Formula 1 Austrian GP
F1 drivers play down flare concerns after Austrian GP
Leading Formula 1 drivers have played down the impact the orange haze left by flares lit by Max Verstappen fans at the Austrian Grand Prix had during the race.
Lewis Duncan
Edited: Jul 13, 2022, 5:11 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
Ahead of the formation lap in last Sunday’s Red Bull Ring race, grandstands erupted in orange smoke as Verstappen fans set off flares, and did so again in the closing stages before the finish.
This was particularly prominent at the Turn 6/7 area, with the orange smoke drifting across the circuit and limiting visibility.
However, race winner Charles Leclerc said the flares weren’t much of a problem for him.
“The formation lap [the smoke] was quite a lot,” the Ferrari driver said. But [it was] nothing too bad. I mean, you could still see, so it was fine.”
Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton – who was critical of cheering from Verstappen fans on Friday after he crashed during qualifying – echoed Leclerc’s comments.
However, the seven-time world champion admitted “you couldn’t see anything” at Turn 6 towards the end of the race.
“Yeah, I would say the same,” Hamilton added following on from Leclerc’s response.
“On the formation lap you couldn’t see the apex of Turn 7. And at the end of the race you couldn’t see anything through Turn 6.
“So, fortunately it wasn’t necessarily the case [that we couldn’t see] during the race.
“But, maybe they should just save them also for the end. I can’t believe they are any good environmentally any good either.”
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB18, Charles Leclerc, Ferrari F1-75, Carlos Sainz, Ferrari F1-75
Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images
Verstappen says fans shouldn’t throw flares onto the circuit, but otherwise saw no issue with what was happening in the grandstands.
“I saw one flare, like they threw it onto the track, or onto the grass,” the Red Bull driver, who finished runner-up to Leclerc, said.
“I think that’s the only thing they shouldn’t do. But as long as you keep it on the grandstand – I mean, the wind blows it over the track for like one lap, so it doesn’t arrive within the track – I think it’s ok.”
Flares have caused problems in motorsport before, with MotoGP running a campaign fronted by riders asking fans not to ignite flares during races from the Czech Grand Prix back in 2018 for the safety of on-track competitors.
Typically – and even now, despite him having retired at the end of last year – it was yellow flares that were set off by Valentino Rossi fans.
Read Also:
- Sainz calls for faster F1 fire response after Austrian GP scare
- Austria F1 drivers’ briefing "going in circles" before Vettel stormed out
- 10 things we learned from the 2022 F1 Austrian GP
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Former F1 race director Michael Masi leaves FIA
Next article The F1 wing changes helping Alpine target Mercedes
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Lewis Duncan
MotoGP 2025: Full rider line-up revealed
MotoGP
MotoGP
MotoGP 2025: Full rider line-up revealed
A year on from Marquez’s Germany MotoGP meltdown, has Honda improved?
MotoGP
MotoGP
German GP
A year on from Marquez’s Germany MotoGP meltdown, has Honda improved?
What’s behind MotoGP’s right-hander chaos in Germany practice?
MotoGP
MotoGP
German GP
What’s behind MotoGP’s right-hander chaos in Germany practice?
Latest news
How Aston Martin’s fuel gamble in Monza WEC fell short by just three seconds
WEC
WEC WEC
Monza
33 min
How Aston Martin’s fuel gamble in Monza WEC fell short by just three seconds
Brad Keselowski expects "lots of soul searching" in off-season as he reflects on 2026
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Homestead-Miami
42 min
Brad Keselowski expects "lots of soul searching" in off-season as he reflects on 2026
What's behind Oscar Piastri's split with Mark Webber – and what it means for his F1 career
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
57 min
What's behind Oscar Piastri's split with Mark Webber – and what it means for his F1 career
Shane van Gisbergen gets new crew chief for 2027 NASCAR Cup season
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Homestead-Miami
1 h
Shane van Gisbergen gets new crew chief for 2027 NASCAR Cup season
Feature
Discover prime content
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe