Walker: Inconsistency could damage F1

Sunday 30th November 2008

Murray Walker reckons the F1 race stewards' decisions were the biggest disappointment in this year's Championship, however, he's confident the FIA will resolve the issues.

The 2008 season saw some strange decisions from the race stewards that led to suggestions of bias towards Ferrari and against Lewis Hamilton as the McLaren driver was handed some rather strange penalties.

Not only was he penalised in Belgium despite F1 race director Charlie Whiting saying his move to hand Kimi Raikkonen back the position he took was "okay" but later in the season he also got a drive-through penalty for pushing the Finn wide at the start of the race.

"I was very disappointed with some of the calls the stewards made and the composition of the stewards," Walker told Crash.net Radio

The former 'Voice of F1' added that he believes consistency needs to be achieved if the FIA hope to keep fans interested in the sport.

"I feel there is a great need for a greater continuity of the stewards in Formula 1 and for them to be more knowledgeable about what things are like in actual racing conditions.

"The FIA have taken action to try to overcome the problems that people like me have about the stewards, though, and you can always cynically say that any publicity is good publicity.

"Overall, I don't think the sport has suffered at all."

Your Comments

obiswift

"@ Tim Azzuri

This guy has been commentating F1 longer then most have watched. He was making mistakes in his last few years which is why he retired. The fact that you didnt know that shows you have probably been watching F1 for 5 mins."

sydjed

"fandango, go get a clearer tv and please watch every F1 race. If you had watched every race this year you'd have picked up that Lewsi as well was let through by Heikki more or less in the same manner as Kimi did to Massa. Last year too Massa let Kimi through. This year in the last race Heikki again for the second time this year let Lewsi through. so what makes one move by Kimi to let Massa through wrong? Even PlanetF1 pointed out that Whitemarish was ahypocrite to have critcised Ferrari on the Kimi , Massa switch as a few races before they had done the same when Heikki let through Lewis. Learn to criticise fairly mate or better still go get set of new 'eyes'. By the way there's nothing wrong with position switching - if the drivers want to do they'll do it - it's team work. Go watch boxing."

lexicon5

"F1 is bigger than Bernie and Max put together. F1 will transcend these two long after they are gone. Once they are gone and narrow-minded Luca di Montezemolo has been replaced....F1 will thrive. I could not believe the ONLY person out of 6 billion on earth said the Singapore race was a circus was Luca di Montezemolo. The one thing that came out of Bernies mouth that was both funny and true was his comment about Luca supplying the clowns for said circus. So kudos for Bernie wiping the floor with di Montezemolo. 2009 promises to be probably the best F1 season in a VERY long time."

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