F1 chiefs defend Grand Prix restart

World motorsport’s governing body, the FIA, have defended their decision to restart yesterday’s German Grand Prix in the wake of fierce criticism from David Coulthard and Jacques Villeneuve.

Coulthard and Villeneuve were both at a loss to understand why the race was red-flagged following a heart-stopping first corner crash in which the Prost of Luciano Burti barrel-rolled through the air after ramming into the back of Michael Schumacher’s Ferrari.