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GPDA president Wurz: Can you make rules for every incident? I don't think so

GPDA president Wurz: "Can you make rules for every incident? I don't think so"

28-07-2021 19:56 Last update: 20:27
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GPblog.com

Fans, journalists, former drivers, team bosses; almost everyone has had his say about the clash between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton. But who we haven't heard from yet is Alexander Wurz, former Formula 1 driver and chairman of the Grand Prix Drivers' Association (GPDA).

Crash was a racing incident

In an interview with Sky Sports F1 the Austrian is asked for his opinion on Verstappen's hard crash and who is to blame. He doesn't think one culprit can be pointed out. "There is always some kind of percentage of who is guilty, but in this case, it was not clear to me," says Wurz who drove a total of 69 Grands Prix between 1997 and 2007.

According to Wurz, this is, therefore, a racing incident. "That's my personal opinion. What happened at Silverstone is that you have two drivers racing hard and then there is contact. That happens. We have been seeing this kind of thing since the beginning of racing. Therefore, in my opinion, it is a racing incident. We are here to race."

Do the rules need to be clearer?

The conversation asks if the rules regarding incidents are clear enough. Wurz believes the rules are becoming clearer. "It's different than in traffic, but fortunately the rules are getting stricter and clearer. That's in the interest of everyone's safety." Moreover, you can never capture everything in the rules. "Can you make rules for every incident? I don't think so. There are a thousand ways in which contact between drivers can occur."

That's why there are also several stewards who assess an incident. "I understand that sometimes there is criticism, as you also see in football, but in general it works quite well and it is also becoming more consistent." From the GPDA he is in close contact with the FIA. "We work together to look at the different situations to better understand what can and cannot be done."