PostedJuly 8, 2022, 11:30 PM
On the Spielberg circuit, the Chinese explained what he experienced at the start of the British Grand Prix last week. Scary!
At the start of the British Grand Prix last Sunday, the Sauber of Guanyu Zhou (pronounced “Jo”) turned over after a collision with the Mercedes of George Russell, himself jostled by the Alpha Tauri of Pierre Gasly. The impact was so violent that the roll bar located on the engine cover of the Sauber C42 – supposed to protect the pilot in the event of the single-seater overturning – broke. It is therefore the halo, the carbon triangle which surrounds his helmet which protected the Chinese.
But his car being upside down, nothing could slow his slide. And the pilot realized it perfectly: “I knew that my car was not slowing down, and that I was going to hit somewhere”, explains Guanyu Zhou in the paddock of the Austrian Grand Prix. “I packed in the cockpit as much as possible to prepare for the shock. I tried to straighten my arms so that they didn’t fly all over the place on impact. The shock itself was not too brutal. And once everything stopped, I found myself upside down, not really knowing where I was. »
It was then that the Chinese driver felt liquid leaking from his C42. “I didn’t know if it was from the car or my body, maybe blood. I shut off the engine, which was still running. I told myself that if a fire broke out, I would have a hard time getting out very quickly. »
The marshals quickly arrived on site and spoke with the pilot, who remained conscious. “They couldn’t get to me, so I managed to unbuckle my harness and slip out. When my feet were on my seat, the marshals managed to pull me out of there. I didn’t know where I was, I didn’t think I was behind the guardrail. Seeing my car, I don’t know how I survived that. »
Traffic jam
Taken for the usual checks at the circuit’s medical center, Guanyu Zhou, unharmed, was able to return to his pit very quickly. “I then returned home to London. Frankly, the worst part of the day was the traffic jam on the M1 motorway, on the way home. It took me hours, as I couldn’t wait to take a shower, I was full of gravel dust everywhere! »
Recovered from his emotions, the Chinese was delighted to find the wheel, Friday, on the Spielberg circuit: “Sunday evening, I called my engineer to find out if they had been able to recover my bucket seat. For a driver, it’s very important to have his own seat, it’s much more comfortable to drive…” He finally finished 18th in qualifying before Saturday’s sprint race.
Alonso wants clarification
The British Grand Prix was marked by an incredible duel between several drivers, including Charles Leclerc, Sergio Perez, Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso. The latter had been penalized in Miami for having embarrassed Pierre Gasly, when he had nevertheless given him back his place. While at Silverstone, no one was penalized as several drivers strayed from the white line marking the limit of the track while overtaking.
“I saw the race again on video,” says Fernando Alonso. “It’s nice, the race was fun to follow, but I don’t understand why we are penalized once and not another. It’s not normal, we should know once and for all what is allowed and what is not. “Charles Leclerc, for his part, hopes that the overtaking rules will not become tougher, otherwise “the interest in the races will diminish”.
During qualifying for the Austrian GP on Friday, the rule seems to have tightened. Sergio Perez, for example, was demoted from 4th to 13th place for leaving the marks in Q2.
A shrink for Tsunoda
Pierre Gasly and Yuki Tsunoda at the Austrian GP.
AFP
Yuki Tsunoda is not at his first dumpling. But at Silverstone, he did very well: on the 11th lap of the race, he attacked his teammate Pierre Gasly while the two Alpha Tauris were running in 7th and 8th place respectively. The maneuver turned out badly for the two pilots, since they touched each other, both spinning off.
If Pierre Gasly had to retire, rear wing broken, Yuki Tsunoda continued. A piece of his front wing, however, remained on the track to come to file under the Red Bull of Max Verstappen. She got stuck there, causing the world champion to lose one to two seconds per lap.
In short, in a single maneuver, Yuki Tsunoda ruined the race of two other pilots in addition to his own! At the time, still unconscious, the Japanese was pissed at Pierre Gasly, whom he called names on his on-board radio.
But after the race, after finding that the English marshals sentenced him to a five-second penalty and the loss of two points from his license, the Nippon had to admit that he was responsible for the collision.
At Red Bull, this one more mistake went wrong. Helmut Marko, the drink brand’s motorsport boss, has hired a psychologist to mentor the Japanese. “Yuki is like a problem kid,” he explained. “We have to channel him, make sure he is calmer in the race”.
Friday, the expected effect was not yet visible, the Japanese ranked 14th only in qualifying, while his teammate Pierre Gasly will start 10th.