Know what is article 15.3 of the FIA F1 sporting regulations and how it allowed racing director Michael Masi to have the final say at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2021
Cruising to his eighth F1 title, Lewis Hamilton saw things turn on their head for him as Nicholas Latifi crashed into the barrier with five laps remaining. What ensued was complete mayhem with The FIA race director Michael Masi left Mercedes livid with his decision making with the side eventually going onto launch a double protest as Max Verstappen won his first ever drivers’ championship title.
Explained What Is Article 15.3 Which Allowed The FIA Stewards To Dismiss The Protest Lodged By Mercedes
After initially refusing cars to overtake as the safety car was deployed and Verstappen was called in by Red Bull to pit for new soft tyres, Michael Masi instructed five but not all lapped cars to pass leader Hamilton. It saw Verstappen restart the race from directly behind his title rival on the final lap, a move Mercedes went onto protest.
The protest was lodged on the grounds of a breach of Article 48.12 of the FIA’s Sporting Regulations which states that “Any cars that have been lapped by the leader will be required to pass the cars on the lead lap and the Safety Car and also once the last lapped car has passed the leader, the Safety Car will return to the pits at the end of the following lap”.
However, the protest was thrown out by the FIA stewards to see Verstappen remain as champion with a statement being released citing the use of Article 15.3 to determine the final ruling.
Verstappen is World Champion, as he should be.
Still a lot of questions about the use of SR 48.12 and 48.13, but I think 15.3 is broad enough to give Masi overriding authority on all SC decisions.
Which, also is something I'd like tightened up. I'd like clarity#AbuDhabiGP
— Chain Bear (@chainbear) December 12, 2021
As much is don't like Masi and they chaos he creates with his handling on races. He has every right to decide on what happens on safety car. And you cannot overturn decision cause in your mind it was not right you can overturn if it was illegal by the rules. pic.twitter.com/TWRj27Ab0R
— Karol Gutkowski (@nopelelelele) December 12, 2021
The statement from the stewards read, “That Article 15.3 allows the Race Director to control the use of the safety car, which in our determination includes its deployment and withdrawal.
That although Article 48.12 may not have been applied fully, in relation to the safety car returning to the pits at the end of the following lap, Article 48.13 overrides that and once the message “Safety Car in this lap” has been displayed, it is mandatory to withdraw the safety car at the end of that lap.