Lewis is complacent over F1 safety, says Stewart

[TheStig]

Sir Jackie Stewart has revealed his fear that someone will be killed in Formula One unless safety measures are tightened up.

Stewart, the three-time world champion, spoke out after seeing only six drivers finish the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, won by Britain's Lewis Hamilton.

However, behind Hamilton, car after car spun to early retirement as the banning of driver aids — including traction control and electronic engine braking — wrought mayhem.

Stewart, who watched the helter-skelter action in Melbourne, fears the sport's next death waits just around the next corner and urged the British sensation to do his bit by joining his 'trade union' — the Grand Prix Drivers' Association.

'Somebody is going to get killed,' insisted Stewart. 'It has been 13 years and 11 months since the death of Ayrton Senna. You can't go on without something going wrong somewhere.

'There will be even more accidents now that traction control is gone. It is complacent of Lewis not to be in the GPDA.'

Stewart, speaking ahead of Sunday's Malaysian Grand Prix, added: 'Hamilton has been ill-advised. The one thing you have to have among the competitors is good communication.

'When you are out there and somebody tells you that, for example, the barriers at Monza do not need to be further from the chicane than they are now, they don't understand that an interlocking wheel suddenly launches a car and you come down upside down on top of the barrier.'

Referring to the accident involving his former Tyrrell team-mate, Francois Cevert, in practice at Watkins Glen, America, in 1973, Stewart said: 'That's how Francois was killed. He was cut in half. If you have ever seen that you want the barrier further back. That is why the GPDA is important.'

Safety improvements mean Senna was the last F1 driver to be killed, at Imola in 1994, a day after Roland Ratzenberger. The previous deaths came 12 years before.

However, the issue is to the fore again, with the outlawing of driver aids leading to increased levels of rear-wheel spin.

Stewart added: 'You have to prioritise your time. Lewis might have to do commercial appearances, but nobody did more of that than I did. Lewis is such a valuable asset to the sport. One of the reasons I got so much done in terms of safety was because I was the guy at that time.'

Several current drivers, including Jenson Button and Mark Webber, have also criticised Hamilton's decision to shun the GPDA, who regularly meet at races to discuss safety issues. Michael Schumacher was a director, though world champion Raikkonen is not a member.

Stewart added: 'The moment somebody dies there is a new awakening. These guys don't know how to deal with a death. They have never been up close. They have never been to a body when it is still in the car, never had to pack that person's clothes because the wife or the girlfriend can't face it.

'I pray they never have to learn that. So far we have been incredibly lucky. We are on the slate to have a big shunt.'

By JONATHAN McEVOY
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/sport/motorsport.html?in_article_id=537408&in_page_id=1954&ito=newsnow

Stig

[cosworth151]

Sir Jackie makes a good point. The sport dodged a bullet last year at Melbourne and Montreal. I didn't know that Hamilton wasn't in the GPDA. He certainly should be.

If they want Kimi to show up, all they have to do is just have an open bar.

[Steven Roy]

It is obviously good that there hasn't been a serious accident for so long but I never expected by 2008 Jackie Stewart would still be trying to force drivers to join the GPDA.  As usual he is absolutely right in what he has to say.  Hopefull de la Rosa will be able to have a quite word with Lewis and get him to join.  One thing JYS learned early on is that if you are the best driver of your time you can get things done and Lewis should be using that power to make sure things are done properly. 

I know he is very young and inexperienced but Michael Schumacher took on a lot of this kind of work after Senna's death and he had only done 2 full seasons by that time.  Lewis doesn't have to do the donkey work he only has to be seen to attend meetings and use the opportunities he has with the media to get the point across.

I remember before Ratzenberger's accident we had all come to believe that racing drivers could have the most humungous accidents and live.  That complacency was shaken away that weekend and maybe the current generation of drivers need something to shake their complacency.  Hopefully it won't need someone to die.

I read this interview with JYS yesterday and as far as I know this is the first time he has specified the extent of Cevert's injuries.  Hopefully this will be enough to shock a few drivers into action.

[Dare]

It is obviously good that there hasn't been a serious accident for so long but I never expected by 2008 Jackie Stewart would still be trying to force drivers to join the GPDA.  As usual he is absolutely right in what he has to say.  Hopefull de la Rosa will be able to have a quite word with Lewis and get him to join.  One thing JYS learned early on is that if you are the best driver of your time you can get things done and Lewis should be using that power to make sure things are done properly. 

I know he is very young and inexperienced but Michael Schumacher took on a lot of this kind of work after Senna's death and he had only done 2 full seasons by that time.  Lewis doesn't have to do the donkey work he only has to be seen to attend meetings and use the opportunities he has with the media to get the point across.

I remember before Ratzenberger's accident we had all come to believe that racing drivers could have the most humungous accidents and live.  That complacency was shaken away that weekend and maybe the current generation of drivers need something to shake their complacency.  Hopefully it won't need someone to die.

I read this interview with JYS yesterday and as far as I know this is the first time he has specified the extent of Cevert's injuries.  Hopefully this will be enough to shock a few drivers into action.

Could you but a link to the JS intview Steven?

[Steven Roy]

I can't remember where I read it but I will post a link if I find it.

[TheStig]

I really feel that this Qualifying Saga,will cause a major shunt.

We have drivers coming out from the pits building the tyre temperatures until they are ready to go on a hot lap....We have drivers who have done the hot lap slowing down to save tyres......Last of all we have a driver getting a Qualifying time meeting two lots of cars slow due to what i have mentioned.

The Stig

[Steven Roy]

They have to hammer drivers who go so slowly.  Hopefully it can be done without the need for formal rules on the subject.

Of course what should really be done is low fuel qualifying and there wouldn't be a problem and we could go back to admiring drivers the way we did with Senna instead of hinking it looked like a good lap but we won't know for sure until he pits in the race.  Then on Monday we can sit down and work out fuel corrected times and say whether it was a good lap or not.

What is the point in having a qualifying system where you need to wait 24 hours to get an idea whether it was a good lap or not and 48 hours to get anything close to an accurate estimation.  Get the fuel out and let them go for it.

[TheStig]

All good points,but something has to be done ,because when we get to street circuits something is going to happen.

TheStig

[Monty]

It is very rare for me to disagree with Sir Jackie but on this occassion I think he is wrong (about traction control as a 'safety aid', I have no opinion about Hamilton and the GPDA). I am told that traction control was becoming so good, some drivers were literally flooring the gas pedal coming out of a corner. My contact reckons that if the traction control failed (which was still a very real possibility) the drivers could have accelerated to massive speeds straight into the wall! If a driver is depending on his own decisions and reactions a really bad shunt is less likely. If I remember correcly both Senna and Ratzenberger crashed due to technical failures.

[Dare]

Please leave the TC off,we are finally
getting some real auto racing