Clean Clean in Singapore's bad luck
09/27/2011
E Actually, the Singapore GP would have brought a generous number of points for Sauber have to. Sergio Perez and Kamui Kobayashi with their Sauber Ferrari are well equipped for a route with such high tire wear. The white car is a tire stroker.
In the end, however, the Sauber team flew on vacation to Pukhet with only one World Championship point. And that despite the fact that Sergio Perez was almost pushed off the track by his colleagues three times over the course of 61 laps. When the Mexican wanted to use his tire advantage over Sutil and Rosberg in the last few laps, Felipe Massa and Sebastian Vettel got in the way.
During his race to catch up, Massa first met Perez, who was at the end of the three-man pack. In the 60th of 61 laps, Massa squeezed between Sutil and Perez thanks to fresher tires. They had twelve laps less on the tread. And suddenly there was no 61st lap for the group fighting for seventh place. Vettel started to lap. The Red Bull driver couldn't spare the group as Jenson Button approached from behind.
Kobayashi falls victim to technology
Kamui Kobayashi's hopes ended after the safety car phase. At the restart he was together with Trulli and Liuzzi between Vettel and Button. The McLaren only got past the white obstacle after a lap and a half. Vettel had a lead of 8.5 seconds again. The race management gave Kobayashi a drive-through penalty for ignoring the blue flags. Objectively a just punishment. And yet Kobayashi couldn't help it. The signal system did not work properly.
The Sauber command post receives information about the position of the cars in three ways: Page three in the FIA computer, GPS and the automatic flag system that is shown to the driver on the display . The electronic eye only informed the Japanese in turn 18 in the lap of the restart that Button wanted to lap. On turn five of the following lap, Kobayashi let the jostling McLaren driver pass. So actually within what is allowed.
No mercy for Kobayashi
The race management stayed tough anyway. She accused Kobayashi of seeing Button in the mirror. But at night it is difficult to tell the cars apart in the tiny mirrors. Kobayashi assumed that the man behind him was Trulli in the Lotus.
Also a complaint from Sauber team manager BeatZehnder couldn't vote the race management graciously. It would be too much to ask to admit that the electronic surveillance system does not function properly in all circumstances. 'There are actually no problems on normal racetracks. But on street circuits the system sometimes has problems locating,' says Zehnder.
Change to the safety car rules?
The FIA could save itself all the discussions if in the future those lapped in a safety car phase were waved past the front again, so as not to be caught between the cars fighting for the lead and points. But the same drivers who are now calling for it were responsible for ensuring that the rule is the way it is.
At the time, they warned that waving through was dangerous because zigzagging was done in the field To keep tires at temperature. That could lead to collisions if the stragglers overtake to round back. The bad experiences of Button have restarted the discussions about a tension-creating procedure behind the safety car. Changes for 2012 are not excluded.
