Lewis Hamilton stated that he would be in favor of giving more freedom to the FIA (International Automobile Federation) race director to use the red flag in the final laps of Formula 1 races, preventing them from ending without on-track battles, as happened at this year’s British GP in Silverstone.
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The British round was marked by Max Verstappen’s crash near the end of the race, which raised expectations for a final racing lap. The forecast was that the safety car would be withdrawn at the end of lap 51, but the regulations stipulated that the procedure should only happen at the end of lap 52, preventing a final battle. As a result, Charles Leclerc won the race, while the FIA explained that a “software error” caused the message declaring the end of the yellow flag near the end of lap 51 to be displayed.
Hamilton cited previous examples where the red flag was used to create more competitive finishes, such as the 2021 Azerbaijan GP, stopped after a tire blowout by Verstappen, and the 2023 Australian GP, when debris on the track after a Kevin Magnussen crash caused a restart in the final laps.
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When asked by the press about allowing the FIA more autonomy to use the red flag and ensure green-flag finishes, Hamilton responded positively: “Yes, definitely,” he said. “That happened in Australia, and it was one of the best races. Ideally, when you are leading, it wouldn’t be great, but it would give fans the best possible experience. So they have done it before, and definitely finishing under the safety car would be, for me, disappointing. I get disappointed being inside the car, and as an athlete, so I can imagine how the fans are feeling,” concluded the seven-time world champion.
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