Flag marshalling point relocated at Symmons Plains Raceway

Flag marshals will have a new home at the famous Symmons Plains Raceway hairpin for Round 4 of the Repco Supercars Championship this weekend.

Latest FIA regulations have mandated that the flag point has been moved from inside the 180 degree hairpin to the outside of the circuit on the spectator side of the circuit.

It was deemed that the flag marshals will be safer on the outside of the track, particularly in multi-car incidents next to the guard rail that lines the inside wall from the exit of the Dunlop bridge down to the hairpin.

Don Potter, General Manager for Motorsports Tasmania says the move has been made on teh grounds of safety.

“We’ve changed the flag marshal point after a recommendation from the FIA,” Potter told The Repco Garage.

“Where the marshalling post was plonked in the middle of the hairpin at the end of the armco, we had an 11-car pile up in that channel area.

“The belief is if we did have a crash at that hairpin area, with 11 or 12 cars, there would be an issue of the actual armco moving and the flag point being compromised at the end of the straight.

“At Bathurst, there was an issue of a car riding the concrete wall and hitting a flag point, so moving the flag post to the left side of the concrete wall means there’s less chance of this happening.

“I can see the point of change, it’s always been historically on the inside and our flaggies are a little bit disappointed because they like to see it there, but it’s safer to be on the outside.”