Racing’s governing body the FIA has said “human error” contributed to the controversial finish at last year’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix but insisted former race director Michael Masi acted in good faith throughout.
Masi incorrectly applied the Safety Car procedure at the end of the title decider between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton.
He set up a one lap sprint which helped Verstappen catch and pass Hamilton on the final lap, winning the title in the process.
However, Masi had not followed the FIA rulebook and had only allowed the unlapped cars between Hamilton and Verstappen to overtake the Safety Car and rejoin the lead lap.
He also restarted the race a lap earlier than the rules dictate, although the FIA’s report — released ahead of qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix on Saturday — said that rule was open to interpretation.
The report also said the result is “valid, final and cannot now be changed”, with Mercedes opting not to appeal the result to the FIA International Court of Appeal.
Masi has since been removed from his position of race director, while the FIA has clarified its rules on Safety Car restarts to say “all” unlapped cars must unlap themselves before a race can resume, rather than “any”, to avoid any similar incidents in future.
More to follow…