Schumacher calls for yellow warning lights

(24-Jul-98) - Michael Schumacher has called for Formula One's bosses to
supplement yellow warning flags with a system of lights in the cockpit.

The German, whose flag infringement at Silverstone when he overtook
Alexander Wurz under yellows caused confusion and prompted an appeal by
McLaren, believes light systems would rid the sport of such rows.

"The best solution is what we had at the beginning of the season, with
a display in the car which can be connected to the [control] tower,"
he said.

"If there is a yellow flag at one corner, it will also come up in the
cockpit and you will have a better chance of seeing it. That is something
we need to stop these kind of problems.

"We had them at the begining of the season as a test, but we haven't
connected it to the control tower yet. I don't know how it has developed or
what the problem was with it."

Mistakes by the stewards at Silverstone meant Schumacher escaped without
serving a 10-second stop-go penalty for the yellow flag offence -- and left
McLaren ruing a missed opportunity after Mika Hakkinen finished second.

But Schumacher, who could be stripped of victory if the FIA rule at
McLaren's appeal that he should have been punished for the offence,
believes that the focus should be on the situation -- not him.

That view was backed up when Alexander Wurz admitted that he too had failed
to see the yellow flags in the treachorous conditions.

"I am not worried about the appeal because it isn't against us, it is
against the way things happened," he explained. "We [Ferrari]
didn't do things wrong."

"The conditions were very bad at this point. When you are following a
car in spray you have no chance to see anything and you are lucky if you
see the spray in your face and the car in between. That is all.

"If Alex struggled to see the yellow flag, then how could I see it? I
think something that should be considered for us drivers is to be able to
see a signal or there is a judge of facts that sees when there are chances
you may not be able to see it.

"What can you do? You should not penalise someone who has no chance to
see the flag."

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