Both Force India deputy team principal Bob Fernley and Mercedes Motorsport boss Toto Wolff have raised fresh concerns over the lack of information each team is allowed to supply their drivers over team radio.
This comes after the Force India of Sergio Perez suffered a brake failure on the last lap in Austria resulting in the Mexican collecting the barrier whilst Rosberg collected his teammate, Lewis Hamilton, also on the last lap after the German suffered a brake by wire failure.
Both failures were caused by issues each team was aware of but were restricted from informing their drivers due to the new rules reducing communication between drivers and the pit wall.
“We’ve got to look at the radio communication bit because we were not allowed to tell the drivers their brakes were critical,” Fernley told Autosport.
“It’s a bit worrying. It seems a bit silly putting a halo on a car but not being able to tell a driver his brakes are about to go.”
As far as the rules state Force India should have been allowed to warn Sergio Perez of the impending failure but when this was put to Fernley he said: “We were informed by race control not to inform the driver.”
“We need to talk to them about that because that’s probably a little bit too far. I think we have to take drivers’ safety in control.
“It probably wouldn’t have made a difference to Checo at the end of the day, but it’s just an example of something we perhaps need to look at.”
When Mercedes’s Toto Wolff was asked if he was again frustrated by the radio ban after watching his two drivers collide he said “The FIA’s not in an easy position because what is the limit?
“Teams might easily abuse it, and under the title of safety try to communicate with the drivers.
“My opinion is we probably went a little too far in what is restricted.
“Opening it up is actually Bernie’s [Ecclestone] suggestion, not my idea. Maybe not the driver coaching bit, that’s the only thing.”
Currently, the FIA is not intending to amend the regulations on radio communications as they feel any amendments to the current rule could open it up to abuse from the teams. With the recent accidents though it won’t take much more for the pressure on the FIA to get so much that they will be forced to take a look at the rule again.
