13/06/2024
NEWS STORY
The FIA has warned the promoters of the Canadian Grand Prix to get their act together following a number of incidents over the weekend.
The track invasion in the moments after the race was the least of it, as F1 CEO, Stefano Domenicali was called on to apologise to the teams for a number of other issues including guests being initially refused admission to the track on Friday and Saturday and the flooding of hospitality units and a VIP car park.
Also, during Friday's somewhat chaotic practice session, fans arriving late were told that the session had been cancelled due to the conditions and were turned away.
However, it was the track invasion that saw the promoters, Octane Racing Group, summoned by the stewards after a large group of spectators managed to break the security lines and accessed the track in several areas while the race was finishing and cars were still on track.
"The security measures and/or security officers and/or equipment which were expected to be in place for the event were not either enforced or were not sufficient," it was claimed, "resulting in an unsafe environment for the spectators and drivers, a breach of Article 12.2.1.h of the 2024 FIA International Sporting Code (i.e. failure to take reasonable measures, thus resulting in an unsafe situation)."
Having received a report from the FIA Sporting Delegate and the Race Director, and having examined video evidence, summoned and heard representatives of Octane Racing Group, the stewards issued the following:
The Promoter candidly admitted that the safety measures in place did not achieve the goal to prevent spectators from entering the track. They concurred with the FIA Sporting Delegate and the Race Director report and agreed that this was an unacceptable situation.
The Promoter stated, in mitigation, that they would conduct a thorough investigation and take steps to remediate in time for the next event in Canada. They also expressed their disappointment as they had already invested significant resources in improving the safety measures, but apparently this did not have the desired effect.
In the circumstances, the Stewards determine that:
a. The Promoter breached Article 12.2.1.h of the 2024 FIA International Sporting Code.
b. The Promoter urgently (i.e. at the latest by 30th September 2024) present a formal remediation plan to the FIA that adequately addresses the serious concerns above.
As this relates to serious issues around safety and security, the stewards requested the FIA to review and comment on whether the abovementioned steps are adequate to address the concerns raised and to state if any further measure(s) need to be taken, as soon as possible. This should be done directly with the Promoter.
The stewards reinforced the fact that the paramount goal needs to be to prevent the reoccurrence of such an incident and make it clear that a significant financial penalty will be imposed in case of any reoccurrence.