Autosports can be unpredictable, as we've seen from Abu Dhabi's F1 season finale. A crash on the track gave a handful of drivers an unexpected boost, causing one of them to pull ahead of the leading racer. However, the incident has caused quite a stir in the racing community.
According to Motorsport
, tensions were so high that F1 actually had to revise one of its official racing rules. Here's what you need to know about the new rule, and why it had to be changed. The latest rule change from F1
The recent contention surrounds what racecar drivers should do with the presence of a safety car on the track. The new rules say that, as long as the 'LAPPED CARS MAY OVERTAKE' message has been relayed, all cars lapped by the leader will be waved to pass the safety car and leading cars.
Previously, the word 'any' was in the place of 'all', which apparently caused some confusion in the December finale. To make things more complicated, SI Racing
says that the decisions of the racing director also made the race unfair. What happened to the lapped cars in Abu Dhabi?
During Lap 53 of 58, Nicholas Latifi crashed and prompted a safety car to make an appearance. As per the rules, the lapped cars waited behind the safety car until told otherwise. There were five drivers between the first- and second-place racers, all of whom were behind the leaders in time.
Strangely, racing director Michael Masi said that lapped cars were not permitted to overtake. For the leading driver, Mercedes racer Lewis Hamilton, this meant that his potential win was put in jeopardy. He had not been to the pit since lap 17, so he was still using hard tires.
The second-place racer, Max Verstappen, had the advantage of softer tires. If the lap restarted, then Verstappen would be able to pull ahead of Hamilton's comfortable lead with virtually no competition.
Even more abnormal, Masi quickly reversed his decision about the lapped cars during the final lap. Upon the restarted lap, Verstappen easily claimed first place.
During the incident, Mercedes team manager Toto Wolff reportedly yelled at Masi about reinstating lap 57. Masi fired off "it's called a motor race, okay?", much to Wolff's confusion. Mercedes subsequently filed two protests after the incident.
Ultimately, the F1 rules also state that the racing director has the authority to override any of the other rules. This makes Masi's actions completely legal, despite the misgivings from everyone involved.
MORE: What Is a Safety Car Restart? How Lewis Hamilton Lost the Formula 1 Title
Will Verstappen keep his F1 win?
F1 has dismissed both of the protests filed by Mercedes about the incident. This indicates that race officials are still confident that Masi had made the right call.
Even so, the entire situation has caused uncertainty and even accusations of Masi rigging the race to suit his own interests. Hopefully, the revised rule change will keep such incidents from happening during future racing seasons
. Make sure you're covered by auto insurance
Contrary to popular belief, you don't have to be an official racecar driver to have fun at the track. During the warm months, many of the country's racing facilities hold track days where anyone can enjoy some high-speed fun. While it's encouraged that you bring a sports car, any vehicle with decent handling and brakes can run laps.
While these drives are carefully observed by racing officials, accidents can still happen. You could damage your car on a guard rail or bump into another vehicle. If you don't think your current insurance will cover such damages, Jerry
can help you find something better! 
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