Time limit on backmarkers to be reintroduced

A time limit before which slower cars have to let the leaders past has been reinstated following the controversy surrounding the San Marino Grand Prix.

McLaren's David Coulthard has claimed that Prost driver Olivier Panis cost him victory at Imola three weeks ago.

After seeing a maximum of three blue flags warning them of a quicker car behind them, backmarkers must now move asied.

If they ignore the flags, they will be hit with a 10-second stop-go penalty.

The move was agreed at the Monaco Grand Prix following complaints from drivers to race director Charlie Whiting.

San Marino winner Michael Schumacher said, 'It is said that if a driver ignores the blue flag three times he will get a stop-go but this rule doesn't seem to exist any more.

'It has not been enforced for a while and drivers notice that - they will then only react when they think it is appropriate to them and not when it is appropriate to the regulation. It needs to be enforced so they move immediately.'

Coulthard said he would prefer a system of personal fines so that any penalty for blocking. 'Hit them in the pocket,' he said.

'By the time [race officials] have seen that someone is holding you up and decided on a penalty, it can already have lost you the race.'