timd wrote:If you are going to overtake someone at the last minute and without being alongside at turn in then it is the overtaking cars responsibility to avoid the accident.
It is only the driver being overtaken responsibility if you are alongside at or before turn in. At this point he needs to give you room.
Hamilton could and should have backed out of that move but he didn’t. Thus penalty.
I don't normally like to get involved in these discussions, but I thought I'd quote this since I initially thought the same thing; the move looked like a pretty late lunge up the inside. After taking a bit of a closer look I've changed my mind though.
You can see in the image that, although Hamilton doesn't get level with Maldonado, he's a long way down the side. His intent was clear as was the fact that he was committed to the move well before the turn in. The final choice on whether to have the accident was Maldonado's.
As to whether he should have turned in or left room, I guess that's a matter of taste. What's clear to me though is that, on this occasion, Hamilton went for a legitimate gap and Maldonado closed the door beyond the point at which Hamilton could have backed out. I don't see how handing out a penalty to the attacking driver (or the defending driver unless he runs the attacker into a wall) in situations like that is in any way healthy for the sport.
) all those pictures show is that Maldonado was further ahead than Schumacher and Hamilton attacked from further back and used Maldonado as a brake.
