Safety car starts in Austria

The debut of the new generation of F2 single-seaters is not without pain: since the start of the season, the cars equipped with the brand new Mecachrome V6 turbo engine have been regularly stalling. The French company has worked on numerous solutions, especially after the avalanche of problems encountered at Paul Ricard.

Nevertheless, the Provençal event only took place last week, and if new parts were brought to Austria, they could not be tested and validated on the mule car, as is traditionally the case. To make a quick assessment, a specific slot was given at the end of the only practice session for the drivers to simulate a start. The data collected was then handed over to the FIA for analysis.

On a track as short and narrow as the Red Bull Ring, having a car stopped in the middle of the grid would pose a significant risk for all the drivers behind. Asked about the issue following his third place in qualifying, Sergio Sette Camara stated that it was obviously not an ideal situation but that, in the current situation, the different drivers were particularly attentive during the start phases to handle this kind of situations.

But the organizers did not want to take unnecessary risks and therefore made the wise decision that the starts of both races over the weekend would be held under the safety car regime: the said car will lead the pack during the formation lap before stepping aside so the race can proceed. Bruno Michel, the CEO of the category, stated: « This is not an ideal situation, but driver safety is our number one priority. Since we don’t have the time to conduct tests and properly validate a definitive solution to the start problems, the FIA’s decision is clearly the safest one. »

This solution indeed has the merit of avoiding any problems during the momentum phase, without depriving the race of a single lap. We can only be pleased that only the performance level will matter and not the lottery of a potential technical problem. The drivers will have complete freedom to showcase themselves and no longer simply use it as an excuse for explaining a potential underperformance.

However, that doesn’t stop a driver like Santino Ferrucci, who has been under Haas’s protection for three seasons, from complaining again about such a solution.

This is F2. We now start under safety car, very professional I must say. Why can’t we just bring the V8 engine back??? I get we have to move forward with technology but we clearly miss understood the word “forward”. https://t.co/PdgP6bvez7

— Santino Ferrucci (@SantinoFerrucci) June 29, 2018

But his magnificent 14th place in today’s qualifications is certainly caused by his mechanics or the work of his mechanics, as he hinted during the race last week…

From our special correspondent in Austria