poor massa :(

[Little-Miss]

did anyone see his crash on saturday - scary. apparently he's had brain surgery and is in an chemically induced coma. theres been a few fatal crashes like that hasn't there...tom pryce, that kid last week...suree. plus another who's name escapes me.

[teddybear]

Watching the news last night, Barrichello visited Massa in hospital and spoke to the Doctors. They've said he should make a full recovery.

 

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0BTAOjuv9w]YouTube - Massa Crash Hungary 2009[/ame]

[strawberry]

reuters have an encouraging peice on him, hope it all turns out ok for him, he seems a nice guy

[plexer]

Was very freaky especially after Henry Surtees being hit by a wheel from another car the previous week at Brands.

 

Maybe Brawn should stop recycling suspension components?

 

Ben

[synaesthesia]

Freak accidents, although people are now saying because something similar has happened twice in a week something MUST be done. Truth be said, neither accident could be recreated. A crack SAS sniper couldn't have clocked Massa in the same way that spring did.

Thankfully, motorsport drivers are fully aware of the risks involved and go to work every day knowing something could happen. It's far better than it used to be, say pre 1995 (we all know why) and improvements are being made all the time.

I don't rate Massa as one of the great drivers - at times he's been laughable, and I've ranked him along with the likes of Nelson Piquet Jr. However, he is a decent bloke, a good driver, has a good sense of humour and definitely doesn't deserve this. He will undoubtedly make a full recovery, and he has the support of everyone in the F1 paddock. It's nice to see all the drivers and teams showing genuine care for someone they don't even work with.

[torledo]

can we assume he's out for the rest of the season ?

[plexer]

I would guess so yes.

 

Ben

[Butuz]

Even worse was the fact a wheel fell off a car later on as a reminder of last week.

 

I think there are going to be some rule changes maybe I think I may agree with them for once! - risking other poeples lives by desperatly trying to drive your car around the track in order to get back to the pits simply to try and get a few points or stay in the race is dangerous and I think it needs to be clamped down on maybe.

 

Butuz

[sted]

Even worse was the fact a wheel fell off a car later on as a reminder of last week.

 

I think there are going to be some rule changes maybe I think I may agree with them for once! - risking other poeples lives by desperatly trying to drive your car around the track in order to get back to the pits simply to try and get a few points or stay in the race is dangerous and I think it needs to be clamped down on maybe.

 

Butuz

 

and now renault are not allowed to compete at the european grand prix because of what was when you get down to it a mistake

[plexer]

Yes the wheels coming off Alonsos race in that manner was down to a an error during the pit stop with the wheel not being fixed properly but I though if you car was incomplete like that he should have stopped anyway not try to get back to the pits?

 

Not sure how you can legislate against something like that happening?

 

Ben

[Little-Miss]

Yeah i was shocked he carried on around...

[sted]

Yeah i was shocked he carried on around...

 

hes a racing driver he just wanted to get a new wheel on and get back in the race probably no thought involved more instinct

[strawberry]

and now renault are not allowed to compete at the european grand prix because of what was when you get down to it a mistake

 

They were banned because they did nothing about the mistake, they knew what had happened but didn't let the driver know so he could take the relevant action.

[K.C.Leblanc]

Yeah i was shocked he carried on around...

 

It's amazing how ridgid the cars are. Spa 1998 Schmacher not only lost a wheel but most of his front suspension and still made it back to the pits.

 

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TeAuQ2Xem4Q]YouTube - M.Schumacher & Coulthard crash in Belgium 98[/ame]

 

Coulthard actualy finished the race after one the longest pit stops known to man.

 

In 1979 Giles Villenerve had to be black flagged to stop him trying to contiue the race on three wheels.

 

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gNJ-1frbzZA]YouTube - Zandvoort 1979. Gilles Villeneuve on three wheels[/ame]

 

Infact during the '70s tryrell installed spare wheels on their car.

[webman]

Time to install toughened windscreens on the front/top of F1 cars?

[torledo]

Even worse was the fact a wheel fell off a car later on as a reminder of last week.

 

I think there are going to be some rule changes maybe I think I may agree with them for once! - risking other poeples lives by desperatly trying to drive your car around the track in order to get back to the pits simply to try and get a few points or stay in the race is dangerous and I think it needs to be clamped down on maybe.

 

Butuz

 

from what i read, alonso thought he had a puncture. so the wheel coming off completely he probably didn't anticipate. Anyway, that's what true racing drivers do. Bit falls off the car, try and get back to the pits somehow to see if it can be replaced.

 

the danger is part of the appeal of the sport. If you try and sanitize it too much, then what's the point in watching ? they already diluted the racing in previous years with slow speed chicanes that drivers just end up cutting across.

 

one thing i hate about the stewards is that they are constantly investigating toe-to-toe racing incidents.

 

If drivers are constantly thinking in the back of their head about not pulling off a manouvere that some part-time steward might object to, then i'm not going to help fund the drivers' multimillion pound salary. It's not the stewards who fund formula 1, it's us the tv tax payer and consumer of the advertisers products. Part of me think's it's a shame the punish team mistakes, that's what makes the sport interesting.

 

the sport is still interesting inspite of the best efforts of the likes of ecclestone to hawk it around the boiling middle east wastelands for petrodollars, and the best efforts of the ferrari friendly administrators. but for how much longer ?