The red flag in the closing stages of Saturday's INDYCAR race at Detroit created some debate on whether the sanctioning body should throw out the red flag to prevent a race from finishing under caution. This happened only a week after Formula One's Azerbaijan Grand Prix where similarly a red flag was thrown out to prevent the race finishing under caution.
On one hand, it's a fair argument to say that a caution doesn't warrant a red flag at any other stage in the race. On the other hand, many fans want to see the race finishing under green conditions.
NASCAR's solution to get an attempt at a green-flag finish is the overtime, i.e. green-white-checker, possibly going beyond the advertised race distance. One particular issue with this is some cars possibly running out of the fuel after the restart, which is why I don't think open-wheel racing should adopt this rule.
That being said, I'm still in favor of INDYCAR and F1 throwing out the red flag in order to get an attempt at a green-flag finish. But my issue with that practice is the lack of consistency. Sometimes you see a late-race red flag whereas sometimes in similar circumstances the race control just lets the race run out of laps behind the pace car.
What I'd like to see is a clear rule for late-race cautions bringing out the red flag. Of course, sometimes it's too late to throw out the red flag as you'll need a lap to bring the field into the pit road and another one to lead the field to the start-finish line for the restart. If it's an oval, I think you'd need at least two laps after the restart to justify the red flag. On a road or street course, I think one lap would be enough because of the longer lap times. Either way, the red flag should come with more than three laps (road or street courses) or four laps (ovals) remaining.
The other thing is how late in the race it should be to throw out the red flag under caution. Even a quick full-course yellow will likely take at least three laps, more likely four or five, and even more on a short oval. So basically you should red-flag a race if caution comes out with less than six or seven laps remaining, or maybe even ten laps on an oval.
Anyway, here's what I think what the rules for late-race cautions should look like:
If the race goes under caution with less than 7 laps (road or street course) or 10 laps (oval) remaining, it will be red-flagged and restarted (if the track can be cleared in a timely manner).
If the race goes under caution with less than 3 laps (road or street
course) or 4 laps (oval) remaining, it will not be red-flagged (and likely finish under caution).
Of course, the argument for cautions earlier in the race not bringing out the red flag stands. However, you can take those earlier cautions into account in your strategy. Just like a finish under caution could bail out a driver low on fuel, an earlier caution may put him inside the fuel window. However, even those with more fuel can use those earlier cautions in their favor by needing shorter pit stops and shortening the remaining tire stints. On the other hand, a late-race caution may deny the final attack by the driver with more fuel and fresher tires. And besides that, finishing under caution when it's preventable is a bad look for the sport. There just needs to be transparent rules to make the policy consistent.
What made Detroit's late-race red flag even more controversial was an overheated ECU denying the race leader Will Power a chance to go for the win at the restart. However, the problem in that case was not the red flag but the rules preventing the mechanics from placing fans to cool down the leader's car while the field was still lining up on the pit road. While I think INDYCAR made the right decision to red-flag the race, the rules should be revised to prevent mechanical failures from the red flag procedure.
