The top eight had all started on medium tyres, and the thinking was that the fresh hard compound tyres both drivers put on would give them a chance of going to the end of the race. Both assumed, therefore, they were taking a cheap pit stop. Their decisions to stop had been made under the Safety Car, with Mercedes and Ferrari not anticipating a red flag would follow. The big losers were George Russell and Carlos Sainz, who pitted from first and fourth respectively. The clean-up operation began with a recovery vehicle coming on track and lifting the Williams off the ground, but as that was going on, a red flag was thrown with the presence of debris and gravel on track the reason for the decision. The Williams driver lost control of his car and spun on the exit of Turn 7, becoming a passenger as he thudded into the barrier, before being left stranded on the edge of the track. With the race having already been interrupted by a Safety Car after Charles Leclerc was left beached in the gravel on the opening lap, the officials were called back into action again on lap six when Alexander Albon crashed. Red flag 1: Albon crashes into barrierĪlex Albon crashes out of the race and brings out the red flag at the Australian Grand Prix. With the dust settling on what was still a thrilling Grand Prix, Sky Sports assesses whether the decisions taken were justifiable. This latest episode of confusion and discontent at the Australian Grand Prix will only increase the pressure on current race director Niels Wittich, who is set to be in charge of all 23 races this season after sharing the role last year. Since the death of long-time race director Charlie Whiting in 2019, F1 have failed to find a lead referee trusted and respected by all teams, with previous incumbent Michael Masi sacked after his controversial overseeing of the 2021 Abu Dhabi finale that saw Verstappen beat Lewis Hamilton to the world championship.
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