"That procedure is clearly slowing things down"- Former F1 driver questions FIA's decision to avoid 'one-lap shootout' at Italian GP

David Coulthard believes that the decision taken by the FIA during the final laps of the 2022 F1 Italian Grand Prix "slowed things down."

Coulthard, a former F1 driver with McLaren, questioned the safety car procedure that was followed by the FIA. He believes that the new procedures that have been introduced this year have started to slow down the decisions. The usual procedure is to let the lapped cars un-lap themselves on a lap before the safety car is called in and the race gets underway on a rolling restart.

However, this didn't happen during the Italian GP, and the race ended behind the safety car, taking away the excitement of the Grand Prix.

Coulthard said:

“But that procedure is clearly slowing things down and then not even delivering really sort of fast and on the money decisions.”

Due to controversies last year after the F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, new procedures were introduced this year. These procedures involve a virtual team of people making crucial decisions during a race to not give any unfair advantage to a driver.

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Coulthard believes the FIA should focus on both F1's safety and the entertainment

Coulthard believes that the end of the Italian GP would have been way more exciting if there had been a last-lap shootout. All the drivers would have been on soft tires and it could have been a grandstand finish to the exciting race.

“And what was an exciting weekend of Grand Prix racing and could have been an incredible grandstand finish on soft tyres for a one-lap shootout, we go back less than 12 months, we know how that worked out in Abu Dhabi.”

But that didn't happen as it took too long to remove Daniel Ricciardo's car. The race ended behind the safety car with Max Verstappen winning, followed by Charles Leclerc and George Russell. David Coulthard believes that this ended the excitement of the race and that the FIA should focus on both safety and the thrill of a race.

“I think what the FIA don’t really fully understand is that they’re not just a governing body which prioritises safety and everything. We are a sport, we’re a show.”