The FIA rule

[eatapc]

I found the rule in Appendix L of the FIA Sporting Code: "d) except in cases of force majeure (accepted as such by the stewards of the meeting), the crossing, in any direction, of the line separating the deceleration zone and the track is prohibited.
e) except in cases of force majeure (accepted as such by the stewards of the meeting), any line painted on the track at the pit exit for the purpose of separating cars leaving the pits from those on the track must not be crossed by any part of a car leaving the pits."

Conclusion: Both Michael and Ralf broke the rule when exiting the pits. Michael should have been penalized also. Further, Michael seems to have broken the "d" part of the rule when he deliberately chopped across the rumble strip separating the deceleration zone from the track. Michael should have received two penalties. I can't wait to see the FIA justify the stewards' decision.

[EERO]

Thanks, eatapc, that clarifies it, doesn't it, particularly about the Pit Entry/decelleration zone? It certainly makes it difficult to refute the thought that TGF and Ferrari benefit from favoritism from the FIA.

[Minardi fan]

And we are surprised by this revelation that Ferrari are given special treatment by the FIA?!?

Thankyou Eatapc - as EEROS said, it clarifies things an awful lot.

[Valve Bounce]

I thought it was rather strange the abrubt change in driection across the hatched area when TGF came into the pits. This was very a blatant and clear breaking of the rules. I did not notice him cutting the white line at the exit until the replay. However, I don't think the stewards would have had the courage to penalise both German drivers leading the race in Germany. Maybe they were worried that certain forum members here would accuse them of starting another anti- TGF row.
My prediction is that there will be no explanation from either the stewards nor the FIA - no further comment at all.

[Wrex]

Originally posted by Valve Bounce
Maybe they were worried that certain forum members here would accuse them of starting another anti- TGF row.

Too late for that VB, If he wins, he's hated, if he loses, it's 'I told you so'

BTW, did anyone notice JMP crossing the lines on the exit as well? Only just, but more than TGF, and less than Ralf.

[Wrex]

Oh, And I agree with the Pit entry violation. It was blatent, and potentially dangerous. TGF/Ferrari should have been penalised.

[eatapc]

Valve Bounce, you're probably right. Seeing as how Williams is taking their medicine and not complaining, the FIA has nothing to respond to -- unless someone criticizes the stewards on the record. I'd like to see them respond, however, as decisions this bizarre require an explanantion.

[Gt_R]

Watch the race...is Michael the only driver that crossed the paint at the deceleration zone???

[Liz]

I think the "two German drivers/German race" scenario is the true one. People have gotten more open (Eddie Jordan for one) in pointing out that TGF cheats and Ferrari helps him, and TGF has begun to admit it, and that is about all you can expect. If the rules are one thing for him and one for the rest of the field, and if Bernie thinks a tainted championship for Ferrari is better than an honorable one, then what are the rest of us going to do?

It does confirm to me though that TGF will never, ever be the "greatest driver in the world" - because he is without honour.

[KC]

The one thing that everyone seems to be forgetting is that MS is driving a Ferrari. He won't be penalized unless he can do his penalty after he crosses the finish line for the win. That is how it works in F1.

[bghaw]

LIZ i must agree with you completely. However skilled and balsy MS may be on the track, he will NEVER be the "greatest" driver (at least in my eyes) because he wins without honour.

EATAPC: thanks so much for your clarification of the rules. Now that it's obvious to all that there is a conspiracy that involves the FIA and Ferrari, the question that remains is, HOW MUCH IS FERRARI PAYING THE OFFICIALS??? ********, the day Ferrari ever gets a penalty that would cost them a race - (as was the case this psat weekend and Sepang last season with Hakkinen "jump starting the grid" - he stopped the car on the line and before the lights turned out so there was no reason for his 10 sec penalty) - is the day Minardi wins a race.

Is there anyway for us wee folks here at 10-10ths to get a PUBLIC explanation by the FIA as to why MS was not penalized for HIS infractions, perhaps through letters, annonymous bomb threats, hunger strike, etc??? DAmn it, i felt completely ROBBED of a good race this weekend.

DOWN WITH TGF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[eatapc]

I admire MS; he's head and shoulders above the other drivers in every way. He's good on wet tracks and dry, high downforce tracks or low. He's also a master of car setup, and clearly a team leader. His qualifying session was a thing a beauty; his setup change during the first pit stop was brilliant -- and won him the race even without the stewards' stupidity. He may very well be the greatest driver ever. But just when I think I can root for him wholeheartedly, something like this happens, where he's handed the race on a silver platter. Disgusting.

His gamesmanship at the pit entrance was in violation of both the letter and spirit of the rules, and couldn't have been missed by the stewards. Although I didn't include it in my original post, section C of the rule states, "any driver intending to leave the track or to enter the pits or paddock area shall signal this intention in good time and make sure that it is safe to do so." Fakery at the pit entrance is a clear no-no.

I'm surprised the Williams team is keeping mum about it. I wish one of the "blabbermouth" drivers (are you listening, Eddie?) would mention it in an interview and force an FIA statement, perhaps giving the stewards a public slap on the wrist. It wouldn't put Ralf on the podium, but it would put a damper on suspicions of favoritism and conspiracy.

[Gt_R]

"ONE IS NOT GUILTY UNTIL PROVEN SO~"

[eatapc]

Originally posted by Gt_R
"ONE IS NOT GUILTY UNTIL PROVEN SO~"

Pardon me if I'm being dense, but I don't get your point. This isn't a court of law. I'm alleging that MS committed a blatant rules violation at the pit entrance, and a minor infraction at the pit exit. Unless the live broadcasts of the race were faked, these allegations are as proven as anything can possibly be proven.

I'm not alleging anything else. I'm not a conspiracy theorist. In fact, I believe that large conspiracies are impossible: They always fall apart. If the FIA (or Ferrari) has approached all the stewards at all the tracks and attempted to influence them to show favoritism, then it only takes one honest person (or guilty person with a conscience) to spill the beans and blow the whistle.

In this case, I simply don't understand the stewards' actions (or lack of action). I think they made mistakes. They seem to have applied the rules inconsistently, and that suggests favoritism. The stewards themselves may have a rationale -- I don't know. If you have a good explanation, then I'd love to hear it. Play defense lawyer if you want, but don't be so cryptic.

[Artwinter]

I was under the impression that the white rumble strips at the pitt entrance were to warn the drivers of the end of the outer pit wall? and TGF's tires were on the white line at the end of the pits. where his brother crossed it half way down.TOGF seemed to give up where a guy like Senna would of driven 110% and most likely cought Michael before the end of the race.

Gwen

[bghaw]

Kudos EATAPC; insightful and very thought out response.

Motivation for favoritism?? How about all the money that pours in from Ferrari and MS fans? (ok, so that reason's a bit weak, but what else is there? Does anyone know any inside scoop on the race officials, or who they even are?)

It's races and decisions likes these that make me hate MS even more. In a way, i hope there is a breakaway series.

[eatapc]

Originally posted by gwen
I was under the impression that the white rumble strips at the pitt entrance were to warn the drivers of the end of the outer pit wall? and TGF's tires were on the white line at the end of the pits. where his brother crossed it half way down.TOGF seemed to give up where a guy like Senna would of driven 110% and most likely cought Michael before the end of the race.
Gwen

--The white and red stripes that MS crossed constituted the dividing line between the track and the deceleration lane. Further, he swerved into the lane after seeming to commit himself to another lap.
--MS put his tires on the painted white line at the exit. The tires are part of the car. It's an infraction, albeit a very minor one.
--MS made a change to the setup of his car during the first pit stop. After that, no one was in a position to catch him. The Williams drivers didn't give up; they just weren't as fast as the #1 Ferrari for the second half of the race.

Maybe I'll have to look harder, but I don't see anywhere in the rules where it spells out that punishment for a pit entrance/exit violation is a 10 second stop-and-go penalty. A warning or a fine would seem to be the more sensible punishment for the infractions committed by the Schumacher brothers.

[eatapc]

Just as a follow up to my last post, I did a quick search of the FIA's rulebook (available as PDF documents on their website) and found no specific requirement for the stop-and-go penalty assessed Ralf for his violation. Maybe I missed something. What I did find is this:

"153. Scale of penalties
Penalties may be inflicted as follows in order of increasing
severity :
- reprimand (blame);
- fines;
- time penalty;
- exclusion;
- suspension;
- disqualification."

[EERO]

Originally posted by eatapc
I admire MS; he's head and shoulders above the other drivers in every way. He's good on wet tracks and dry, high downforce tracks or low. He's also a master of car setup, and clearly a team leader. His qualifying session was a thing a beauty; his setup change during the first pit stop was brilliant -- and won him the race even without the stewards' stupidity. He may very well be the greatest driver ever. But just when I think I can root for him wholeheartedly, something like this happens, where he's handed the race on a silver platter. Disgusting.

eatapc, I think you make this arguement very well. I agree that Schumacher is the best. What concerns me is that so many of his victories are tainted when clearly he is so talented. I don't believe that there is an engineered conspiracy, but fishy things do seem to happen where TGF is concerned.

[drexel]

originally posted by eatapc
The white and red stripes that MS crossed constituted the dividing line between the track and the deceleration lane. Further, he swerved into the lane after seeming to commit himself to another lap.

After seeing this, Martin brundle commentated that several of the drivers have been doing this as they found it gives them a bit of extra speed entering the pits. Suddenly everyone here is an expert on the rules yet they failed to notice this happening before.

IMO this is another case of Michael thinking quickly and using the most beneficial move at a crucial moment in the race when most wouldn't have thought it. Note, the shock of it caused Ralf to to overshoot the pitstop and probably also the reason ralf made the mistake of crossing the exit line. Some might be digusted at it, others content. But you can bet some of the other drivers out there would be silently admitting at another ingeneous move by MS. You think you've got a right to be ahead of him coz your cars quicker, think again.

[Ralf's Girl]

Thanks for clarifying that, Eatapc - that makes it pretty obvious that TGF was indeed in breach of the rules.

IMO, however, TGF actually broke the rules three times. At the start, although that one move across the track is permitted (despite being ridiculously dangerous), when did TGF change the rules to allow the much-protested (by his own good self...) second move across the track? And of course, following this, we saw the aforementioned slice across the rumblestrip and cut across the white pit exit line.

So surely TGF should have incurred not one, but two penalties?

[eatapc]

Originally posted by drexel
After seeing this, Martin brundle commentated that several of the drivers have been doing this as they found it gives them a bit of extra speed entering the pits.

Thanks for this info. If the FIA has been allowing the practice, then they have made a mistake. Inevitably, some driver will spin at the pit entrance trying to pick up a few of hundredths of a second on his in-and-out. Considering that MS had another car on his tail and was trying to gain an advantage when he flouted the rule, I can't see any reason to look the other way. The rule is sensible; tolerating the infraction is not.

Did Brundle have anything else to say about it? Did he think MS was doing a smart thing?

[drexel]

Yes, he said it was clever and gave him the 'driver of the day'. MS probably knew it was technically wrong doing it, but he also knew that as of late, others were doing it aswell. He took the risk and got away with it. That I think is the reason why MS is always involved in these 'fishy' affairs is because he is the one that is most likely to be pushing the boundarys. Sometimes he gets away with it and sometimes not. The FIA is not going to punish everything he does and if they did he probably wouldn't do it anymore.

[slicktoast]

If you break a rule and don't get caught(punished)then you really didn't break the rule because you would have been punished if you did break the rule. Therefore what you did was right. So stop blaming MS for something he didn't do wrong even though some people saw him 'not' do it!

[Sodemo]

But hang on, if this is an FIA/Ferrari conspiracy to make the title chase between DC and TGF closer, why did they not penalise TGF then?
They (supposedly) gave Ralf the stop-go, to elevate DC to a higher position, hence closer in the championship.

So the FIA want a close fight, but Ferrari to win it at the end.

Hmmm, makes sense.