F1: Why Schumacher Went Unpenalized By FIA

Formula 1

F1: Why Schumacher Went Unpenalized By FIA

Mercedes driver found not in violation of DRS rule...

Adam Cooper | http://www.speedtv.com | Posted June 24, 2012 Valencia (ESP)

Mercedes' German driver Michael Schumacher drives at the Valencia Street Circuit on June 24, 2012 in Valencia during the European Formula One Grand Prix. (Photo: Getty Images)

The FIA didn’t penalize Schumacher for using his DRS in a yellow flag zone after accepting that he had slowed down enough and that the flag he passed was hard to see.

Schumacher was investigated for speeding through a yellow flag zone in the closing laps of the European GP after Mark Webber – who was behind him – saw that his DRS flap was open.

Webber reported back to his team, and the FIA duly took a look at the situation after the race.

The DRS/yellow flag saga goes back to Suzuka last year, when an incident occurred and several drivers were seen to have used DRS and in some cases KERS through a yellow flag zone.

After that drivers were told that a repeat would be frowned upon by the stewards, and in Barcelona this year both Sebastian Vettel and Felipe Massa received penalties after they drove through a yellow zone with their DRS open and without backing off.

In Schumacher’s case he received a DRS activation in the tow of Narain Karthikeyan. At the same time he was told by his engineer, who knew a yellow had just some out, ‘don’t use DRS.’

However, Michael apparently didn’t see a yellow flag initially and there was no light on his steering wheel – the incident was far around the corner at the end of the straight after the bridge – so at the start of the zone he opened the DRS.

He then passed by a stationary yellow flag which the stewards subsequently accepted was hard to see.

When he reached a more obvious double yellow, which was immediately followed by a yellow light panel, he switched off his DRS and backed off.

Webber meanwhile had seen the open DRS and having been told by his team not to use his he was understandably miffed.

However it was deemed by the stewards that by backing off Michael had slowed down sufficiently and intriguingly it was determined that Webber was actually 0.3s quicker through the same sector…

Adam Cooper notched up his 27th season as a racing journalist in 2011. He has written about F1 for SPEED.com since 2005. Follow him on Twitter.