Red Flag

A red flag is a signal used in Formula 1 to stop the race immediately. Red flags are displayed when conditions are deemed too dangerous for racing to continue — typically following a serious accident, heavy rain, debris on track, or a safety issue. When a red flag is shown, all cars must slow down and return to the pit lane. The race is then either restarted (from the grid or behind the Safety Car) or abandoned. If the race is restarted, the results are taken from the last completed lap before the red flag. Red flag situations can have significant strategic implications — teams can make changes to their cars during the red flag period that would not normally be permitted.

Red flags have been part of F1 since the beginning. Notable red flag situations include the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix (multiple red flags following accidents), the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix (race declared after 2 laps due to rain), and the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix (red flag following Grosjean's crash).