Formula 1 drivers have spoken up in favour of the fierce kerbs at the Red Bull Ring which caused broken parts on several parts today.
The second practice session was red-flagged after Pierre Gasly broke a trackrod on his car by striking one of the kerbs.
Daniel Ricciardo was another driver who picked up some damage when he hit a kerb. “I think they are a good thing,” he said. “It’s our job to stay off them and at least it’s a track limit.”Team mate Max Verstappen said the kerbs are “quite aggressive, but they have been like that for the last few years so it’s not a surprise.”
“They are the same for everyone so you need to avoid them. Of course they can damage the front wing but if a wall was there you would be in it, so you need to stay off them.”
Sebastian Vettel pointed out that “as long as you don’t go [on them] it’s not a problem, but obviously if you do go you’re a bit of a passenger.
“I think you saw some people went over the kerbs without any problem. Others had suspension failures, wings falling off. I don’t think it’s the idea, obviously, to damage the cars. The idea is for us not to run so wide.
“I think we know we shouldn’t go there but it’s easily said. But if you’re pushing very hard it might happen.
“For us today it wasn’t a problem, at least for me, I think for Kimi [Raikkonen] as well. Let’s hope it stays that way.”
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James (@knewman)
29th June 2018, 17:52
Glad to see the drivers displaying this attitude. Don’t like the kerbs? Stay on the track!
Todfod (@todfod)
29th June 2018, 18:00
True that
Phylyp (@phylyp)
29th June 2018, 18:07
Agreed, nice the drivers see this as a challenge! That’s a nice racing mentality.
Strontium (@strontium)
29th June 2018, 21:20
It’s very good to hear. The primary purpose of a runoff area is to make it safer, not to forgive mistakes. This combines the benefits of an unforgiving wall with the safety of a runoff area.
If only it were like this on every permanent circuit, it’s possibly as good as grass
socksolid (@socksolid)
30th June 2018, 4:10
I think the drivers get some unnecessary flak for being primadonnas but in reality the drivers have very little control over things like runoffs, kerb design or safety features in the cars. Lot of the time the drivers get blamed for things they never even wanted or have no control over. Like the kind of cars they are driving. I’m glad there are moments like these occasionally when the drivers can say they like it hard and if you go off the track you get penalized.
Zazeems (@zazeems)
29th June 2018, 18:19
Finally some sense! You go off the track, you get punished. Proper racing.
Cartwheel
29th June 2018, 18:48
Surely the FIA will have to change the kerbs now- if the Drivers aren’t complaining then they haven’t done their jobs properly!
Joao (@johnmilk)
29th June 2018, 18:49
Got to admit, I thought there would be complaints, even said so on the live feed.
I’m pleasantly surprised
Previously F1Fanatic fan in Atlanta
29th June 2018, 20:01
It is just practice, just wait until a driver is out in Q1 and doesn’t set a decent time. Then we’ll see what the response is. Personally, you break your car and you complain the curbing broke it (and you weren’t pushed off or other spin/failure), park the car, you’re done and have a nice day and you can go be a petulant child in your race hauler. The penalty for pretending the curbing isn’t there is no way near strong enough and probably should include race exclusion in the future. This bs individual stewards for each race without Whiting having the ability to start each weekend with carry other warnings is insane. This is supposed to be top level racing but historics and club racing enforces the rules more diligently and with the same officials all the time than F1??
Track limit violation should be point system, possibly a scale with 4 points for cutting a corner and gaining an actual position in the running order to 1 for cutting a corner consistently, increasing in points to 4 for repeated offenses. Then a max number of points before each violation becomes a drive through or stop and hold for X seconds. The points do not reset after each event so repeated exceeding limits gets penalized throughout the year. There should be some reduction for a drive through or hold served but I’m not sure how to work that out. But something has to be done, or more aggressive curbs installed or we should just let them race in a giant macadam square and whoever gets to Xkm first wins. Hell that would be more interesting that some of the races here lately. And Pastor gets to drive every week to add to the show, or detract as he bashes in to people.
Trevor
30th June 2018, 9:28
Correct me if I’m wrong but weren’t these the same curbs Max Chrashappened was sooking about last year?
Now he has said the idea is to stay off them! Is he starting to learn????