The origin of the checkered flag blunder in Canada

A moment of uncertainty disturbed the tranquility of the Canadian GP when the checkered flag was waved in front of the Ferrari SF71H Sebastian Vettel on the 69th lap, one loop before the end of the race. If no driver was trapped, the impact of this error could have had significant consequences on the outcome of the event.

If it was model Winnie Harlow who was in charge of waving the flag, the FIA ​​took responsibility for the error, citing a communication problem.

“The checkered flag was shown a lap too early due to a communication problem with the person they call here the “starter” who starts and finishes the races, explained Charlie Whiting, the FIA ​​race director. He thought it was the last lap, he asked race direction for confirmation and received it, but management thought it was a statement and not a question. »

“I think people outside the F1 are sometimes lost in the graphs when counting laps. It seems that we need to improve the preparation of these people… (but) we have to deal with many people from different countries, with different languages, and everything cannot be absolutely perfect although we always strive for perfection. Fortunately, there was no real impact on the result”, added Charlie Whiting.

For her part, the star invited to present the checkered flag defended herself on Twitter by affirming that she was not involved in this incident.

“IT WASNT ME” *Shaggy Voice* when they tell you to wave the flag a lap too early but I'm so grateful no one was hurt! @F1 pic.twitter.com/2wBmH3SDOP

— Winnie Harlow (@winnieharlow) 10th June 2018

Discover the analysis of the Canadian GP carried out by our special correspondents in issue 2169 of AUTOhebdo, available from Monday evening in digital version on all platforms, and from this Wednesday on newsstands.