23/07/2016
NEWS STORY
Nico Rosberg has been summoned by the Stewards in Hungary for a possible yellow flag violation.
At 19:16 this evening (local time) the stewards called on Rosberg and a team representative to report to them at 19:45 regarding an "Alleged breach of Appendix H, Article 2.4.5.1 b) of the FIA International Sporting Code, failure to slow for yellow flags at 15:54."
The German took pole position for tomorrow's race in the final moments of today's session which had overrun by over an hour due to weather stoppages and red flags.
As the drivers were on their final run, Fernando Alonso spun as he exited Turn 9, and with the Spaniard's McLaren slewed sideways on the kerbing the yellow flags were waved.
Lewis Hamilton, who was running behind the McLaren immediately backed off, thus forfeiting any chance of improving his time, though he was already on provisional pole.
However, Rosberg, further back, arrived on the scene as Alonso got going again. Though the flags were out, and the German lifted off, thereby acknowledging that he was aware of the incident, he subsequently speeded up again.
Asked at the post-qualifying session if he was concerned his time might be challenged, he insisted that he had done nothing wrong.
"For sure, there were double-waved yellows, but I had a very, very big lift," he said. "I lost a lot of time as a result and, also slower than on my previous lap in that yellow segment, so I am sure it will be okay."
However, Red Bull boss Christian Horner, whose driver, Daniel Ricciardo, finished third quickest, was quick to challenge Rosberg's actions.
"What I need to check is that Rosberg was behind Daniel, and managed to get a purple middle sector," he told Sky Sports F1.
When told Rosberg had lifted for the yellows, Horner smiled and said: "With that sort of lap time? That's down to the stewards to decide.
"It's a shame because Daniel was three-and-a-half-tenths up which would have been pretty handy," he continued. "The second row is a great place to be starting both cars, unfortunately Max mistimed it.
"We were telling him 'come on you need to get on with it' and I think he was trying to build a gap so he missed it by 0.8s. It was a shame, on his in-lap he was half a second up as well. Unfortunately that car going off ruined it for Daniel, but nonetheless the second row is pretty good."
Other than the legality of Rosberg's lap, the other question is why it took over three hours for the Stewards to decide to summon the German.
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