Reynolds weighs in on redress debate
David Reynolds weighs in on redress debate after Sydney
Cam Waters/Broc Feeney collision and redress led to stunning finish
Redress a self-imposed decision by drivers after incidents
David Reynolds has suggested a caveat to the redress debate in the wake of the dramatic end to Race 2 at the Thrifty Sydney 500 - Opening Round.
In Supercars, the redress is a self-imposed decision by a driver to responsibility for an incident they've committed. A driver fixes the situation by changing track position to avoid formal punishment
Cam Waters sent Broc Feeney into a spin at Turn 4 with four laps to go in Race 2, with Waters slowing in a bid to let Feeney back past.
The situation became complicated, however, when third-placed Will Brown caught up, leaving Waters a tricky situation to let Feeney by without dropping behind Brown.
Waters managed to let Feeney by without ceding position to Brown in a dramatic sequence of events through Turns 5, 6 and 7, with the actions earning the ire of Brown.
The redress ensured Waters avoided punishment over the initial Turn 4 contact, following an investigation.
As stated in the media by Driving Standards Advisor Craig Baird, the redress is only permitted when it's safe to do so. In Waters’ case, he took responsibility for the initial clash, and fixed the problem himself.
Team 18 driver Reynolds, speaking on the upcoming Drivers Only podcast, claimed Feeney was still disadvantaged by damage to his tyres as he spun off the road.
"There's a problem, obviously what happened earlier [with the redress],” Reynolds said.
"Waters sent Feeney spinning and obviously it destroys your tyres doing that sort of stuff. And then they're allowed to sort of come back into the race and everything's kind of normal again, isn't it?
"As a as a driver, if I got spun and come back on and still had to race, like, I'm sort of at a disadvantage because your tyres are overheated and stuffed.
"There's so much to think about that I don't really know the answer… they might just say, ‘Hey boys, play on it's all up to you guys to sort it out’, and it'll just be a free for all and that would be fun.”
The redress and driving standards are set to be a hot topic at the upcoming Melbourne SuperSprint, with drivers set to meet in a drivers briefing before the event.
Track action in Melbourne commences on Thursday March 13.
