Japan: Lauda has no complaints about the race management of the GP by the race direction
Niki Lauda believes that the FIA took all possible precautions during the Japanese Grand Prix held at Suzuka despite Jules Bianchi's accident, which is the result of a series of unfortunate factors highlighting the dangers of motorsport.
Despite Jules Bianchi’s accident at the end of the race in Suzuka during the Japanese Grand Prix this Sunday, Niki Lauda – three-time Formula 1 world champion – believes that the FIA race management took all necessary precautions for the smooth running of the race.
Bianchi was taken to the hospital after an accident at turn 7 where he hit a crane that had come to remove Adrian Sutil’s crashed Sauber at the same spot a lap earlier. Even though Lauda acknowledges that the race could have started earlier, he believes the FIA handled things well: « At the start with the safety car, there was nothing wrong. You can’t say something was done badly. It [the Grand Prix] was started in the most cautious manner. »
When asked whether the safety car should have been deployed immediately after Sutil’s accident, Lauda thinks the decision made at the time was the right one: « It’s very difficult to answer because Sutil’s accident was really off track. Under normal circumstances, we wouldn’t discuss it. The car was retrieved immediately, and the corner where you place the car was very close, so I think from that point of view, the decision was right. But if you ask me now, in the end, it was a bad decision. »
The Austrian also believes that it is always easy to criticize in hindsight, especially regarding the idea that the race could have started earlier to avoid the rain associated with Typhoon Phanfone: « Saying after the race that this would have been wise is easy, but in the end, the rain wasn’t the real problem of the race. There were multiple safety car interventions and the race went on safely more or less until the end. So it could have finished without the accident, so darkness wasn’t an issue here I think. »
Lauda thinks that all precautions were taken and that Jules Bianchi’s accident is the result of a combination of circumstances: « Motor racing is dangerous. We get used to it and if something happens, we are all surprised. We should always know that motor racing is very dangerous and this accident today is the result of several things: a car goes off, the crane arrives [to remove it] and then another car goes off the track, so it’s really unfortunate. »
