Can the stewards dock points?

[WhiteBlue]

I have been thinking about the Schumacher/Hill collision in 1994 and how it would be punished by the stewards nowadays. Normally the stewards can order a drive through or time penalty and they can award a race ban as we saw with Grosjean for the first time. I'm not sure how a collision in the last race of the championship would be handled. Schumacher obviously caused that collision. There is very little doubt about that. And it makes no difference whether there is intention or not. Webber for instance was punished for running into Vergne without intend.

I think the stewards would probably give him a race ban and pass the the issue to the international tribunal for further disciplinary treatment. The IT would probably dock the points then and would make the driver who was a victim of the collision champion. At least that is the way I see it. What do you think?

[sennafan24]

I think the stewards would probably give him a race ban and pass the the issue to the international tribunal for further disciplinary treatment. The IT would probably dock the points then and would make the driver who was a victim of the collision champion. At least that is the way I see it. What do you think?

I tend to agree, look how Schumi was punished later on in 1997 when he was excluded from the WDC for a similar incident. I think Schumi/Hill if it happened today would be dealt with the same as that, with the Schumi being excluded and Hill being promoted to being Champion. The process in which you mentioned I think would be the one that would come into effect.

On the topic of 1994, I watched the season review on Sky, and concluded that it is probably the most tragic and controversial season of my lifetime (I am 26 btw)

[LionKing]

Since they did not punish Senna due to his premeditated action, there was no way they could punish this...

[sennafan24]

Since they did not punish Senna due to his premeditated action, there was no way they could punish this...

Probably true, the same applies for Prost in 1989 in Japan.

But as I said they saw fit to punish in 1997, it shows that as time went on the more the authorities were to punish. WhiteBlue is asking if it were today what would happen, and I strongly think Schumi would be punished. So would Senna and maybe even Prost.

[MOWOG]

This thread makes plain the extent to which the sport has changed in the past 20 years. Back then, most of us didn't even know there WERE stewards. Today, they seem to be active in virtually every grand prix. Previously, they failed to act even when the most grievous of infractions occurred. The Hill/Schumacher incident stands as one of the most blatant, deliberate rammings ever. It still makes me angry that Schumacher was able to do such a stupid, purposeful thing and suffer no penalty, and that is the #1 reason why I do not count Schmacher as one of the greatest drives, despite the number of races he won.

Today, the stewards review EVERY collision on track. If there is carbon fiber on the racing surface, the stewards want to know who is responsible. Clearly, the expectations for driver conduct have evolved considerably, perhaps to the point where the stewards are TOO much involved.

To put a slight twist on this thread, it seems to me that if the stewards are going to inject themselves so forcefully into every aspect of a race meeting, steps should be taken to ensure that their decisions are in accordance with a clear set of rules and the penalties imposed are uniformly applied. Too often today, there is a randomness to what the stewards do that detracts from the ability of contestants and fans to fully support their actions.

What's a fair penalty for Grosjean should be a fair penalty for Vettel or Alonso or Hamilton, but that too often is not the case.

[Gerhard Berger]

It would not be punished because you can not blame a driver for turning in to the corner in a situation like that.

[WhiteBlue]

It would not be punished because you can not blame a driver for turning in to the corner in a situation like that.

Care to elaborate what you are telling us here? Are you referring to the initial question of the Schumacher/Hill incident or to Senna or Prost?

[WhiteBlue]

..it seems to me that if the stewards are going to inject themselves so forcefully into every aspect of a race meeting, steps should be taken to ensure that their decisions are in accordance with a clear set of rules and the penalties imposed are uniformly applied...

If you compare how the legal system on driver conduct has evolved over the last four years it is nothing but amazing to me. The decision by the FiA and by Todt to augment the usually incompetent stewards with top class ex drivers has done miracles that finally a debate was started on the significant criteria of a punishable infringement.
Before it was all willy nilly and not written down. Have a look on what was defined as penalty worthy now in the sporting regulations and is explained on http://www.formula1.com.

http://www.formula1.com/inside_f1/rules ... 3/fia.html

I don't think one or two of those specific rules existed prior to the Todt era. It has done much to make decisons more consistent although you can never cover everything that can happen in racing by words.