Alexander Wurz reflects on the Suzuka crane incident
The incident that occurred at the last Suzuka Grand Prix, when a crane entered the track while the drivers were still on it, had sparked anger within the paddock. Alexander Wurz revisits this incident and defends Pierre Gasly.
We can understand Pierre Gasly’s anger when he almost came face-to-face with a crane during the last edition of the Japanese Grand Prix, sadly reminding us that after Jules Bianchi’s fatal crash in 2014 under the same circumstances, the lesson had not been learned.
As a reminder, after Carlos Sainz’s off-track incident on the first lap, a safety car was deployed. Pierre Gasly, at the back of the pack, is catching up to the others to position himself behind the safety car when the race management ultimately decides to wave a red flag. It is only a few seconds later that Gasly narrowly avoids the intervention vehicle, traveling at over 200 km/h and with limited visibility due to the rain.
Obviously, the Frenchman is furious while the FIA accuses him of excessive speed.
In an interview for Planet F1, Alexander Wurz, president of the GPDA, reflects on this event.
« We now know that there was a flaw in the software at Suzuka, and that Pierre Gasly’s delta time did not indicate the safety speeds as it should have in such situations. Once again, critical voices will say that it is the responsibility of the drivers to fully respect the yellow flags, make no mistake. However, leaving the decisions to individuals under pressure simply leaves gaps in terms of safety, and we have clearly concluded that the individual, whose sole job is to optimize performance 99.9% of the time, is simply not the most effective and consistent agent to make such decisions in a matter of seconds. »
The president of the GPDA continues: « In order to protect the marshals and distressed drivers, it is much more coherent and effective for the race direction, with its team, to be able to neutralize the race by pressing a button, in order to obtain a more consistent result than relying solely on “stressed” athletes who often do not have a complete view of things like a tractor with marshals on the racing line. »
Following the investigation conducted by the FIA after the 2022 Japanese Grand Prix, several measures have been implemented. For example, teams are now notified by the FIA if a recovery vehicle is on track in order to inform their drivers. On the other hand, the race management is using a new screen that displays the status of all the cars: in the pits, behind the safety car, or on track.
