Michael Schumacher is confident that his last-lap overtake on Fernando Alonso was not against the rules in Sunday's Monaco Grand Prix. With the Safety Car having been on-track for the last three laps, due to a frightening collision between Jarno Trulli and Karun Chandhok, the German passed the Spaniard at the entry to the final corner of the race.
Previously, drivers were not able to overtake after the Safety Car pulled in until the start/finish line, meaning last-lap Safety Cars guaranteed the same results as when the final lap began.
However, new-for-2010 regulations state that passes are permitted after the final Safety Car line, located before the pit lane entry and, in Monaco's case, at the exit of La Rascasse corner.
With Alonso sixth, the Ferrari driver turned into the final corner to find Schumacher's Mercedes passing on the inside line, having drawn alongside the Ferrari but without passing before crossing the Safety Car line.
"I think I'm sixth, I got the message 'Track Clear'," Schumacher explained to Germany's RTL. "That means the Safety Car is gone, the accident zone was clear, so I thought I could go.
"Damon Hill is the steward here…that's going to be interesting!"