Safety car almost skids off track, Silverstone F3 race postponed
General
- Ludo van Denderen
A setback for fans who had flocked to the Silverstone circuit early: the Formula 3 sprint race was postponed at the very last minute on Saturday morning. Race control decided that it was too wet to race in a safe manner. The fact that the safety car almost flew off the track during a reconnaissance lap was proof of that.
Actually, the sprint race in F3 - featuring young British start Arvid Lindblad - should have started at 9:20 am local time. At that time, however, the cars were still in the pit lane. There were so many puddles of water on the track that it was irresponsible to drive to the starting grid at all. On the lap from the F3 paddock to the pitlane, Italian Gabriele Mini had slid off the track into the gravel moments before.
Moment of terror for Mayländer
Bernd Mayländer, the experienced driver of the safety car, also took to the track to explore the conditions. He too ended up in a puddle of water and just managed to keep his car on the asphalt. After that scare, and after several decisions had been made to postpone the start time, just before 9:45 a.m. British time, the announcement came: it is now off. It is unknown whether there will be a retake at a later point in the day.
It is also unknown whether the wet track means that other sessions will also be hampered today. Formula 1's third free practice is scheduled at 11:30 am local time, so the track will not be dry before then.
Sprint race rearranged for a later start
As a result of the race's postponement, the FIA have moved the F3 sprint race time. The race will take place at 18:00 local time around Silverstone.
This article was written in collaboration with Olly Darcy