Formula 1 disqualification...

[accuratehorn]

gives victory to Felipe Massa and Ferrari after Hamilton crossed the finish line first, celebrated, got the champagne, got the trophy. That sucks.
I guess he didn't back off quite enough after passing Kimi Raikonnen by shortcutting a corner, then allowing Kimi back in front of him, which the rules state you must do.
That was an exiting last few laps in the rain, for those who watched.
The ruling moved Hamilton down to third place, 25 second penalty. That kind of stuff sucks, reading about it a day later.

 

[Hornin Hong Kong]

saw it - looked a bit like kimi foced him out but i guess thats the breaks

 

[Napoleon]

Hamilton's a cheating BEEEAAAATTTCCCCHHHH!!!!

South America RULEZZZZ!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[accuratehorn]

Maybe he pushed the envelope, but I don't consider it blatant cheating. You can't pass someone in motorcar racing by leaving the confines of the track and reentering ahead of the other driver. If you do, you must back off and let the other car by. Hamilton did this, but he just barely let Kimi ahead, then repassed him on the next corner.
How far ahead to you have to let the other driver go? Is this clear in the rules? Seems a little nit-picky to me, as Hamilton had the faster car and would have passed soon anyhow.
And shouldn't South Americans stick to herding llamas and playing soccer?

 

[Napoleon]

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[LondonOllie]

I can't be arsed to get into a S.America vs Europe thread because it's stupid. I'll just stick to the subject at hand.

McLaren reacts to penalty



McLaren has issued some more statements about the decision of the FIA Stewards in Belgium.

"Following our decision to register our intention to appeal the penalty handed out to Lewis Hamilton by the FIA Stewards at the 2008 Belgian Grand Prix, we hereby confirm that we have now lodged notice of appeal," said team boss Martin Whitmarsh. "From the pit wall, we then asked Race Control to confirm that they were comfortable that Lewis had allowed Kimi to repass, and they confirmed twice that they believed that the position had been given back in a manner that was 'OK'. If Race Control had instead expressed any concern regarding Lewis’s actions at that time, we would have instructed Lewis to allow Kimi to repass for a second time."

Hamilton himself has made the following statement.

"In the closing stages of the race I was catching Kimi consistently, lap by lap, and with three laps remaining I got close enough to attempt to overtake him on the entry to the last chicane. I managed to get slightly ahead of him in the braking area for the first apex of the chicane. He fought back approaching the second apex - but, in doing so, he left no room for me on the inside line. The only way for me to avoid a collision was therefore to cut inside the second apex. I came out of the second apex in front of Kimi and so I momentarily lifted-off on the straight, to ensure that Kimi got back in front. The team also came on the radio and instructed me to allow Kimi to repass, which I had already done. As a result, Kimi crossed the start/finish line ahead of me and 6.7km/h quicker than me. After allowing Kimi to completely repass, I crossed from the left side of the track to the right side of the track, passing behind Kimi in the process. I then attacked Kimi on the inside of the first corner, and successfully outbraked him."

I watched the race and thought Hamilton backed off and then took him in the next corner. The race should stand with Hamilton as the winner. Sour grapes if they don't overturn it if you ask me.

 

[pescado_rojo]

I agree with Ollie. Lewis let Kimi get completely in front of him. So far in front, in fact that Lewis was able to cross from right to left behind him. Not sure how much further he should be required to let Kimi move ahead. And Kimi most definately chopped him hard to force him to cut the chicane.

I have a feeling that had Lewis not given up the line, and they had both crashed out, they would have handed Lewis a 10 spot grid penilty at Monza.

I'm starting to think the "F" in F1 stands for Ferrari.

 

[accuratehorn]

If the rule isn't spelled out any clearer, I don't see why Hamilton should have been penalized-he did let the Ferrari go back ahead of him momentarily. What are you supposed to do, let them lap you before you resume the chase?
Sounds like an affirmative action ruling for disadvantaged South American drivers.

 

[Owlhorn]

As soon as I saw it I knew he would be penalized. I've heard drivers talk about this from drivers meetings before, so wasn't surprised. Read Massa's comments on Speed's site, and he basically echoed what I have heard before in such situations.

 

[mandingo]

I don't know what Massa said, but I'll go there next. Trulli also apparently agreed with Massa...The Link

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[mandingo]

Wow. I just went and read Massa's comments and he said almost the same thing i said, except, of course, he brought up a great point I hadn't thought of...

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[accuratehorn]

I don't agree. I find the stewards ruling arbitrary and capricious, and hope it is overturned. The end result may well be that instead of every track having their own stewards, and I see that at Monza there will be three Italians holding down the posts, probably Enzo Ferrari's cousins from Florence, that there may soon be a set of professionals that do this job at all tracks.
a) Hamilton left the track at a chicane and reentered ahead of Raikkonen-that is true, he gained an advantage.
b) Hamilton backed off and let Kimi ahead, and Kimi had a 6 km per hour advantage on the pit straightaway. He didn't let Kimi ahead by much, though, I'll admit that. There's where the grey area intrudes.
c) Hamilton outbraked Raikkonen approaching the next corner, and made the pass. Kimi slowed more than Lewis in the wet conditions.
d) The Ferrari struck the back of the McLaren, but I don't know if it was materially damaged.
e) Raikkonen spun off shortly thereafter, and many other cars did as well. Raikkonen spun three times a couple of races ago when it rained, and Hamilton was able to bring his car home with a victory, when I believe pretty much every car had trouble staying on the track. It seems Hamilton can keep his McLaren pointed straight in these diabolical conditions better than the other F1 pilots.
f) The original attempt to pass Kimi was not that out of line in F1 racing, and Hamilton did get a nose ahead. Agreed Kimi had the inside line and did not have to relinquish it, but the move was not totally unwarranted.
g) The bottom line is the fans were robbed of seeing the victory on the track. The stewards had the option of assessing a penalty on the grid of the next race, which might have been more appropriate. Could the fact that Monza is the fastest F1 track have been a factor? A grid penalty is easier to make up there than at any other track. If your top speed is higher, you will pass more cars more easily than at other tracks.
The violation is questionable, the decision capricious, the fans feel robbed, and the appeal may well succeed. Not the end of the world or anything, I just don't like it.

 

[ViperHorn]

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[accuratehorn]

That's obviously how the stewards ruled, and the ruling may stand-we'll see how the appeal goes.

 

[accuratehorn]

I see they clarified the rule for Monza. Any car leaving the track and passing another, which happened several times, would let the car repass, then they had to wait until the next corner, then they could attempt to repass.
Too bad this wasn't spelled out so clearly previously, would have prevented the controversy.