FIA race director Charlie Whiting is considering switching to an electronic system for the checkered flag following the errors which led to it being waved prematurely in Canada.
A miscommunication between the official on the starters podium and race control was blamed for supermodel Winnie Harlow waving the flag on Lap 69 of what was meant to be a 70-lap race with the official results put back to Lap 68 due to the regulations.
However, with most of the signals now done through electronic LED boards around the circuit, Whiting admits switching the process of ending the race to what would be a flawless system is possible.
“The checkered flag is traditional, but it is something that is prone to mistakes,” he said. “But if you’re going to do it automatically, then you’ve got to think about exactly when you’re going to do it, when you’re going to activate it.”
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On Thursday, managing director of motorsport Ross Brawn apologised to Harlow for the “grief” caused as fans criticised the act of giving what is a very critical job to an admittedly uninformed celebrity.
Whiting also again relinquished any responsibility from her, adding: “The celebrity was not to blame, so I don’t think that that is anything that we need to consider.
“We may need to look at other things, like the amount of people that get up there sometimes.”
