The safety car came on late in the race after Daniel Ricciardo’s McLaren stopped on track with apparent engine failure. Marshals couldn’t push the car because it was stuck in gear and it took a while to get a crane from the other side of the track as it had to wait for a gap in traffic. Meanwhile, with some leading cars pitted and others not, and cars not allowed to pass the safety car while the crane was in action, it took driver Bernd Maylander several laps to get all the cars lined up behind him and in the right order. By then it was too late to continue the race and it ended with a short sprint out of the final corner. Fans at the track made their reaction clear with boos and whistles. However, while rival team bosses questioned how events were unfolding, Wolff was adamant that everything had been done by the book. “Very clearly, there are rules and they are written,” Wolff said. “And from my perspective, whether I’m injured in Abu Dhabi or not, those rules have been followed to the letter today. “There was a car on the track, there were marshals and a crane out there. That’s why they didn’t let anyone pass. “And then there wasn’t enough time to restart the race once all the cars caught up. So if somebody’s not happy with the rules, and they want to have a big show and two rounds of matches, and then chaos, I think I’m totally up for it. “But then we have to change the regulations. So I don’t think we should complain about anything that happened because those are the rules.” He added: “I’m really pleased to see that there’s a match director and colleagues who are enforcing the rules against media pressure and pressure from fans and everyone to just break the rules. “So at least Abu Dhabi, in that sense, has given the FIA more confidence in implementing the regulations.” Toto Wolff, Team Principal and CEO, Mercedes AMG Photo: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Images Asked by Motorsport.com whether race control could have red-flagged the race to ensure a green-flag finish, Wolff dismissed the suggestion. “Why red flag the race? If someone is in a wall, if the track is blocked, you flag a race because you can’t pass anymore. Something has happened. Why do you flag a race just because you want to put on a show or two rounds? “I think change the regulations and talk to the FIA, ‘let’s change the regulations, we want to have a really top-class last round of racing.’ I raise my hand for that. But that is not what is provided for in the regulations today.” Read also: Wolff insisted he did not want to be seen as the driving force behind any such change, which could be added to the agenda of a scheduled sporting regulations meeting at Monza on Monday, attended by team sporting directors and FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem. “I don’t want to make a headline here that Toto wants to change the regulations because racing is crap. I think we should all sit down and say is there something we can do better? “But what was done today is in the rule book and that’s why it was implemented. Would I want to do a last lap with a bunch of cars on top of each other in the chicane? Yes, hell yes. Good TV. But… “I think we should say we want to have a race that ends under green? And then we reverse it from there. “So you can see five or 10 laps to go, we have a safety car, let’s flag it. And make sure we fight in the end. If that’s normal, good. But there are much smarter people, the sporting directors, who will have some ideas.” Read also:
