A bit of off track controversy is entertaining now and then, but the last few seasons it happens every race.
There needs to be clarification to the rules because these problems always result from someone being unsure as what to do resulting in about 10 different variations of what is the right thing to do in the situation.
And i'm telling again, you're interpreting it wrongly Green flags mean the safety car got out, but because it was the final lap, it doesn't mean the racing could continue, it would mean in any other lap except the final one.
Green flags indicate the SC was no longer deployed
For the duration of the intervention/deployment the yellow flags remain. Once that deployment has ceased then you no longer have yellow flags.
So as the SC was no longer deployed (the green flags acknowledged the end of the deployment) that means the race did not end while the SC was deployed making 40.13 irrelevant.
That's my case your honour!
Jesus, is my english that bad or are you mocking me or something? Yes, it means the safety car was no longer deployed, but not in the usual sense of "you can race now", it got into the pits, JUST so Mark Webber crosses the line first, and not Maylander, please people, try harder to understand They just invented that rule so it doesn't look silly and SC finishing the race.
All rules remain the same as if the SC finished the race, got it? But he didn't, so Webber could have that honor that he deserved... Please can you use your brain more before the next reply, my hands are getting tired
The race wasn't going to end with a SC. The lights were out on the car and green flags shown (40.4)
The race ends at the chequered flag. 40.13 covers the instance where the track is still unsafe and rather than finishing the race in front of the winning car they pull in like Australia 2009 when the lights remained ON as it came in the pits and SC boards were still shown as Button crossed the line
Monaco 2010 the SC lights were turned OFF and green flags were shown. 40.4 confirms that the SC deployment was over and it was NOT going to end the race. If the race was ending under SC the green flags would NOT have been shown. SC boards would have STILL been deployed (like Australia 2009)
If the race ends under the SC - ie, it cross the line at the head of the pack of cars on the final lap - how car rule 40.13 come into effect? How can the SC enter the pitlane AND cross the line to end the race?
The rule is a contradiction in terms, but the logical interpretation is that once the SC has entered pit lane on the last lap, there can be no overtaking!
You sure the lights remained on in Australia 2009? I guess from this year, they turn off the lights, and wave the flags, but everything else remains the same..
the rule only comes into if the race ends under SC deployment. 40.4 shows the race didn't end under SC deployment. At the point of the chequered flag the safety car was NOT deployed unlike Australia where it still was.
The track is still under SC conditions but the actual car pits so the winning car can have it's picture taken like Australia 2009. The lights stayed on the car as it pitted and SC boards were still shown
What was different in Monaco was the SC was actually coming in that lap (lights went out on the car). In accordance with 40.4 the race ended not under SC conditions (green flags were shown and SC boards removed) but under race conditions.
40.13 If the race ends whilst the safety car is deployed it will enter the pit lane at the end of the last lap and the cars will take the chequered flag as normal without overtaking.
so obviously the rule only applies if the sc is deployed
40.4 When the order is given to deploy the safety car the message "SAFETY CAR DEPLOYED" will be displayed on the timing monitors and all marshal's posts will display waved yellow flags and "SC" boards for the duration of the intervention.
so as soon as the marshalls stop displaying the yellow flags and the sc board the sc is officially not deployed anymore which means 40.13 isnt in effect
Can't watch Youtube from here.. anyway, ok, if that's the case then my argument, and the judges argument is invalid, it should've been like that this year too..
It could before the rules changed concerning which line the race restarted at (and overtaking could happen after).
Before, when the safety car was called in, you could not overtake until after the start/finish line. This meant that if there was only one lap left, and the safety car was still out, it could pull in but there would still be no overtaking until the race ended at the start/finish line. Rule 40.13 was probably written with this in mind and would as such not be ambiguous.
Now, the rules have changed. When the safety car comes in, you can do a pass after the safety car line/pit line, but before the start/finish line. This means that if the safety car is still out on the last lap and is called in according to rule 40.13, and flags and lights change to green at the safety-car line/pit line, teams have no way of knowing if the safety car was called in because of rule 40.13, or because the track is safe and they can continue racing (until the start/finish line). Hence, Mercedes' interpretation of the rules is entirely valid. The rules are ambiguous.
The best way to resolve this would probably be to clarify rule 40.13 to simply state that "if the safety car is still out at the beginning of the last lap of the race, the race will not be restarted and the safety car will enter the pit-lane at the end of the last lap.".
Alternatively they could leave the rules as they are, but not show the green flags when the safety car enters the pit-lane. This would be unambiguous, though still a very round about way of doing it.
Ok, more clarifications, before this year, green flags were waved when first car crosses the line, but this year there's some new "Safety Car line" in the box, or on the entrance of the box, and the green flags are waved when Safety car crosses that line, it practically means the race ended there, so there's no overtaking.. It's absolutely redicolous, how did they come up with that?!
EDIT: The reason for that new Safety Car Line in the box, is that cars can race when SC crosses it, BUT not in the last lap..
I know, the rules are stupid.. they are not clear enough, but i'm saying that it was all regular, disregarding the stupidity of the rules. In 2009 and before, when SC goes in the pits, cars can not race until the first car crosses the start/finish line.. from this year, they can race when SC crosses this new SC line in the pit (i don't know where it is, i'm guessing it's right at the beggining of the entrance). So, when SC crosses it, lights goes off, and green flags are waved, meaning that the racing can continue, but since it was the final lap, that doesn't apply. So they should make that if it's the final lap, SC boards and yellow flags remain ON.
Offcourse.. the thing is, their rules contradicted one another in this instance. If it wasn't the final lap, then this overtake would be completely legal.
What's legal is defined by the rules and the rules state racing could continue from the safety car line to the start/finish line (as I think we all now agree). Hence the overtake is legal and the penalty is wrong.