Blue Flag Rule Discussion

[xxChrisxx]

I do have some sympathy with their concerns about how much time they loose lap after lap - it makes their races look pretty shabby.

Well the answer i'd be inclined to give to that is, build a faster car then you won't have the problem of being lapped.

You can't build a slow car, then complain that the rules casuse you to be disadvantaged becuase your car is so slow, it's not the rules' fault. Also it's the same for ALL back markers.

The backmarkers may as well just ask for a two lap headstart as a handicap.

[raymondu999]

How about not allowing lapped guys to defend instead? That would seem like a good middle solution.

[spinmastermic]

But Vettel can't overtake and look what happened to Webber when he came up against Kovi. Red Bull would be fudged, its not their fault everyone brakes earlier than them.

[Tomba]

Getting rid of blue flags is never going to work and will always play in the disadvantage of some others. The point scorers are the most important cars in a race, and they should be a little bit protected.

Even with the single overtaking position, a driver catching up on turn 2 has to stick behind the lapped car for a whole lap, allowing others behind him to catch up. Then at turn 1, both of them will easily pass at the same time. Next lap, they find another lapped car who was 5 seconds ahead of the other, and so on...

Race leaders often have to lap 20 cars or more during a race, and if they would have to queue behind them for every single one, with on average half a lap, you lose 10 laps of action, and gain even more whining about lack of overtakings.

Anyway, Fernandes won't have to worry that much about blue flags, as I think they'll do much better next year as well

[xxChrisxx]

Branson, the main backer of newcomer Virgin Racing, agreed with Fernandes, as he reckons the sport would be more entertaining without them.

The sport would also be more entertaining with oil slicks, banana skins that makes opponents spin and green turtle shells that can you can throw at people.

It's not going to happen though.

"It would be a lot more fun if they didn't have blue flags," said Branson. "I am sure some of the more established teams would not like it, but it is a racing track and they should not have to be told to pull over.

"If that is what Tony is saying, I definitely agree with him. It doesn't sound like racing - and it makes a bit of a mockery of the sport."

Who the --- does he think he is? He'll be buying a football team next and appealing to the FA that it just isn't fair they can't use their hands to score goals.

[Belatti]

The blue flag rules are ok, I would only change this:

Title contenders that are 1 lap down because a puncture/spin/accident should not be blue flagged.

Imagine the fight for the title in the last race between 2 drivers, one leading (but being followed closely and being obliged to win to clinch the title) and the other contender a lap down because of a problem but making life hard to the leading one... it doesnt matter if he is a lap down he should be able to fight.

[gibells]

Good point. I think there should be a distance threshold whereby if the lappees only need move-over if the lappers are within, say, 4 car lengths away. Too often the marshalls wave the flags way before the lappers are close enough. And I think they should go easy on the 4 (or whatever) flags and you're out idea.

[RH1300S]

The blue flag rules are ok, I would only change this:

Title contenders that are 1 lap down because a puncture/spin/accident should not be blue flagged.

Imagine the fight for the title in the last race between 2 drivers, one leading (but being followed closely and being obliged to win to clinch the title) and the other contender a lap down because of a problem but making life hard to the leading one... it doesnt matter if he is a lap down he should be able to fight.

Interesting idea.....probably if a contender is that far down the field they are probably out of the points anyway, so encouraging them to battle it out is like handing them an invitation to knock other guy off the track.

[RacingManiac]

I think the one passing point blue flag might be easier to enforce and ensure consistency....we can argue all about how far the leader is from the back marker before they start flagging him, but the issues is all marshalls are local, they might be experienced, but they all have different standard, and even if you have some kind of signalling system from race control to them, it is still a variable. Keeping it to one flag stand on start finishline(or beginning of longest straight), you can bring that Marshall with you, or use some kind of GPS based system to signal the car...

Anyway I also hold the same view as some that this whole deal is the backmarker try to get more TV time. Like they say, any publicity is good publicity...

[Belatti]

Interesting idea.....probably if a contender is that far down the field they are probably out of the points anyway, so encouraging them to battle it out is like handing them an invitation to knock other guy off the track.

Yep, thats the downside. And we want no more races defined in the desks, dont we?

[jon-mullen]

I was disappointed to see blue flags during the Monaco practice sessions, that's just unnecessary. Sometimes I think they do it more based on livery than speed, especially in a practice session where people are on different fuel loads and may not even be 100%.

[void]

Why not use a kind of transponder? When a lapper get closer enought it turn on a blue light on steering wheel.

[ESPImperium]

The cars have a MES ECU now that runs a $40,000 GPS system on it for live timing and real time car tracking purposes now, so why not use that. Its accurate to about 20cm, whitch is like 0.002 of a second (the same distance that Alonso was denied pole by Vettel at Germany this year) whitch is as good as you could get i think.

What id do is make it that the blue flags are waived thruought sector 3, and if the lapper (Race Leader) car encroaces to say a distance of a second behind the lapee (Race P20 for example) car he gets the blue LEDs come on on his steering wheel. This way he can let the lapper thru easily on the start finish straight.

However, if a lapper decided to be daring and pass the lapee in sector 1 and 2, go for it.

GPS and the ECU can/could be used better.

[WhiteBlue]

The sport would also be more entertaining with oil slicks, banana skins that makes opponents spin and green turtle shells that can you can throw at people. It's not going to happen though.

Who the --- does he think he is? He'll be buying a football team next and appealing to the FA that it just isn't fair they can't use their hands to score goals.

Those guys can be really funny to read when they make noises about non-issues.

[Caito]

Please keep the blue flag. If not we would have lots of Fontana like issues. Remember, when he blocked I don't know who, and let pass Schumacher.

Then he admitted Todt went with Sauber and told him to block all non Ferrari (confession made for a magazine in 2006) Could you imagine Hamilton being 5second in front of Webber, and having a STR get slooowly until Ham gets him and then starts to block him, it'd be really bad. A fast car could get lapped on purpose and it would be impossible to overtake him.

Plus all the time lost, probably makes them want to be faster, because they're losing a lot. I like fair races and wouldn't like championships decided by backmarkers. Enough with glock letting hamilton get the championship on the last corner.

I agree an improved system could work wonders. Maybe something like when the blue lights appear in the steering wheel, the backmarker has to run on the outher part of the track, near the white line. Yes, they will still lose time, but backmarkers should probably know that if they let them pass, they're going to lose less time.