Ross Brawn shares his thoughts on F1’s awarding of half-points in Belgian GP. Ross Brawn on F1's awarding of half-points in Belgian GP.

The 2021 British Grand Prix weekend turned out to be one without the main event on Sunday afternoon due to the poor weather conditions at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit, with so much rain that the race, after almost four hours of waiting, eventually had to be suspended with the drivers completing only two laps behind the safety car so that half points could be awarded.

British Formula One managing director, motor sports and technical director Ross Brawn confirmed in his usual post-race column for Formula1.com that he was not happy with how events unfolded on Sunday afternoon but at the same time admitted that he saw no other solution, as the former Ferrari technical director feels sorry for the fans who came to Spa-Francorchamps in large numbers.

“I feel terrible for the fans, who came out in their thousands and braved the persistently wet conditions in the stands to support their heroes. They showed such dedication and will never forget this weekend. Unfortunately the weather worked against us. It was relentless. The FIA tried everything and sent the cars out twice behind the Safety Car to assess the conditions. The problem was not so much the intensity of the rain, but rather its constancy, which made visibility very poor.” – Ross Brawn explained.

Safety is the most important thing and this is the reason which made the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix impossible to take place: “At the end of the day, safety comes first. And it wasn’t safe enough to continue the race. So the FIA did the best they could in difficult conditions like we haven’t seen in decades.”

Ross Brawn is also aware that awarding half points is not something fans, drivers and teams want or are waiting for. Yet he still feels that this is the right decision: “There were half points awarded. It’s not ideal, but if you can’t reward someone for the race, reward them for their bravery in qualifying. A lap like George Russell did in qualifying in the absence of a full race should be rewarded. Like I said, it’s not ideal, but it’s where we are. The weather just wasn’t with us on Sunday.”

Formula 1 is now focused on the next round, which takes place in just a few days time at Zandvoort, where according to the latest weather forecast the chance of a repeat performance is rather small.