[Richard C]

Originally Posted by wnut

The issue of not leaving a car width from the edge of the track to a car alongside you though would appear to be absolutely clear cut, perhaps some painted lines on the track designating a car width from the circuit edge would be in order. You can weave as much as you like, but you must stay on one side or the other of the marked line.

Can someone point to me any documentation as to the exact understanding of this rule? I know there is more to it than just a "cars width". See my concerns below...

Originally Posted by Tourer

I know what you mean but I disagree with the idea of painted lines on the track surface - just one more thing to cause traction loss and in wet conditions simply adds to risk.

While the traction issue is one practical concern, there are others. Where do the lines start, where do they end? Then, that only speaks to "width". How do we measure relative location of one car to the other? Do we need calibrated graduations to be painted on the cars so that we can see just how far one car is up on the other? What about perspective of the camera vs. centerline of the track. The list of complexities going on and on.

IMHO, this is an extremely pedantic approach and very much counter to what most (not all) people want to see. I do realize that for the "rules is rules" folks (which I fit into that group, but mostly on the technical regulations side), my comments might be viewed as heretical and an anathema to all that is "driving standards".

I also don't think the sky is falling with the introduction of black/white flag. That all of a sudden "all is fair and all you might get is a black/white flag".

Originally Posted by Tourer

I think that one of the things many get wrong when discussing consistency (including Mr Palmer in the video) is comparing stewards decisions now with those taken in previous years. There's a new rule book issued each year, fresh briefings and changes made to how the sport is run, even though sometimes those changes are minor. We can see that right now for example with the re-introduction of the "bad sportsmanship" flag being used in Grands Prix.

I also think that the Vettel penalty in Canada this year was something of a watershed and it certainly appears that the approach taken to judging on-track moments has altered since then - no doubt discussed at some length in drivers briefings.

Agree. Its clear that both "how" the stewards work and the desired outcome are different now than before. If this is a true inflection point, then it's really impossible to compare before vs after and expect consistency because by definition... they should be different.

As we had consistency issues before, there is no reason to not think it will happen now as well. And with any change, it may be rocky for awhile. And who knows... after awhile we all (including myself) might decide it was a bad idea. Or we might love it!

Richard