Made compulsory from this 2022 season in MotoGP, the light panels showing the flags waved by the marshals have appeared at the Grands Prix from Portimão last year.
Like F1, their aim is to make more visible the signals emitted by the Race Direction or the marshals, most of which directly concern the safety of the drivers, and it is therefore all the more a good thing that They do not replace the waving flags, but are added to them.
To respond to this repeated request from drivers, in particular to increase the visibility of the yellow flags which cancel the qualifying laps, the 2021 season was therefore a transitional period and made it possible, for example, to highlight a small gap in the system. We are not talking about the LED technology used, but rather about the meaning of the messages displayed. Indeed, although the panels are an undeniable plus, they still have a drawback: unlike flags, you cannot activate two of them at the same time since there is only one per area concerned...
So last year, any change in grip was indicated by a yellow sign vertically striped with red, whether due to heavy rain, oil, gravel or any other reason, the white display with a red cross being kept only for the appearance of raindrops. And the drivers didn't really like that, and with good reason, because there is still a big difference between diving into a wet area and arriving on a puddle of oil in the middle of a turn!
On Wednesday in Losail, during the drivers' briefing for the first 2022 Grand Prix, they, Aleix Espargaró, Fabio Quartararo and Marc Márquez in the lead, therefore asked that rain, drops or heavy downpours, be completely separated from the rest, which is generally much more dangerous. Basically, they want to know if we're talking about water or something else.
The FIM heard them and immediately adapted the meaning of the light panels and flags accordingly, a decision approved during the Grand Prix Commission which was held on Friday March 4.
From now on, The yellow flag with red stripes means "The grip in this section of track may be modified for any reason other than rain (oil, gravel, grass or other debris)" while the white flag with red diagonal cross means “Raindrops, or even rain affecting the track surface on this part of the circuit”.
This new regulation is valid for all events managed by the FIM (MotoGP, WorldSBK, Endurance, Sidecar, JuniorGP, MotoE, Red Bull Rookies Cup, MiniGP World Series). Furthermore, it strongly recommends that it also be applied by national federations and emphasizes the need for training of commissioners.
Here is an extract from a letter sent by the International Motorcycling Federation which quickly responded to the riders' request.
« During the first briefing with the MotoGP riders in Losail, it was clearly pointed out to us that the signage indicating changes in the condition of the track surface only provided partial and insufficient information to the riders.
Indeed, with the introduction of light panels, it was impossible for us to associate the meaning of 2 joint flags as was the case previously.
With single signage, it was therefore necessary to review the meaning regarding the state of the track surface. The MotoGP Commission, urgently, in Doha has decided to review this information given to riders.
You have also received the Press Release of March 9 (Decisions_of_the_Grand_Prix_Commission__04_March.pdf)
This simple decision has important and urgent consequences for our Championships and for the management and training of flag marshals. Indeed, it is important that the marshals know well and apply this new information given to the riders in the same way.
This new signage will be applied for the other Circuit Racing Championships managed by the FIM (WorldSBK, Endurance, Sidecar, JuniorGP, MotoE, Red Bull Rookies Cup, MiniGP World Series). »
Flag clarifications requested by riders of @MotoGP .
rain is the white +X flag. Red and yellow is for the rest of the reasons track condition might be effected as oil, grass, debris. How it should have been all along pic.twitter.com/lJFEtObU4l— Tammy Gorali (@tammygorali) March 9, 2022
