to hastily abandon his burning car without it being secured by the stewards.

The stewards, criticized for the delay in their intervention, defended themselves in harsh terms: “After Jules Bianchi’s tragic accident in 2014, the FIA’s rules regarding on-track recoveries were tightened drastically. It is only possible to take action after provisions from the race management. On the one hand, this increases the safety of drivers and marshals; on the other hand, it means that action is taken a bit late. The decision to have the fire engine intervene turned out to be correct. In such a situation, as happened in Romain Grosjean’s accident, portable fire extinguishers are not enough.”

Stewards put Sainz in their sights: “Another problem was that Sainz, understandably unnerved, got out of the single-seater too early. If he had not braked so early, it would not have been necessary to push the wedge under the moving car. Obviously, looking at the TV pictures and the track camera recordings after the incident, it is clear that some things need to be improved. We will discuss this internally and with our staff. However, in an exceptional situation like this – a fire doesn’t happen every day – the marshals reacted well. Within 30 seconds we had a fire engine on site, an emergency vehicle was ready and even a third was on its way. That way, even if Sainz had not been able to leave the vehicle alone, we could still protect it in the best way possible.”