Felipe Massa’s German Grand Prix Crash: F1’s Safety Record Enhanced Again

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: July 21, 2014

commentComment        

Felipe Massa is becoming the poster child for ever-improving Formula One safety standards after he emerged unscathed from yet another dramatic accident on Sunday at the German Grand Prix.

Going into the first corner at Hockenheim, Massa slowed slightly to avoid hitting his Williams teammate, Valtteri Bottas. As he turned in to follow Bottas through the fast right-hander, Massa was unaware McLaren's Kevin Magnussen was already there.

When the cars collided, Massa's right-rear wheel went over Magnussen's front-left, flipping the Williams FW36 upside down. Massa's car skidded along the outside of Turn 1 on its roll bar before eventually righting itself, narrowly missing the Red Bull of Daniel Ricciardo in the process.



Immediately after the accident, BBC commentator and veteran driver of 247 grands prix David Coulthard absolved both drivers, calling it a racing incident. And he was correct—both men were racing hard into the first corner and just happened to be aiming for the piece of tarmac at the same time. The stewards confirmed Coulthard's view, deciding not to issue a penalty to either driver.



When Massa flipped, the roll bar did its job. It protected his head and barely looked damaged after the crash, a testament to the rigour of F1's safety regulations and testing.

Afterward, Massa said, "Luckily I am OK but I am not happy," according to a team press release.

Luck had little to do with it, though. True, any time a car goes airborne, whether it flips or not, there is a greater potential for injury. Once a car loses contact with the circuit, the driver can no longer slow it down using the brakes nor control its direction.



But modern F1 safety standards have already allowed two drivers to walk away from rollovers this season. In addition to Massa, Esteban Gutierrez was unharmed following a flip at the Bahrain Grand Prix.

It...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Formula 1

Latest News


Comments

Comments are closed.

Sponsors

Bruins Tickets The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League.

Red Wings Tickets The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League.

Penguins Tickets The Pittsburgh Penguins are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League.

New York Rangers Tickets play their home games at Madison Square Garden, they are one of the oldest teams in the NHL, having joined in 1926 as an expansion franchise, and are part of the group of teams referred to as the Original Six.

San Jose Sharks Tickets The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California, United States.

Toronto Maple Leafs Tickets The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League.

New Jersey Devils Tickets The New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League.

Washington Capitals Tickets The Washington Capitals are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C.

Buffalo Sabres Tickets The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League. Get the Sabres and all of your NHL Tickets here.

NASCAR season is on of the most attended sports in the world. NASCAR Tickets to the best tracks is a must every year. Some of these tracks are: Talladega Tickets, Lowes Motor Speedway Tickets, Pocono Raceway Tickets, located in Ridgeway Virginia you have Martinsville Speedway Tickets and southern US you have two of the most popular Atlanta Motor Speedway Tickets and Texas Motor Speedway Tickets. Don't miss all the racing events this year!

Boston Red Sox Tickets The Boston Red Sox are a member of the Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Since 1912, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park. This is one of the hottest MLB Tickets sales of any team in the major league.

New York Yankees Tickets The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the borough of the Bronx, in New York City, New York and are a member of Major League Baseball's American League East Division. Get tickets to one of the hottest games of the season Yankees Red Sox Tickets.

Chicago Cubs Tickets The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League.

Phillies Tickets The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883.

Orioles Tickets The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland.

Do you love wrestling? Get your WWE Tickets and WWE Survivor Series Tickets today!