George Russell advocated for a return to one single race director after a 2022 season affected by some inconsistent decision-making.
Michael Masi was axed after the way the 2021 title was controversially decided in Abu Dhabi, as the FIA acted after pressure from Mercedes. In his place came two others, who share the role by alternating between race weekends.
Niels Wittich and Eduardo Freitas are those with the unenviable task of controlling Formula 1 races. While the general consensus is that it takes time to adjust and that some small errors are to be expected, more and more drivers and team bosses feel key decisions have been too inconsistent this year.
Russell is the latest racer to add his voice to that point of view, on a weekend when breaches of track limits were enforced more harshly during qualifying than has been the case at other races this season. Sebastian Vettel faced disciplinary action after storming out of a drivers' briefing on the subject on Friday.
"I agree we need to stick to one race director," said the Brit. "We need to have a bit more consistency with the stewarding. We come to the following event and often the steward at the previous event isn't there. So there's no accountability, no explanations of decisions.
"We ask questions and it's difficult to get a straightforward answer because almost a bit blame is being put onto someone else who isn't there. So it's tricky. Everyone has their own interpretations. I think when you have one race director, things can generally be more consistent."
Sergio Perez was the driver most affected by the stricter application of tracks limits rules in qualifying on Friday. His hot lap in Q2 was deemed to be illegal, and so all his Q3 times were scrubbed and he was bumped down from fourth to 13th on the starting grid for the Sprint.
The Mexican lamented that the call had come so late : "It is disappointing to lose fourth place, the track limits are very tight here this season, but it is frustrating that the team weren't told my lap time had been deleted during Q2," he said.
And Christian Horner also felt such a large punishment was "very harsh", adding: "It should have been dealt with before Q3 to enable us to improve subsequent performance." Fortunately for Red Bull, Perez drove brilliantly during the Sprint and made up eight places to make sure he starts the race itself from fifth.
