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F1: Teams accused of wanting Monaco 'chaos' and 'controversy'

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Khatir Soltani
From GMM

Michael Schumacher and Martin Whitmarsh have accused some team bosses of wanting "chaos" and "controversy" to reign on the streets of Monaco this weekend.

At a meeting last week in Barcelona, the bosses voted on a drivers' proposal that 'Q1' qualifying be split into two parts for this weekend's fabled street event. With a busy grid in 2010 and six cars that are not up to speed, drivers fear not only that the traffic will impede their ability to set proper lap times, but that the situation could be dangerous.

But Lotus team boss Tony Fernandes admits to having vetoed the vote, arguing that he wants F1 "to be exciting ... to be unpredictable".

McLaren's Martin Whitmarsh expects the unpredictability to be in the form of a litany of stewards enquiries about blocking. "There are those, and I'm not one of them, who feel that controversy and stewards' hearings after the event are entertaining. I don't share that view," he told reporters earlier this week.

Seven time world champion Schumacher also expressed disappointment with Fernandes' line of reasoning. "Some team bosses felt that they'd rather have the chaos and may take the profit from (that) than to have a reasonable, clean qualifying. Let's see who has to suffer or not," he said on Wednesday.

Almost every driver, from either end of the grid, spoke on Wednesday about the traffic situation. Spanish reports quote Fernando Alonso as neatly summarising: "It will definitely not be easy, but it's the same for everyone."


Khatir Soltani
Khatir Soltani
Automotive expert
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