Formula 0.5

[call_me_andrew]

Why bother starting the race if you're just going to run the first third of the race behind the saftey car?

I can understand it being needed if the track was going to take 5-10 laps to get dry enough for racing, but 19 is just silly. Surely they have some equipment for removing water from the track other than the racecars themselves.

[Ranger]

For sure, that was just dumb. I nearly fell asleep during the first half hour coz it was such a joke.

[BeansBeansBeans]

I thought Charlie Whiting did well to get the race underway. If the drivers had had their way we wouldn't have had a race at all.

[Ranger]

In the end, yes he did a good job. But he had no way of determining if the track was better or worse than say, on lap 9 other than Liuzzi. I still think it was a roll of the dice.

I'm surprised they didnt put a safety car out for Wurz's mishap. In the wet on the tarmac exit of turn one that could have been nasty.

[tinchote]

It think it's all about the tv schedule. Many companies around the World have bought the rights to the show, and they only have their 2 hour slot to show it.

As far as I can see, the only mistake they made is to take so many laps to realize it was possible to race. As Brundle said, if the cars are not aquaplanning in the straight, it is possible to race.

[ShiftingGears]

I thought Charlie Whiting did well to get the race underway. If the drivers had had their way we wouldn't have had a race at all.

Yeah, I do think some drivers are a little soft, in that respect...

[call_me_andrew]

As far as I can see, the only mistake they made is to take so many laps to realize it was possible to race. As Brundle said, if the cars are not aquaplanning in the straight, it is possible to race.

I think one of the drivers complained that that was happening while the saftey car was out.

And I'm sure that TV networks can just preempt their programing if the race starts late. That's just the risk you take with sports broadcasting.

Couldn't they dry the track with saftey vehicles rather than leave it to 22 race cars? To me, watching the first third of the race was like watching the 2005 USGP. It's funny because it's pathedic.

[cosmicpanda]

To be fair, there was some interesting strategy happening, with the teams gambling about the safety car remaining out for the rest of the race. And the on-board camera shots were spectacular.

That said, I wouldn't want it to happen regularly.

[Mark]

If they had ran safety car to the end it would have been complete farce if they then awarded points for that.

The rules state that if you have completed 75% of race distance you can get full points, I would extend that to also say that if 75% of the race is under safety car, then the event is deemed to have been cancelled.

[nigelred5]

Why bother starting the race if you're just going to run the first third of the race behind the saftey car?

I can understand it being needed if the track was going to take 5-10 laps to get dry enough for racing, but 19 is just silly. Surely they have some equipment for removing water from the track other than the racecars themselves.

They don't use things like jet dryers in F1. It also rarely appears they have any where near as many track maintainence or safety vehicles as we are accustomed to here in North America. In F1 they are supposed to be well equipped and manly enough not to need it. ;) It was raining pretty hard, but It was rediculous putting them out there with the amount of water on the track only to run under the SC. In most N.A. road course racing, they would have had the fleet of track vehicles and at least one jet dryer running around at least blowing the worst parts of circuit clear of standing water prior to grid time. They may still have started under a full course yellow/ SC, but the track would have been safer.

[ShiftingGears]

If they had ran safety car to the end it would have been complete farce if they then awarded points for that.


Agreed, that was my biggest concern throughout those painful 19 laps.