George Russell has explained how he is "conflicted" over whether F1 races should end under the safety car after the British GP conclusion.
After Max Verstappen's stricken Red Bull had been removed following his late crash, there was the expectation that the safety car would come in and there would be one final lap of racing under green flag conditions to decide the winner.
However, whilst a 'safety car in this lap' message did appear, the FIA quickly clarified that this was due to a "software error" and the safety car stayed out with the race finishing without resuming green-flag running.
Under the rulebook, the earliest the safety car could come in was at the end of Lap 52, the final lap, and with overtaking prohibited, it meant Charles Leclerc won from Russell in second and Lewis Hamilton in third.
In previous years, such as at the 2021 Azerbaijan and 2023 Australian GPs, late incidents within the closing laps did trigger a red flag to allow for clean-up and removal of debris before a standing restart took place to decide the winner.
It was this red-flagging of races to create a climactic finish that Russell revealed his conflict over.
"I've got conflicting views," Russell began to tell media, including RacingNews365, when asked for his opinion.
"Is it fair for a driver who has got a 20-second gap to then have a red flag and the race neutralised with three laps remaining?
"He's done that well, and I think that if there is 25% or 30% of the race remaining, and there is a red flag, you can maybe kind of accept it, but if there are three laps to go, and there is a red flag, similar in Melbourne in 2023.
"Equally, do I like a race finishing behind the safety car? No.
"But when was the last time [that happened?], I think it was Abu Dhabi 2021, so I'd love to finish the race and have that great big climax.
"But if there was no incident, there would be no climax anyway in those final stages of the race, so it is just a bit of a niche, but there are no major conversations as yet."
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