Will the Chinese Grand Prix 2017 go ahead and why has the Shanghai race been thrown into doubt?


THE Chinese Grand Prix 2017 could be cancelled unless local authorities step in and enforce much-needed safety precautions.

Drivers have had been virtually unable to run in either the morning or afternoon practice sessions at the Shanghai circuit because of the bad weather conditions.

Chinese Grand Prix
The Chinese Grand Prix could be cancelled because of the bad weather and poor visibility
EPA

Will the Chinese Grand Prix 2017 go ahead?

Currently, both drivers and teams are waiting on a decision from the officials about whether the bad weather and poor visibility means the race will have to be cancelled.

In the meantime, a disappointed Lewis Hamilton tweeted: “So sorry for all u either watching on TV or here at the track. We must find a solution to deal with weather issue.”

Lewis Hamilton (L) and Valtteri Bottas (R) have been virtually unable to run on the Shanghai circuit and they’re having to wait on a decision about whether the race can go ahead
Alamy

Keep up to date with all the latest Chinese Grand Prix 2017 news, tips and odds in the SunSport live blog


Why might it be cancelled?

The safety regulations state that medical helicopters have to be able to transport an injured driver to a hospital in under 20 minutes.

But the poor visibility means medical helicopters might not be able to operate if needed and, according to Sky Sports’ F1 expert Ted Kravitz, the local authorities aren’t stepping in to help.

Safety requirements state that medical helicopters have to be able to transport drivers to a hospital within 20 minutes and the poor visibility conditions mean they might be unable to do this
EPA

Kravitz explained: “The Chinese are not promising to secure the roads and they’re not promising that they can get a road ambulance to the nearest hospital if the helicopter can’t fly to the hospital in 20 minutes, which is what’s needed.”

And local authorities are refusing to promise that they will close the roads to ensure a road ambulance can get to the nearest hospital if the medical helicopters can’t operate
Getty Images

Could the time of the race be moved?

On Friday morning, the FIA ruled out moving the race, which is supposed to take place at 7am on Sunday April 7, to a different day, in avoid the worst of the bad weather.

 


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