Horner surprised by the FIA’s decision on the fences
The team principal of Red Bull said he was "surprised" by the decision of the FIA to forbid engineers from climbing on the fences of the pit wall. However, he respects this decision.
Before the start of the Australian Grand Prix race weekend, the race director Niels Wittich had notified through a note from the FIA the formal prohibition for engineers to climb on the fences of the pit wall when cars pass the finish line. This decision surprised Red Bull boss Christian Horner.
Niel Wittich thus put an end to an old tradition in Formula 1. The race director has notified this prohibition after engineers from Red Bull and Aston Martin climbed on the inclined part of the pit wall fence in Jeddah as cars passed by the finish line, fearing a serious accident risk. Christian Horner expressed surprise at this decision, although he respects it: “I was surprised that it was a problem. I believe that anything related to safety must obviously be taken very seriously,” says Horner.
The end of a tradition
Even though Christian Horner respects this decision for safety reasons, he still regrets the end of an old tradition in Formula 1, citing the fact that there has never been a problem with it: “It’s quite an iconic moment when you see a Grand Prix car finish a race and its team celebrate on a fence,” deplores the Briton. “I always thought it was part of the races, and we managed to do it 94 times without any problems,” Horner continues. It is worth noting that the wall along the Melbourne pit lane is equipped with glass panels, unlike the traditional mesh fence. Therefore, it is difficult for the engineers to climb on it.
