Sean Richardson

Stereotypically boring accountant.
All views are my own.

[Ruth Buscombe @RuthBuscombe]

Same flag, same corner, two different calls at Mercedes.

Verstappen crashed in the final sector. On a single waved yellow, George Russell lifted
right at the flag, 25 km/h off the throttle, then got straight back to it. His sector was
unchanged (+0.03s), but the dab is there in black and white. Pole stood. Kimi Antonelli read
it as a double yellow, where the rule is simple: bin any meaningful time or take a penalty.
He came off 61 km/h, lost about two seconds, and parked the lap.

Both were right for what they saw. A single yellow needs a clear, discernible lift, not an
abandoned lap. The benchmark for "enough"? Qatar 2021: Carlos Sainz gave up a measured 0.155s
on a single yellow and walked. In 2019 Verstappen kept it pinned through a single yellow at
Mexico, didn't reduce at all, and lost pole. Russell's trace looks like Sainz's, not
Verstappen's. Mercedes nailed the read.

If you the numbers have a look 👇

TECHNICAL NOTES

Session: 2026 Austrian GP qualifying, Q3. Single waved yellow in Sector 3 at the site of
Verstappen's crash (~3.9 km into the lap, final-corner complex).

RUSSELL (pole)
- Flagged lap (pole): 1:06.113. Clean reference run: 1:06.457.
- At the flag: speed drops to 215 km/h vs 240 on his clean lap = a 25 km/h lift.
- Local cost at the marshalling point (~300 m window): about +0.09s.
- Sector 3 net: +0.03s vs his clean lap so he recovered the time after the dab.
- Read: a clear, discernible reduction exactly where the flag was, on a single yellow. Cleared,
not investigated.

ANTONELLI (P4)
- Flagged final run: 1:08.215. Clean reference (his grid lap): 1:06.414.
- At the flag: speed drops to 178 km/h vs 239 = a 61 km/h lift.
- Sector 3: +2.07s vs his clean lap. He treated it as a double yellow and abandoned the lap,
keeping his earlier 1:06.414 for fourth.

THE RULE : 2026 F1 Sporting Regulations, Art. B1.8.4 (a)/(b)
- Single waved yellow: "must reduce their speed and be prepared to change direction... expected
to have braked earlier and/or discernibly reduced speed in the relevant marshalling sector."
No fixed numeric threshold (judged on telemetry, at the flag point.)
- Double waved yellow: must not attempt a meaningful lap time; in qualifying the lap is deleted
automatically (2026). Don't back off enough and it's a grid penalty.

PRECEDENT (single yellow, measured the same way)
- Sainz, Qatar 2021: +0.155s lift in the yellow sector. No action cleared. (The benchmark.)
- Verstappen, Mexico 2019: S3 -0.001s, no measurable lift, improved the lap. Pole stripped, -3
places. (The line you can't cross.)

WHY MERCEDES ARE CONFIDENT, AND THE EVIDENCE THEY'D PRESENT IF CHALLENGED
- It was a single yellow, not a double so an abandoned lap was never required, only a
discernible reduction.
- The car telemetry shows a distinct throttle lift and a 25 km/h speed drop precisely at the
marshalling sector where the flag was shown the "discernible reduction" the rule asks for.
- The magnitude matches the cleared Sainz Qatar 2021 precedent (~0.15s), and is the opposite of
the penalised Verstappen Mexico 2019 case (no reduction at all).
- Same-team control case: Antonelli, same corner, same flag, shows what a double-yellow-style
abort looks like (61 km/h, +2.07s). Russell's trace is plainly a single-yellow lift, not that.
- Supporting: onboard footage of the flag/panel state, and the marshalling-sector light status
by the time he arrived.

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[Bring Back V10s Podcast @BBV10s]

George Russell channelling his inner Mika Hakkinen when driving through yellow flags on a qualifying lap 🟡

[Holiness @F1BigData]

The last time the UK Prime Minister resigned, Lewis Hamilton won the next race
Today, the UK Prime Minister has resigned again

[Sean Richardson @richardson292]

@SilverstoneUK could you explain what is causing previously unavailable/sold out options for park and ride tickets to reappear for sale. Trying to work out if there is any chance of six fields becoming an option.

[F1 TROLL @f1trollofficial]

Weirdest DNF of all time ?

[Motor Sport magazine @Motor_Sport]

Lewis Hamilton is the first 40+ year old F1 driver to win a grand prix since Nigel Mansell in 1994 and is the oldest to win one since Jack Brabham in 1970 👴

[Autosport @autosport]

Lewis Hamilton becomes the first driver to win an F1 race for McLaren, Mercedes and Ferrari 🏆🏆🏆

[Autosport @autosport]

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He's been with him every step of the way ❤️

[Jonny Cooper @JRCooper26]

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[Sean Richardson @richardson292]

Perfection

[Paul McGinnes @PaulMcG1992]

1997 Monaco GP: Drifting around the streets of Monte Carlo. #F1

[VeryBritishProblems @SoVeryBritish]

When you park in an empty car park and someone comes and parks in the spot right next to you. What is wrong with these people?!

[UnracedF1 - Thanks Peter Sauber🏁 @UnracedF1]

Not sure if this would be the Lola T97/30 i almost purchased back in 2011?

[No Context Brits @NoContextBrits]

David Attenborough is officially too old to play with Lego.

[WRCPAST @WRCPAST]

🇬🇧 1997 Network Q RAC Rally

Car 3

Colin McRae and Nicky Grist in their Subaru Impreza S5 WRC '97 on the absolute limit.

It would pay off as the crew would go onto to win the event overall by 2mins 47secs over Kankkunen and Repo but missed out on the Championship by 1 point.

Makinen and Harjanne were the 1997 WRC Champions. 🏆

🎥 Credit to the fans who captured this moment 👏🏻👏🏻

#mcrae #wrc #subaru #cars

[Ligier Automotive @LigierAutomotiv]

20 Ligier F1 cars. One place.
At the heart of the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours 🇫🇷

From 1976 to Monaco 1996.

Open exceptionally for the Classic Days — celebrating 50 years of Ligier in F1.

📅 April 25–26 - Don’t miss it.

#LigierAutomotive I #ClassicDays

[Elliot Webber @ElliotWebberYT]

1997: Jason Plato takes pole position on #BTCC debut as a driver.

2026: Jason Plato takes pole position on debut as a team owner.

Unreal.

[⚡︎ @_sorrengailll]

Dear Apple, bring back the iPod but make it modern. Not for nostalgia, but for parents who want their kids to experience music and audiobooks without the distractions of apps, browsers, and social media.

[Phil @___BMA___]

There's bravery in rallying and then there's Joe Cunningham and Josh Beer absolutely launching their Fiesta WRC car off this jump on the Yorkshire Dales Rally today

Animals!😂