James Vowles Addresses Controversial Late Deletion of Nico Hulkenberg’s Lap Time

In the nail-biting qualifying session at the Bahrain Grand Prix, Alex Albon narrowly missed progressing to Q2. His final flying lap was left too late, but 45 minutes after his infringement, the FIA deleted Nico Hulkenberg’s lap time. This move pushed Hulkenberg down to 16th position on the grid, denying Albon a chance to fight for a better starting slot for Sunday’s race.

Team Principal James Vowles Expresses Frustration Over Delayed Decision

Speaking with Sky Sports F1’s Ted Kravitz, Williams team principal James Vowles expressed his discontent over the situation. He stated, “I’m not feeling good about this. It’s frustrating. Obviously, the track limits are analyzed live, but the result for Hulkenberg came way after we would have had an opportunity to go to Q2, and today Alex had the pace to make it all the way to Q3.

Vowles further explained, “In Q1, it wasn’t the best out lap, and we were blocked quite significantly. What we need to understand, and I’m waiting for a report from the FIA, is why was this analyzed so much later than that, because it’s not one position gained, it could be many positions.

He added, “I mean, as I said, on us is the fact that he’s out in Q1. We got blocked in the pit lane, simple as that. But what I’d like to understand now is, is why this happened, and obviously, it’s not going to rectify the position. The position will still be where it is on the grid.

When asked if this is something that the FIA has automated or not, Vowles responded, “That’s a good question. One more one for the FIA. I believe they have some level of automation. I believe they do have a race control. I’m not sure.

Vowles concluded by expressing his desire to understand why the decision was made so late and why it wasn’t picked up live, stating, “There were plenty to have picked up live.” Let’s wait for the FIA’s report to shed more light on this controversial incident.