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Raikkonen pushing for change to blue flag rules
Kimi Raikkonen has called for a change to blue flag rules in F1 after he was caught behind traffic following his pitstop in Monaco, where the time lost contributed to Sebastian Vettel beating him.
Adam Cooper
Edited: Jun 10, 2017, 4:27 PM
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Under the International Sporting Code, drivers have "to allow the faster driver past at the first available opportunity" after the FIA blue lights in their cockpits are illuminated.
Drivers first get a "pre-warning' at 3.0 seconds, which the FIA says "should be used by the team of the slower car to warn their driver he is soon going to be lapped and that allowing the faster car through should be considered a priority."
Last year, the FIA changed the time gap which then automatically triggers the blue lights, the blue panels trackside and messages on the timing monitors, reducing it from 1.5s to 1.0s.
Typically a penalty can result from a driver failing to move over within 10 marshalling sectors, which represent the gaps between light panels.
While the reduction in time gap worked well in 2016, some drivers have reported that it has become more problematic this season, because of the difficulties inherent in following other cars with the current aero package.
They say that they have to work harder to get within the 1.0s range that obliges the lapped car to move over, and while doing so, they take life out of their tyres.
The subject came up in Friday's drivers' briefing in Montreal, where Raikkonen asked race director Charlie Whiting why the leaders have to race lapped cars.
However, Whiting told the drivers that the time gap won't be changed, reportedly pointing out that drivers don't seem to have any trouble using their tyres when they are racing the car ahead.
Also discussed in the briefing was the question of drivers going very slowly at the approach to the final corner in Montreal as they try to create a gap in front before starting their flying lap.
Carlos Sainz received a reprimand after slowing and not realising that Kevin Magnussen, who was behind, was on a flying lap.
One suggestion was that drivers create their gap earlier, and don't go slowly beyond the DRS line, which is around a third of the way along the preceding straight.
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