The eight flags you will actually see
- Green — track clear. Shown at the start of sessions and after a hazard is cleared. Carry on.
- Yellow — danger ahead. Slow down meaningfully, no overtaking until you are past the incident. Waved yellow means the hazard is serious and close.
- Red — session stopped. Slow right down, no overtaking at all, return to the pits. Expect stopped vehicles and recovery crews on track.
- Blue — faster vehicle behind. Not an insult: stay predictable, hold your line, release them on the next straight.
- Black (shown to you with your number) — come into the pits this lap. Usually a conversation about driving standards or something hanging off your car.
- Black with orange circle — mechanical problem with your vehicle that you may not feel. Pit immediately.
- White — slow vehicle on track, often recovery or an ambulance. Extreme caution.
- Chequered — session over. Ease off, cool-down lap, into the pits. Overtaking after the flag is the classic way to get black-flagged on your out-brief.
How to actually use marshal posts
Build the habit in your first session, at low speed: locate every marshal post around the lap. There are usually one or two per sector, always before anything you can't see past. From then on, a micro-glance at each post per lap is enough — you're not reading flags, you're checking for the absence of green calm. The day a yellow appears over a blind crest, that habit is worth the whole entry fee.
The two flag mistakes first-timers make
- Racing the yellow. Passing under yellow — even a slow car you'd already caught — is the fastest route to a black flag and an early shower. When in doubt, don't.
- Ignoring the blue. Holding up faster traffic for laps isn't defending, it's being furniture. Point them by on the straight and get back to your own day.