R12 PENALTIES - Flags prove costly at Sandown
12/10/2000 12:04 (V8 Wire - Jason Whittaker) - Disobeying flag marshals could prove a costly exercise, as many discovered in the Sandown stewards room at Round 12 of the Shell Series last weekend.
No less than seven drivers were hauled before officials on the Saturday of the meeting for allegedly ignoring the directions of particular flags.
Mark Skaife was handed a $1000 fine for ignoring the red flag at the conclusion of the qualifying session on Saturday afternoon. Stewards found Skaife failed to pull into pitlane despite noticing the red flag two corners before the pit entry. He went on to record the fastest lap of the session (at the time) on the illegal lap.
Skaife was also under investigation for passing Cameron McConville under yellow flag conditions. Skaife claimed he passed McConville after the yellow flags, a claim supported by McConville, and no further action was taken.
Steve Reed also failed to observe the red flag at the conclusion of the qualifying session, and was docked $500.
Steven Ellery’s winning weekend will come at a cost of $500, after it was found the Queenslander passed Paul Radisich under the red flag. Ellery claimed he didn’t notice the flag, but did recall passing, “one of the Shell cars at that part of the circuit.”
Youngsters Craig Lowndes and Paul Weel were alleged to have disobeyed the red flag once the session was stopped and didn’t exit the circuit when required. They were later cleared of the charge after it was found both crossed the finish line just seconds after the flag was shown.
On Sunday, Garth Tander’s hopes of claiming the Shell title almost ended after he was relegated to the rear of grid for the second heat. Stewards found Tander made illegal contact with Russell Ingall at the exit of turn 12, resulting in the penalty. Tander retained his points for finishing sixth in the first race.
Inquiries were held into incidents involving Jason Bargwanna and Steven Johnson in race two, and Johnson and Mike Imrie later in the same race. Despite Johnson finishing in the sand after the tangle with Bargwanna, all drivers were cleared of any charges.
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