P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Esteban Ocon and Kimi Antonelli both stopped in roughly the same place in Formula 1’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix – so why was one a virtual safety car and the other a full safety car?
Esteban Ocon and Kimi Antonelli both stopped in a similar location during Formula 1’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix; however, Ocon’s stoppage triggered a virtual safety car while Antonelli’s required a full safety car.
Ocon’s Haas was parked on the left-hand side of the track during the 29th lap, leading to a virtual safety car deployment when half the field had yet to pit.
Ocon’s car was swiftly moved downhill through the nearest gap in the barrier, thanks to which the marshals managed a brisk recovery process.
Conversely, Antonelli’s Mercedes stopped on lap 46 due to a throttle control issue in a comparable spot, necessitating a recovery vehicle since the nearest marshal post was already occupied.
The recovery process for Antonelli’s car took longer as it had to be pushed uphill to the next available marshal gap, requiring a full safety car due to the more challenging extraction compared to Ocon’s situation covered by the VSC.
This difference in recovery difficulty justified the use of a full safety car for Antonelli’s car, contrasting Ocon’s relatively smoother relocation under the virtual safety car.
