EXCLUSIVE TACH COVERAGE

Australian Grand Prix: Safety fears for Top Teams

by Nicholas Frankl

TACH European Bureau

Safety fears for Top Teams The F.I.A (the governing body of motorsport) is investigating the legality of both Williams and Jordan’s' cockpit driver protection. The new regulations that came into effect this year - aimed at protecting the drivers head in the event of a side impact accident - have been interpreted differently by various teams. A "gray area" has emerged that allows the "blisters" as they are known to be significantly lower, therefore allowing a clearer airflow to the rear wing, that is all important in keeping an F1 car on the road and which can make a significant difference in lap times. Ron Dennis CEO of McLaren expressed his concerns

"I don't know how much of a benefit they have, but I can't understand with respect to the incidents over the last three years, that any team would deliberately sacrifice driver safety for a performance benefit".

The F.I.A have not issued any statement but is understood to be evaluating the situation before a decision is taken before the next race in Brazil.