Carlos Sainz has called for a review of F1's marshalling procedures after his Ferrari was left ablaze and rolling backwards downhill following the Spaniard's retirement from the Austrian Grand Prix. Sainz's F1-75 suffered a dramatic engine failure on Lap 56 of 71 on Sunday at the Red Bull Ring and parked up at the run-off area outside Turn 4. However, a combination of the steep gradient at that section of the circuit, and the fact that modern F1 cars lack a handbrake, meant Sainz was having difficulty exiting his car while ensuring it didn't roll backwards, all while flames rapidly engulfed the hindquarters of his Ferrari. Eventually a marshal arrived with chocks to place underneath the F1-75's wheels, but Sainz lamented that the situation had not been dealt with sooner, and called for a review into marshalling procedures at future events.
Sainz concerned by "not ideal" situation
"It was not an ideal and an easy situation, because I saw [in] my mirrors that the car was catching fire," Sainz told media including RacingNews365.com . "But at the same time, I was pressing the brake, and as soon as I tried to jump out, I didn't want to leave the car completely free, out of control, rolling backwards while jumping out. "I was calling the marshals to come and help me to put something on the tyres to stop the car rolling down. "But I think the whole process was a bit slow, and there was so much fire that I had to get a move on and jump out independently. "It's definitely something we need to look at, what we could have done a bit faster, because it was not an easy situation to be in."
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