Hakkinen: F1 stewards are taking a more open approach

The F1 World Champion said as much in his post-British Grand Prix column for Unibet, "Following the controversy over Sebastian Vettel’s penalty in Canada, I sense that Formula 1’s Stewards are taking a more open approach to allow the drivers to race.

"At one point Max went completely off the track while trying to battle Charles, but there were no penalties. They were allowed to race, and Charles has learned from the incident in Austria when he was overtaken by Max.

"The young generation in F1 put on a fantastic display at Silverstone, with Max and Charles battling over third-position. Again both of them raced hard, and again they gave each other space and respect to race.

"Charles’s ability to position his Ferrari in exactly the right place on the track, defending his position from Max, was really impressive to watch. I enjoyed their battle, and it was nice to see Charles get his reward of a podium finish."

"Max, however, was right to be upset when Sebastian Vettel’s Ferrari hit the rear of his Red Bull after he had made a great overtake at the famous Stowe corner," added Hakkinen.

But the Flying Finn's viewpoint goes against what race director Michael Masi had to say after the race at Silverstone, which was hailed as one of the most exciting recent grands prix and it was notable that despite more wheel-to-wheel action than usual, less penalties were actually given to the duelling drivers.

Masi, who earlier this year took over as F1 race director following Charlie Whiting's death, told Speedweek, "It's mainly the track characteristics that led to the duels. The race was judged according to the same standards as before."

Masi is tipped to remain race director at least for the rest of the 2019 Formula 1 Wolrd championship season.

https://www.grandprix247.com/2019/06/30/austria-race-stewards-we-consider-this-a-racing-incident/