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

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
614.5
2
Red Bull Racing
585.5
3
Ferrari
323.5
4
McLaren
275
5
Alpine F1
158
6
Alpha Tauri
137
7
Aston Martin
77
8
Williams
23
9
Alfa Romeo Racing
13
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 BR
  • Date of b. Apr 21 1981 (40)
  • Place of b. Sao Paulo, BR
  • 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 2021
Bahrain
Bahrain International Circuit
16 - Apr 18 2021
Italy
Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari
30 - May 2 2021
Portugal
Autódromo Internacional do Algarve
7 - May 9 2021
Spain
Circuit de Catalunya
20 - May 23 2021
Monaco
Monte Carlo
4 - Jun 6 2021
Azerbaijan
Baku City Circuit
18 - Jun 20 2021
France
Paul Ricard
25 - Jun 27 2021
Austria
Red Bull Ring
2 - Jul 4 2021
Austria
Red Bull Ring
16 - Jul 18 2021
United Kingdom
Silverstone
30 - Aug 1 2021
Hungary
Hungaroring
27 - Aug 29 2021
Belgium
Spa-Francorchamps
3 - Sep 5 2021
Netherlands
Circuit Zandvoort
10 - Sep 12 2021
Italy
Monza
24 - Sep 26 2021
Russian
Sochi Autodrom
8 - Oct 10 2021
Japan
Circuit Suzuka
8 - Oct 10 2021
Turkey
Istanbul Park
22 - Oct 24 2021
United States of America
Circuit of the Americas
5 - Nov 7 2021
Mexico
Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez
12 - Nov 14 2021
Brazil
Interlagos
19 - Nov 21 2021
Qatar
Losail International Circuit
3 - Dec 5 2021
Saudi Arabia
Jeddah Street Circuit
10 - Dec 12 2021
United Arab Emirates
Yas Marina Circuit
-
United Arab Emirates
See full schedule

Formula 1 Calendar - 2021

Date
Grand Prix & Circuit
-
Bahrain Bahrain International Circuit
26 - Mar 28 2021
Bahrain Bahrain International Circuit
16 - Apr 18 2021
Italy Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari
30 - May 2 2021
Portugal Autódromo Internacional do Algarve
7 - May 9 2021
Spain Circuit de Catalunya
20 - May 23 2021
Monaco Monte Carlo
4 - Jun 6 2021
Azerbaijan Baku City Circuit
18 - Jun 20 2021
France Paul Ricard
25 - Jun 27 2021
Austria Red Bull Ring
2 - Jul 4 2021
Austria Red Bull Ring
16 - Jul 18 2021
United Kingdom Silverstone
30 - Aug 1 2021
Hungary Hungaroring
27 - Aug 29 2021
Belgium Spa-Francorchamps
3 - Sep 5 2021
Netherlands Circuit Zandvoort
10 - Sep 12 2021
Italy Monza
24 - Sep 26 2021
Russian Sochi Autodrom
8 - Oct 10 2021
Japan Circuit Suzuka
8 - Oct 10 2021
Turkey Istanbul Park
22 - Oct 24 2021
United States of America Circuit of the Americas
5 - Nov 7 2021
Mexico Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez
12 - Nov 14 2021
Brazil Interlagos
19 - Nov 21 2021
Qatar Losail International Circuit
3 - Dec 5 2021
Saudi Arabia Jeddah Street Circuit
10 - Dec 12 2021
United Arab Emirates Yas Marina Circuit
-
United Arab Emirates Yas Marina Circuit
See full schedule
show sidebar