F1 safety questions raised after George Russell’s desperate crash plea

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The safety procedures of FIA have been brought into doubt as George Russell had asked for a red flag following his severe accident at the conclusion of the Australian Grand Prix, but the request was not acknowledged.

During Sunday's race, the driver of the Mercedes team, Russell, experienced a crash on the second-to-last lap. His car collided with the barrier at turn six and ultimately flipped onto its side in the center of the track located at Albert Park.

Russell was unable to see the cars approaching him due to poor visibility caused by the storm. He was anxious about his wellbeing and pleaded with race control to halt the race by displaying a red flag.

"He yelled out to the team radio, "Warning! Warning! Warning!" He was situated in the middle of the course. "Warning! Warning! Warning!" he continued to repeat. His voice was filled with urgency as he used the word "warning" over and over again."

Russell's requests were ignored as the FIA chose to conclude the race with a virtual safety car, mandating drivers to decrease their velocity by 40%.

The part of the racecourse where Russell collided also had double-wave yellow flags waving, telling other racers to reduce speed and proceed with caution when navigating near Russell's immobilized Mercedes.

After the 26-year-old driver had an accident, the FIA's medical delegate took care of him inside the car and examined him a second time in the paddock.

Despite this, a few enthusiasts on the internet were dissatisfied with the ruling made by the FIA not to go ahead with the red flag. One individual commented, “It would have been better if they had instantly signaled a red flag with the automobile blocking the path like that.”

Someone else commented that it was an obvious warning sign. They believe that prioritizing the completion of the race over safety was a mistake. They also mentioned how fortunate it was that no other vehicle collided with George Russell's car while it was blocking the track.

Following the race, a penalty of 20 seconds was imposed on Fernando Alonso due to his involvement in the collision.

The Aston Martin car was leading in front of Russell's car, but Alonso received a penalty for "brake testing" Russell in a way that could have caused harm. As a result of the penalty, the Spanish driver's ranking dropped from sixth place to eighth place.

Before the stewards made their decision, Russell stated: "It was my mistake that I went off the track. However, I want to point out that I was around half a second behind Fernando while we were 100 meters away from the corner. All of a sudden, Fernando rapidly approached me, and I almost hit his car from behind."

I'm unsure if there was an issue with him or not - authorities are looking into it. It's strange to have this happen in a situation like this. I don't have any further comments at the moment, but I'm upset that the race ended this way.

The accident that happened to Russell caused Mercedes to have two cars that did not finish the race. This was because earlier in the same race, Lewis Hamilton had to retire due to an issue with the engine.