LANDO NORRIS has hit out at Lewis Hamilton’s complaints about the delayed start to the Monaco Grand Prix last Sunday.
The Brit, 22, claims the drivers’ safety was at risk so Race Control was right to push back the race start time.
Lando Norris said it was not safe to start the Monaco Grand Prix at the scheduled time
The race organisers decided the weather conditions made starting at the scheduled time unsafe – despite releasing the cars for the formation lap.
Hamilton said the rain was not strong enough for a delay with Sky Sports’ Ted Kravtiz in agreemen, saying he did not need an umbrella in the pit lane.
But Norris believes it was correct to delay – pointing out Mick Schumacher’s massive crash as an example of the precarious conditions.
Norris wrote in The Telegraph: “It was not safe on Sunday.
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“You literally couldn’t see five metres in front of you during that first attempt to get the race under way.
“Ultimately, it is me that is risking my neck out there. We all saw the consequences of one tiny error on Sunday.
“Mick Schumacher missed the apex of the right-hander at the Swimming Pool and positioned the car just a fraction offline – maybe no more than 10 centimetres – and that was it. Game over.
“It is only when you are actually in a Formula One car, feeling brake temperatures, the tyre temperatures, the grip levels, that you can truly appreciate what is possible and what is not. What is safe and what is not.”
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Hamilton feels F1 drivers should be able to cope with bad weather conditions with Max Verstappen also querying the delay.
The Mercedes star is demanding talks with the FIA to understand the reasoning behind the call to start late.
He felt the drivers were made to wait for too long without sufficient explanation as to why they could not start the race under conditions he described as a “drizzle”.
