At the end of the Austrian Grand Prix last weekend, Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton were asked to comment on the controversial use of flares by the Formula 1 fans around the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg. Given the fact that the Netherlands is very close to Austria, many Dutch fans arrived to support their favourite, Max Verstappen, and lit orange flares during the weekend, with the vast majority being lit during Sunday’s Grand Prix.
The event was won by the Scuderia Ferrari driver, as many fans in front of the TV pointed out that the first laps were difficult to view due to the thick cloud of orange smoke filling the air at Turn Seven. A similar situation happened after the Austrian Grand Prix, with Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton complaining that he “couldn’t see”.
“Just 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,” the third-place finisher said. So fortunately, it wasn’t necessarily the case during the race, but maybe they should just save them more for the end? I can’t believe they’re really good environmentally either,” said the seven-time Formula 1 World Champion after the Spielberg race.
Max Verstappen did not seem bothered by the flares, especially given the fact that the thick orange cloud generated from the flares was in support of him. At the same time, Max Verstappen admitted that he would rather see them remain in the stands, after he saw one land on the track: “I saw one flare, they threw it onto the track or onto the grass. I think that’s the only thing they shouldn’t do, as long as you keep it in the grandstands. The wind blows it over the track for only one lap, so it doesn’t arrive within the track, I think it’s okay.” – the Dutchman explained.
Scuderia Ferrari Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc echoed his title rival’s view, confirming that the smoke wasn’t actually “too bad”: “The formation lap was quite a lot but yeah, but nothing too bad. You could still see so it was fine.”
Show your support for Scuderia Ferrari with official merchandise collection from Puma! Enter the online Puma Store and shop securely! And get your F1 tickets for every race with VIP hospitality and unparalleled insider access. Click here for the best offers to support Charles and Carlos from the track!
Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton agreed that their visibility was at its worst before the start of the Austrian Grand Prix, during the formation lap, which was, of course, led by Verstappen, who started from pole position after he took the win in Saturday’s Sprint race at the Red Bull Ring.
Leave a Reply