FIA The FIA admits the controversy at the Abu Dhabi GP is “tarnishing the image of the Championship”

[Johnny Carwash]

Bottled it.

 

[Brogan]

Mercedes are now a party to a manipulated race and fake WDC title.

Nothing ever changes with F1 and the FIA.

 

[The Pits]

Now all we need to hear is that change will be "enshrined in the regulations" and we will know that the circle of corruption is complete!

 

[Il_leone]

It would only come close to that if Mercedes are prepared to pull out all the legal stops to challenge the FIA.

The other problem is that for as many people outraged at the blatant manipulation of the running of the race there are a significant number of people who dislike Mercedes / Hamilton or both and are more delighted about their defeat and not the bothered about that manner of it.

The only way that happens is if all the TV stations turn around and said they don't want to show F1 anymore but that is never going to happen that f1 ends

 

[Il_leone]

Bottled it.

The thing was there were 3 outcomes they needed to overturn and it would drag on disrupting 2022 which they have not got long to get ready.

They need to do the talking on the track - the radio messages to the race director post race might get interesting

 

[The Artist.....]

“Mercedes chose not to prioritise track position” Do you realise how ridiculous what you have said is?

Think about what you would have said if the positions had been reversed. Mercedes had two opportunities to stop for tyres (the VSC and the SC), and chose not to, prioritising position on the track. I don't think it's ridiculous to say this.

There was an absolute guarantee Max would overtake.

Note Hamilton would never have been able to defend like Perez did because Max would have wiped them both out.

You can't say that. Had Hamilton parked his car on the apex of turn 5 (or even blocked the inside going down to turn 5), it would have made it much more difficult for Verstappen. Effectively, Hamilton left the door wide open.

Had Verstappen taken Hamilton out, then we would be having a very different conversation right now - with Verstappen (rightly?) disqualified from the championship(?) He didn't.

(PS - I think that Verstappen is a colossal bellend, but I don't think we can say what would have happened)

 

[Il_leone]

I've seen Jolyon Palmer's post race analysis yesterday and he said

Hamilton was not expecting Verstappen to make a move from that far back
The move by Verstappen if blocked would have left Hamilton a sucker down the straight anyway with the additional grip that Verstappen has.

 

[cider_and_toast]

I'm almost certain that by the end of tomorrow a statement will be issued to the effect that Mercedes F1 thanks everyone for the messages of support and they are extremely disappointed at how the season ended. For the good of the sport they will not be carrying forward their appeal but will urge the FIA to review the rules surrounding the deployment of safety car in time for next season. The team will work closely with the FIA to support these efforts.

That statement is almost word for word what I posted in the Mercedes thread yesterday. It was so obvious this was coming it was untrue.

Clearly Mercedes have been in close contact with the FIA who agreed to issue their inquiry statement providing Mercedes withdrew their appeal.

Bullshit beyond belief.

 

[Il_leone]

That statement is almost word for word what I posted in the Mercedes thread yesterday. It was so obvious this was coming it was untrue.

Clearly Mercedes have been in close contact with the FIA who agreed to issue their inquiry statement providing Mercedes withdrew their appeal.

Bullshit beyond belief.

Like I said I think Masi being sacked is the token outcome they will accept from it

Politically this is a win for the FIA who really don't need further pr damage . That regulation that the race director can do anything overriding everything else might have created enough ambiguity such that the FIA would never overturn the decisions.

I am not sure if Toto's bosses said we don't need to tarnish our brand in this way to get him to back off

 

[Grizzly]

Clearly Mercedes have been in close contact with the FIA who agreed to issue their inquiry providing Mercedes withdrew their appeal.

That's what I would expect. However, the FIA then stating the media and fans are wrong is a whole new low. I'm lost for words.

What would have almost been acceptable for me would be for the FIA to come out and put their hands up, apologise for the monumental **** up by their organisation (not Masi personally) and then commit to a thorough review of process. What a bunch of backward, naive ****s.

To those suggesting "what would you be saying if it was the other way around." Ask yourself the same question!

 

[Hamberg]

Good on Susie. She’s said it, as isnt obliged to follow Mercedes official line.

 

[Il_leone]

That's what I would expect. However, the FIA then stating the media and fans are wrong is a whole new low. I'm lost for words.

What would have almost been acceptable for me would be for the FIA to come out and put their hands up, apologise for the monumental **** up by their organisation (not Masi personally) and then commit to a thorough review of process. What a bunch of backward, naive ****s.

To those suggesting "what would you be saying if it was the other way around." Ask yourself the same question!

Who was the comms person that typed this statement?
To be honest Jean Todt does not care because he is leaving anyway

 

[cider_and_toast]

Good on Susie. She’s said it, as isnt obliged to follow Mercedes official line.

I've never felt so happy to see a statement from Suzie Wolff in my life. Good on her.

 

[Il_leone]

I've never felt so happy to see a statement from Suzie Wolff in my life. Good on her.

Yes good on Susie as Toto might have had to pull the Corporate line

 

[F1Brits_90]

Hamilton had no chance of defending due to tyre life

its was mercedes that decided to stay out, FIA & Masi kept the pit lane open

 

[Brogan]

Oh FFS!

How many ****ing times does it need to be said?

 

[The Artist.....]

Like I said I think Masi being sacked is the token outcome they will accept from it

Politically this is a win for the FIA who really don't need further pr damage . That regulation that the race director can do anything overriding everything else might have created enough ambiguity such that the FIA would never overturn the decisions.

I am not sure if Toto's bosses said we don't need to tarnish our brand in this way to get him to back off

As much as we may dislike a referee's decision, in other sports, once the referee has spoken, there is little comeback. FIFA didn't order a world cup game result to be reversed when Graham Poll showed 3 yellow cards.

Similarly, when goals have been (incorrectly) awarded, they aren't retrospectively chalked off. (See, for instance, 1966 World Cup).

The only examples I can think of where a result is overturned because the referees have mis-applied rules is where direct corruption is involved (e.g. payments to referees). Masi was not making a decision to advantage Hamilton or Verstappen. Masi basically wanted the race to end as a race.

 

[cider_and_toast]

Masi basically wanted the race to end as a race

But that's not his decision to make for that reason for crying out loud. He's there to ensure the correct application of the rules is applied. They weren't.

He's not there to ensure the viewers have a good time.

What you're suggesting is a Ref inviting a team to bring another player on for the last few minutes because they're a goal down and they don't deserve to be. Hey, let's give them a little hand and invent a rule to make the match a bit more interesting over the last few minutes.

Also, and this really does wind me up. "That's the way we've always done it" is not an excuse for the repeated failure to take action. In the more serious world of health and safety, that's how people get killed.

The rules as written did not allow for a few cars to overtake. Even forgetting Hamilton and Verstappen, the cars in 3rd, 4th and 5th were deliberately disadvantaged by this decision.

 

[F1Brits_90]

Oh FFS!

How many ****ing times does it need to be said?

you cant whitewash into it being 1 factor. & on to 1 man. yes the rules werent followed. but you cant use the tyres as an excuse. the pit lane was open

something id forgotten it had long been agreed by all the teams, before sunday that where possible it was highly desirable for the race to end in a ‘green’ condition. just like Baku. because they didnt want the season to end under a safety car

Hamilton shouldve pitted & wouldve been the aggressor & likely won the title. new softs compared to 20+ lap mediums

why did Hamilton leave the inside at turn 5 wide open. why didnt he make his car as wide as possible. force him around the outside. we saw perez went 9 seconds a lap slower & still keep the lead

Mercedes are too risk averse, you wouldve thought they would have learnt this after stay out on inters on bone dry Hungarian track. just in case

 

[sobriety]

What you're suggesting is a Ref inviting a team to bring another player on for the last few minutes because they're a goal down and they don't deserve to be. Hey, let's give them a little hand and invent a rule to make the match a bit more interesting over the last few minutes.

The best football analogy I read was that it was like the ref saying "next goal wins" in extra time, then awarding the team that's 2-0 down a penalty.