F1 News, Reports and Race Results

McLaren 'strongly disagrees' with Masi's yellow flag logic

McLaren team boss Andreas Seidl was at odds last weekend in Baku with F1 race director Michael Masi's decision not to investigate those drivers that had failed to slow at the scene of Max Verstappen's crash in the closing stages of the race.

McLaren singled out AlphaTauri's Yuki Tsunoda who sped past the Red Bull driver's accident on the main straight despite the deployment of double waved flags that implicitly signify that a driver must reduce speed.

Seidl radioed Masi from the McLaren pit wall to convey his surprise that Tsunoda was not put under investigation for speeding, to which the F1 race director replied that in that case "the entire field should be penalised for not slowing under double yellows, in accordance with the regulations".

However, Seidl insisted, stating that the Tsunoda's infringement was "obvious".

"All of them are obvious," responded Masi who said that he would address the issue at next week's French Grand Prix drivers' briefing.

But Seidl was unhappy with Masi's leniency towards a situation that appeared to the McLaren boss as "obvious".

"From my point of view, things were happening out there today which were clearly not OK," Seidl said after the race.

"Also putting it into the context of what we got a penalty for, for example, yesterday [in qualifying] - but again that's all we can do, we can only report it.

"If the race director thinks there's no investigation required because everyone is doing it, which is something I strongly disagree with, you need to ask Michael Masi what he's after then."

Seidl wasn't the only one at Baku to have a bone of contention with race control, with several drivers baffled by the delay in sending out the safety car following Verstappen's crash which littered the track with debris.

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc called the belated decision "a joke" and said he would put the issue on the table at next week's drivers' briefing.

While unsatisfied with last weekend's calls, Seidl considered Masi to be doing a "great job" overall as F1's race director.

"In general we are very happy with the job Michael is doing, which is a very difficult job," he said.

"But the most important thing from our side is transparency and consistency and a good dialogue which we usually have with him.

"Of course there are situations from time to time where you disagree. That's normal: we’re on the competitor side, he's on the FIA side.

"But I guess if you look back now the time since he took over, I think he did a great job."

Gallery: The beautiful wives and girlfriends of F1 drivers

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter

Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.

Recent Posts

Norris thanks Piastri for handing Sprint win, but not ‘proud’

Lando Norris secured victory in Saturday’s Sprint event in Sao Paulo thanks to a McLaren…

48 mins ago

São Paulo GP: Norris handed sprint win by Piastri

McLaren clinched a valuable 1-2 sweep of the São Paulo sprint race, with polesitter Oscar…

2 hours ago

2024 São Paulo Grand Prix - Sprint Race results

Full results from the Sprint race for the São Paulo Grand Prix at São Paulo,…

2 hours ago

Aston’s Alonso and Stroll to start Sao Paulo Sprint from pitlane

Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll will start Saturday's sprint race at Interlagos from the pitlane…

3 hours ago

Hamilton's epic last lap coronation in Brazil

Lewis Hamilton won the first of his seven world titles on this day in 2008…

4 hours ago

Ferrari drivers optimistic despite McLaren’s early edge in Sao Paulo

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz are keeping a positive outlook for the remainder of…

5 hours ago