The FIA's stewards have been in the spotlight this year, and the European GP controversy brought them to people's attention even more. Dieter Rencken takes a closer look at their decisions

Not a good record, is it? Four consecutive grands prix, and (at least) seven controversial stewarding decisions. Add in Lewis Hamilton's escape after blatantly weaving – for whatever stated reason - in Malaysia, and the number spirals up to eight or more. However, worse than these bare statistics are the seeming consistencies in the handling and judging of incidents, with a distinct lack of explanations for the decisions - despite the FIA having undertaken to provide same – further compounding the situation.

The most recent run of controversial decisions started in Monaco after Michael Schumacher nipped past Fernando Alonso under a safety car. This resulted in the FIA first issuing a clarification, then forwarding an amendment to the regulations to its World Motor Sport Council for ratification.

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