Just five races into the 2025 season, the FIA has moved to clarify and tighten safety car procedures after confusion in Melbourne left teams, drivers, and fans scratching their heads. It has now set a new precedent for how lapped cars interact with the leaders during neutralized periods.

The Incident That Sparked Confusion

The controversy unfolded at Albert Park during a rain-soaked Australian Grand Prix. After Fernando Alonso’s crash triggered a safety car on lap 41, Oliver Bearman—making his debut F1 appearance for Haas—was a lap down and, as per standard procedure, was permitted to unlap himself and catch the rear of the field.

However, Haas made a strategic call to pit Bearman under the safety car. When he rejoined, Bearman found himself not at the back, but inserted into the leading pack—specifically, directly in front of Max Verstappen, who was in the thick of the fight for victory behind Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.

The situation immediately caused confusion on the Red Bull pit wall. Verstappen radioed his engineer, Gianpiero Lambiase, asking, “So this car is now staying here, or what?” Lambiase replied, “That’s correct. He’ll have to let you go immediately [at the restart],” reflecting the uncertainty even among the sport’s most experienced teams. 

In the end, Bearman was allowed to unlap himself again before the restart, but the incident exposed a loophole in the rules that could have had significant sporting consequences.

FIA’s Swift Response

Recognizing the potential for similar confusion in future races, the FIA has acted swiftly to amend the sporting regulations ahead of the Miami Grand Prix. The new rule grants the race director the explicit authority to close the pit exit when the safety car train is passing by.

This measure is designed to prevent a lapped car from rejoining the pack among the leaders after a pit stop, which could disrupt the natural order and strategy of the race.

The updated regulation now states that “having overtaken the cars on the lead lap and the Safety Car these cars should then proceed around the track at an appropriate speed, without overtaking and they must make every effort to take up position at the back of the line of cars behind the Safety Car. Whilst such cars are proceeding around the track to rejoin the line of cars behind the Safety Car, and at the sole discretion of the race director, the pit lane exit may be closed when the safety car and line of cars behind it are approaching and passing the pit lane exit.”