user icon
user icon
icon
link-icon
<< Return to the news list
Lauda has shown he knows nothing about safety - Whiting

Lauda has shown he knows nothing about safety - Whiting

  • Published on 09 Jul 2014 13:34
  • comments 0
  • By: Rob Veenstra
F1 race director Charlie Whiting has hit back at Niki Lauda, after the Mercedes team chairman slammed as "ridiculous" the delayed British grand prix. "The chances of it happening again are zero," F1 legend Lauda said as Silverstone track workers were ordered to replace armco fencing damaged by Kimi Raikkonen's crash.

The repairs took an hour. "They (the FIA) take care of every little detail and a lot of people will switch the television off," triple world champion Lauda added. The great Austrian said that because the chance of an identical incident was "zero", a better solution would have been to quickly drag a tyre barrier in front of the damaged armco.

Asked if Lauda has a point, the FIA's Whiting insisted: "Absolutely not. Niki's comment was not very helpful, because he has shown that he knows nothing about safety," he told Germany's Auto Motor und Sport. "It is ridiculous to say that an accident at the same spot will not occur."

"If we had said after Felipe Massa's accident in 2009 that a spring will never again hit a driver's head, then there would not have been the campaign for stronger visors. It should also be mentioned that Kimi emerged basically unhurt from this massive accident, which is proof of how much has been done for the safety of the cars in recent years," added Whiting.

Where Whiting does agree with Lauda, however, is in criticising the Finn for crashing in the first place. "It would have been better," said the Briton, "if Kimi was a little more cautious in cutting back onto the track."

He denied that Silverstone is to blame for the uneven area of grass that unsettled the Ferrari. "This is a problem at every circuit," said Whiting. "It is impossible to make these grass surfaces perfectly even with the track or the curbs. The drivers should be advised that, in future, they should return to the track at a reasonable speed." (GMM)
F1 News Felipe Massa Mercedes Ferrari
<< Previous article Next article >>

Replies (0)

Login to reply

BE Grand Prix of Belgium

Local time 

BE Grand Prix of Belgium

Local time 

Related news

World Championship standings 2021

Pos
Team
Points
1
Mercedes
60
2
Red Bull Racing
53
3
McLaren
41
4
Ferrari
34
5
Aston Martin
7
6
Alpha Tauri
6
7
Alfa Romeo Racing
2
8
Alpine F1
1
Show full world champion standings

Test calendar

Bahrain International Circuit - Winter testing

See full test schedule

Give your opinion!

Will Bottas challenge Hamilton for the world championship in 2020?

Driver profile

BR Felipe Massa
  • Team -
  • Points -
  • Podiums -
  • Grand Prix -
  • Country Brazil
  • Date of b. Apr 21 1981 (39)
  • Place of b. Sao Paulo, Brazil
  • Weight 59 kg
  • Length 1.66 m
Show full profile

Team profile

Mercedes
Mercedes
Show full profile

Formula 1 Calendar - 2021

Date
Grand Prix
Circuit
-
Bahrain
26 - Mar 28
Bahrain
Bahrain International Circuit
16 - Apr 18
Italy
Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari
30 - May 2
Portugal
Autódromo Internacional do Algarve
7 - May 9
Spain
Circuit de Catalunya
21 - May 23
Monaco
Monte Carlo
4 - Jun 6
Azerbaijan
Baku City Circuit
11 - Jun 13
Canada
Gilles Villeneuve
25 - Jun 27
France
Paul Ricard
2 - Jul 4
Austria
Red Bull Ring
16 - Jul 18
United Kingdom
Silverstone
30 - Aug 1
Hungary
Hungaroring
27 - Aug 29
Belgium
Spa-Francorchamps
3 - Sep 5
Netherlands
Circuit Zandvoort
10 - Sep 12
Italy
Monza
24 - Sep 26
Russian
Sochi Autodrom
1 - Oct 3
Singapore
Marina Bay Street Circuit
8 - Oct 10
Japan
Circuit Suzuka
22 - Oct 24
United States of America
Circuit of the Americas
29 - Oct 31
Mexico
Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez
5 - Nov 7
Brazil
Interlagos
19 - Nov 21
Australia
Albert Park
3 - Dec 5
Saudi Arabia
Jeddah Street Circuit
10 - Dec 12
United Arab Emirates
Yas Marina Circuit
See full schedule

Formula 1 Calendar - 2021

Date
Grand Prix & Circuit
-
Bahrain Bahrain International Circuit
26 - Mar 28
Bahrain Bahrain International Circuit
16 - Apr 18
Italy Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari
30 - May 2
Portugal Autódromo Internacional do Algarve
7 - May 9
Spain Circuit de Catalunya
21 - May 23
Monaco Monte Carlo
4 - Jun 6
Azerbaijan Baku City Circuit
11 - Jun 13
Canada Gilles Villeneuve
25 - Jun 27
France Paul Ricard
2 - Jul 4
Austria Red Bull Ring
16 - Jul 18
United Kingdom Silverstone
30 - Aug 1
Hungary Hungaroring
27 - Aug 29
Belgium Spa-Francorchamps
3 - Sep 5
Netherlands Circuit Zandvoort
10 - Sep 12
Italy Monza
24 - Sep 26
Russian Sochi Autodrom
1 - Oct 3
Singapore Marina Bay Street Circuit
8 - Oct 10
Japan Circuit Suzuka
22 - Oct 24
United States of America Circuit of the Americas
29 - Oct 31
Mexico Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez
5 - Nov 7
Brazil Interlagos
19 - Nov 21
Australia Albert Park
3 - Dec 5
Saudi Arabia Jeddah Street Circuit
10 - Dec 12
United Arab Emirates Yas Marina Circuit
See full schedule
show sidebar