FIA reveal computer 'pop-up window' issue that caused chaos at Singapore Grand Prix

The FIA have revealed a transparent explanation as to the carnage that struck the Singapore Grand Prix weekend on track.

While Sunday's race, won by Max Verstappen for Red Bull, went along without any problems, Friday's sprint qualifying session was marred by two separate issues that brought chaos to the track.

This included the failing of the timing tower that brought a 10-minute delay to the start of the second sprint qualifying session.

It was near the end of the first sprint qualifying session though when it started to go wrong following a red flag for Sergio Perez's Cadillac that left debris on track.

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FIA human error sparks chaos

Once the session was resumed, the overtake mode was not switched back on, costing drivers up to 0.6 seconds in trying to improve their times to try and avoid finishing in the bottom six and progressing to the second sprint qualifying session.

Worse was to come though when the overtake mode was then switched on for 27 seconds, meaning only certain cars on the track would get the benefit, before it was switched back off again.

This infuriated drivers like Williams' Carlos Sainz, who finished 22nd and last, before the FIA confirmed that it was caused by a human error rather than a software one.

Now the FIA's single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis has added more of an explanation to the issue, claiming a unique set of circumstances caused a crucial pop-up window to be ignored for too long, creating the carnage that would unfold.

How human error affected Singapore weekend

Tombazis told Sky Germany: “Normally it is a manual process to re-enable it, because clearly when it gets re-enabled we want to make sure from a safety point of view it's okay to do so.

“Unfortunately, there was a pop-up window that came on somebody's computer that was not acted on quickly enough or when it should have. And then under the time pressure and the general other pressure, this was forgotten, unfortunately.

“We then went into quite an intense analysis about, was there some other issue, because we could hear, of course, the drivers complaining and saying what's happening. We realised where the problem was.

“At that time there was an erroneous decision to briefly turn it on again, but that was sort of not exactly the correct decision in order for fairness. And then it was turned off again.”

Tombazis: FIA will investigate

Tombazis regretted how the situation that he described as 'a bit of a mess' but insisted the FIA would be exploring ways to stop a similar error happening in the future.

“We're not happy about it, because it affected some drivers more and some drivers less,” he added.

“So as a result, just in the first session of the sprint, we felt this problem interfered with the results – which for us as FIA is probably, in some ways, the worst thing, because our top priorities are always safety and fairness.

“Of course, to have a situation where a result is not fair or incorrect is for us not good. Of course, it is a complicated job, and people do make mistakes, and we need to be conscious of that. But we also need, when we do make mistakes, to analyse them and to make sure they don't happen again – which is what we're doing.”

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