Coulthard: “We saw some classic Schumacher”
The total defense by Michael Schumacher against Lewis Hamilton during the Italian Grand Prix continues to make headlines.
David Coulthard, in turn, gives his opinion on Michael Schumacher’s behavior during the race in Monza.
For more than 30 laps, the Mercedes driver defended his position in a “very severe” manner according to Martin Whitmarsh, head of McLaren.
The former Red Bull and McLaren driver, David Coulthard, who comments on the Grand Prix for the BBC, believes we saw a “classic” Schumacher in Italy: « My point of view, based on the footage we saw, was that his behavior was right on the limit, but he didn’t exceed it. It was classic Schumacher behavior. He went as far as he could.
For the Scotsman, the sports regulations are not very clear on this matter: «I don’t know if we will ever be able to judge this maneuver with certainty. The problem is that article 20.2 of the regulations is not clear. It states that a change of direction to protect one’s position is allowed, but it does not specify the extent of this change. The problem also is that the stewards are different from one race to another. Therefore, the interpretations of the regulations also differ. »
Coulthard is not short of ideas to try to improve the situation: «The only way to be consistent would be to measure the exact level of deviation of Michael’s trajectory last Sunday and compare it to Hamilton’s in Malaysia at the start of the season. Formula 1 is supposed to be at the pinnacle of technology, an evolution in this direction would be logical.»
Since his return to competition, Michael Schumacher may not be making headlines with his results and victories, but he is certainly getting a lot of attention for his maneuvers that many consider dubious. Rubens Barrichello experienced this in Hungary last year when the German driver squeezed him against the pit wall at over 200 km/h. Schumacher then apologized to the Brazilian…
