“It’s not great for the sport”: Mattia Binotto thinks FIA need to ‘do a better job’ after ‘controversial’ ending to the Italian GP
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Ferrari team princial Mattia Binotto
Ferrari and Charles Leclerc were looking forward to Sunday with much promise, especially as the Monegasque took pole on his own merit without a tow. But during the race, it quickly became apparent that Max Verstappen was just faster. Whatever they tried to do did not work to stop the Dutchman.
Verstappen just had more pace, and this time it wasn’t strategy or mistakes that took the victory from the Italians, it was just a lack of speed compared to the RB18. However, there may have been a chance in the final few laps, as the safety car came out. But the race did not restart, which attracted much criticism and expressions of disappointment from the fans.
Charles Leclerc look visibly dejected, as he had thought that he had a race-winning pace. That wasn’t the case, but the safety car ending was just salt in the wounds. In his post-race interview, he said: “The end was frustrating. I wish we could have ended up racing. It’s a shame. I gave it all. I wish I could have won in front of the amazing Tifosi.” Mattia Binotto was also disappointed with the ending.
Mattia Binotto: ‘To wait so much [to restart the race] is simply wrong’
It seems there was also some confusion with the safety car, which basically made the restart impossible. Instead of picking up the leaders, the SC picked up George Russell, as such, Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen were (for some time) ahead of the safety car, as they weren’t in the correct order.
Moreover, there was also a crane on the track, and fans were confused why the race wasn’t red-flagged if that was the case. Mattia Binotto was also unhappy, as per GPBlog: “The safety car came in front of George. Even if it was ahead of him, no reason not to release the cars between safety cars and the leader. Now we know there is a minimum lap time so it’s fully safe to release the cars.”
He added: “To wait so much is simply wrong. It’s not great for the sport, after Abu Dhabi last year we had lots of discussions on how to improve. The final objective is to restart the race as soon as we can. The FIA changed a lot in that area but they need more experience and do a better job. F1 deserves it in that respect. I do not agree, in the regulations, there is a minimum lap time that they have to respect.”
While the safety car procedure was correct according to the rules, a race ending behind a safety car is always a disappointment, and fans were left wondering why the race wasn’t red-flagged (with a standing/rolling restart). The Tifosi were especially disappointed, as Leclerc may have had a chance to win.
Also Read: Max Verstappen puts on a clinic to win his FIRST-EVER Italian GP
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Aniket Tripathi
(1002 Articles Published)