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Old 15 Apr 2017, 16:21 (Ref:3726660)   #20
Richard C
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Originally Posted by F1Guy View Post
Let's face it, if Whiting had aborted the start (as he was supposed to), and Vettel was forced to start from the pitlane, the championship would have lost the shine it had from Melbourne. IMO, that's the only and real reason Vettel was not penalised.
Probably. It's almost that simple, but not quite. IMHO, this is one of those rules you don't expect anyone to break, or push the envelope with. But Vettel did, and beyond your point above (which I agree is a big factor), I expect it caught Charlie off guard and he may have been thinking... How far out can he be? Move the internal discussion (Charlie, stewards, etc.) to after the start vs. declare false start and potentially get it really wrong. If It had ended up improving Vettel's start we may have seen a stop and go for him. But I don't think it did help him so they left it alone so it could be clarified with the drivers later.

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Originally Posted by F1Guy View Post
But the rules are still the same. Nothing has changed. A precedent was set in China. So if the starting rules have not changed, then any driver can still do what Vettel did. If they get penalised, they've got a very good case to argue.
No precedent has been set. Plenty has changed. We all have our opinions, but that is a ridiculous argument. The rule is a bit vague and while IMHO the clarification from Charlie could be better, it has been clarified. I expect if anyone tries the same stunt (at least to the level Vettel did) they will be penalized even if they gain no advantage. Why else would Charlie make the point?

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