Driver Ho-Pin Tung expects Formula 1 regulations to be revised again after the chaotic Japanese Grand Prix. After much confusion, it turns out that Max Verstappen won the world title last Sunday. A look back at the Suzuka race.
Veel journalisten en zelfs teamleden en coureurs zaten ernaast, maar had jij tijdens de race al wél in de gaten dat er volwaardige punten zouden worden uitgedeeld?
“Achteraf is het natuurlijk makkelijk praten, maar inderdaad: ik had het al wel gezien. Tijdens de onderbreking na de rode vlag twitterde ik een screenshot van artikel 6.5 uit het reglementenboek. Daarin staat bovenaan dat dit artikel zou gelden als de race niet zou worden hervat. Met dat zinnetje begon ik mijn desbetreffende tweet ook. Maar de race werd dus wel herstart en dat betekende dus eigenlijk dat artikel 6.5 niet meer van toepassing was. Maar als iedereen – inclusief de teams – zegt dat het anders is, ga je toch een beetje aan jezelf twijfelen.”
“Het commentaar dat je nu gaat krijgen, is of dat artikel eigenlijk wel is opgeschreven zoals het bedoeld is. Dat is het hele probleem. Na de verregende race met een paar rondes achter de safetycar van vorig jaar in Spa is dat artikel aangepast. Maar het ging vooral om aanpassingen in relatie tot de safetycar en virtual safetycar. Namelijk dat er nu onder groen daadwerkelijk twee rondes geracet moeten worden. Pas als de race dan nog wordt stilgelegd en niet meer wordt herstart, komt er een andere puntentelling.”
“Het heeft wel wat parallellen met de laatste race van vorig jaar. Toen werden de regels na Abu Dhabi ook aangepast. En ik denk dat dit nu opnieuw gaat gebeuren, want ik kan me niet voorstellen dat dit zo bedoeld is.”
Deze inhoud kan helaas niet worden getoondWij hebben geen toestemming voor de benodigde cookies. Aanvaard de cookies om deze inhoud te bekijken.
Can you explain why not?
“With these regulations, full points will always be awarded when waving the finish flag. Let’s say the race was stopped yesterday and we could only start the race again only fifteen minutes before the time limit expired, then Verstappen would still have the max with a victory but if there is Red light Five minutes before the end of time yesterday, Verstappen would not have had the full points, while the drivers would have completed several laps in this case.
“If you read the rules, it would be very clear and you can’t get a word between them. The FIA regulates the sport according to the rulebook and therefore it did it right. The question is whether these rules are like the teams, the drivers and maybe even the FIA itself, that’s another discussion. It’s no coincidence that almost all journalists and team members thought things would be different, even Christian Horner didn’t know. I can’t imagine articles related to these positions in the regulations. He won’t write differently next year. It’s strange that now this is happening again after the finale. The tournament in which Verstappen won the title.”
Verstappen is already a champion with four races to go, an unprecedented feat. What happened – if we zoom in – this year make the difference?
“At the start of the race during the race, when the drivers were slowly driving through chicane, there was a low shot that clearly showed the Red Bull is relatively high. You can see very well under the car.”
“On the complete law It’s going to be higher anyway, but Red Bull is the only team that has barely had any issues with porpoises, the uncontrolled bouncing of the car when it’s too low on the asphalt. From the moment the car entered the track, Red Bull was able to focus on improving performance, while the other teams had to control the porpoises.”
“Look at Ferrari, for example. This team probably made the best car in the first place. Of course, the porpoise pit rules were tightened in the spa, that probably didn’t help them either. But if you look at it overall, Red Bull’s new regulations have That… best explained and just built a very smart and efficient car.”
“Red Bull was overweight at the start of the season, but the team managed to reduce the weight during the season. In addition to that, Red Bull is also getting more and more benefit from the car through modifications and upgrades. As a result, the team is now in all circuits and competitive In all situations. Meaning they are now at a level where they are almost unbeatable.”
Unfortunately, this content cannot be displayedWe do not have permission for necessary cookies. Please accept cookies to view this content.
How did Verstappen make the difference?
“He was flawless and in control. We have often criticized Ferrari this year. It was often justified. But Ferrari and Charles Leclerc make some mistakes, because Verstappen doesn’t make those mistakes. Look at Budapest, for example, where they forced Ferrari On the situation in which they have to risk. After that, Ferrari is mocked for choosing the hard tyre. Verstappen had a small turn, but that didn’t matter. This also confirmed his dominance again, because then he easily outperformed Leclerc again albeit He wasn’t strong in this race, maybe they wouldn’t have taken so much risk and made mistakes like that.”
“Also in Japan it looked very easy again and Verstappen won by a big margin, but it certainly wasn’t easy for him. The conditions were very tough, but he just drove a clear race. This race was demonstrating his dominance this season. The ease with which he walked away, he played Along with the rest. It was amazing and very impressive to watch.”