Formula 3 drivers praised the decision to send the Safety Car out when rain began to fall during today’s race at Silverstone.
The Safety Car was deployed after rain began to fall on the eighth lap of the race. No incidents had occured at that point, though all drivers bar Gregoire Saucy had started the race on slicks.Not all drivers used the opportunity to pit for wet weather tyres. Only one driver among the top 10 runners, Luke Browning, replaced his slicks, though many outside the points positions chose to.
It comes after last weekend’s incident where Van ’T Hoff was killed in a high-speed crash at Spa-Francorchamps during a very wet Formula Regional round.
The race was won by Franco Colapinto, who drives for the same MP Motorsport team the late Van ‘T Hoff belonged to. He believes another crash was likely to happen if the Safety Car wasn’t used immediately.
“I think the right decision was to call a safety car or a red flag,” said Colapinto, who dedicated his victory to Van ’T Hoff.
“The race was quite risky with staying on slicks with the amount of water that was falling on the track. So I think it was the right thing to do.
Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and
“We are working with the stewards and [race] director just for him to understand a little bit more what we need and how the conditions are on the car, because it’s not the same as what you see on the TV.
“It’s also really difficult for them to make the right decision, and with the things that have been happening last weekend of course we are putting more emphasis on that.
“I think the race being under a Safety Car, even if there was no incident at that moment, it was for sure to prevent some other accident, because with the amount of water falling down on track something was going to happen for sure.”
Those thoughts were echoed by Gabriel Bortoleto, who finished second. “I agree that a safety car was the right decision,” said Bortoleto.
“And congratulations to the stewards on putting the safety car straight away from the beginning of the rain, because it could have been much worse if someone spun in the middle of the straight and that can happen like what happened last week.
“So, I think the Safety Car was even better than a red flag because there was not much spray on-track so we could see everything and there was no danger at all.”
Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and
Rookie Christian Mansell, who finished third, added his praise for how the stewards handled the situation following’s last weekend’s crash.
“The reason why I think they brought the safety car out is to just neutralise the threat of any possibility of spinning,” said Mansell. “I think a red flag would have been a bit overkill just because there wasn’t that much spray. It was obviously wet and we’re obviously on slicks, that is dangerous in itself.
“But I think it was a good call by the stewards to just put the Safety Car [out]. Obviously in the back of our minds is what happened last week and they’ve obviously made a step so I’m proud to see that.”
Bringing the F1 news from the source
RaceFans strives to bring its readers news directly from the key players in Formula 1. We are able to do this thanks in part to the generous backing of our RaceFans Supporters.
By contributing £1 per month or £12 per year (or the equivalent in other currencies) you can help cover the costs involved in producing original journalism: Travelling, writing, creating, hosting, contacting and developing.
We have been proudly supported by our readers for over 10 years. If you enjoy our independent coverage, please consider becoming a RaceFans Supporter today. As a bonus, all our Supporters can also browse the site ad-free. Sign up or find out more via the links below:
Formula 3
- Edgar claims first F3 win in finale as Prema seal teams’ title
- How a WhatsApp message from Alonso put Bortoleto on course for the F3 title
- Colapinto beats new champion Bortoleto to Monza sprint race win
- Bortoleto clinches F3 title as rivals fail to win bonus points for pole
- Formula 2 drops Zandvoort and adds Qatar on 28-race calendar for 2024
Lucky
8th July 2023, 23:43
What is going on with F3 and the drivers “praising” the safety car? Was is a downpour where you couldn’t see in front of them? Yes, it was raining, but that’s what the rain tires are for…. Deploying the safety car once it starts raining is a total farce! Only when it starts to come down should a safety car be deployed..
Owen Smart (@smartez)
9th July 2023, 3:17
Healthy and safety gone mad
Dex
9th July 2023, 9:41
Absolute disgrace for the whole organization and such drivers too. The safest way is not to race, so get out of the sport and leave it to real drivers. I understand avoiding unnecessary risks and extreme conditions, but choosing not to race because the rain had started… Give the money back to the fans, honestly (as Vettel would say)… Cowards. I imagine now they would reply with “you’re not the one driving”, but you know what, neither did you. And I don’t get to skip my job on tougher days. I expected that drivers would be furious, but then I find this article…
Prashanth Ramadas
17th July 2023, 0:05
I like the tv graphics which is improving daily.