FIA uncertain about the grass fire: Cause yet to be found

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04:48, 20 Apr 2024

Tim Kraaij is Editor-in-Chief of GPblog.com and a Formula 1 analyst. With permanent FIA accreditation and direct access to the paddock, he delivers in-depth, data-driven analysis and insight into key developments within the sport.

The FIA still hasn't quite understood why the grass was on fire during the free practice and sprint shootout. They have found a temporary solution for the sprint race and qualifying in China.

Ahead of the sprint race for the Chinese Grand Prix, the FIA released the following: "Although we are still uncertain why grass fires occurred in yesterday's sessions, we are taking preemptive measures ahead of today's track activities. We will be watering the grass in the affected areas and will have an emergency fire response team on standby at Turn 7."

Why the grass was on fire

The FIA's message is an update on Friday's message when the governing body informed that car sparks caused the grass to catch fire. Those sparks ended up on the grass, causing the grass to catch fire. The question does arise as to why this is happening in Shanghai and nowhere else on the F1 calendar.

Pos.	Driver	Team	Points
1	Kimi Antonelli Kimi Antonelli	MercedesMER	156
2	Lewis Hamilton Lewis Hamilton	FerrariFER	90
3	George Russell George Russell	MercedesMER	88
4	Charles Leclerc Charles Leclerc	FerrariFER	75
5	Oscar Piastri Oscar Piastri	McLarenMCL	60
6	Lando Norris Lando Norris	McLarenMCL	58
7	Max Verstappen Max Verstappen	Red Bull RacingRBR	43
8	Isack Hadjar Isack Hadjar	Red Bull RacingRBR	29
9	Liam Lawson Liam Lawson	Racing BullsRCB	26
10	Pierre Gasly Pierre Gasly	AlpineALP	26
11	Oliver Bearman Oliver Bearman	HaasHAA	18
12	Franco Colapinto Franco Colapinto	AlpineALP	15
13	Arvid Lindblad Arvid Lindblad	Racing BullsRCB	13
14	Carlos Sainz Carlos Sainz	WilliamsWIL	6
15	Alexander Albon Alexander Albon	WilliamsWIL	5
16	Esteban Ocon Esteban Ocon	HaasHAA	3
17	Gabriel Bortoleto Gabriel Bortoleto	AudiAUD	2
18	Fernando Alonso Fernando Alonso	Aston MartinAST	1
19	Nico Hulkenberg Nico Hulkenberg	AudiAUD	0
20	Valtteri Bottas Valtteri Bottas	CadillacCAD	0
21	Sergio Perez Sergio Perez	CadillacCAD	0
22	Lance Stroll Lance Stroll	Aston MartinAST	0

FIA uncertain about the grass fire: Cause yet to be found

Why the grass was on fire

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