Maybe they should incorporate a perspex screen into the design of the cars - an open top one that comes almost level with the top of the driver's helmet, a bit like what they used to run on Formula cars and Indy cars of the late-70s.

thx.

I thought the same too... it was so unreal!

I agree, the saving grace here might be the fact that it was a bit of spring, which would have had a harder time penetrating the helmet than a sharp fragment of carbon fiber.

I didn't think he had lost consciousness?

Just curious, where did he say that?


Let it drop Vic and face it, only Kimi will be in a Ferrari tomorrow.

I can only hope it's just up to FIA. And according to FIA's rules Ferrari will only start with one car tomorrow.

/Viktor

Glad to hear that Massa is going to be okay. He had an angel with him today because that could have been a lot worse.

Erm, they have a Schumacher.

Pic of Massa helmet pic after accident:

http://sport.orf.at/090725-16997/formel_po...gesicht_b_a.jpg

The good news is that he is concsious. That helmet was destroyed. Lucky it didn't go through his visor. Happy birthday Felipe.

If Ferrari do get special dispensation to run a second car, their official third driver, Marc Gene is at the circuit. His last race, for reference, was the 2004 British Grand Prix for Williams where he finished 12th.

This incident sounds very much like the one that ended Helmut Marko's career, but it looks like it will end better for Massa.

/Viktor

Ralf? or Corinna?

Ralf is in DTM...

Oh well, Forza Corinna

Ok this off topic for a thread about a drivers wellbeing, but in response to peole who think someone else will be in a Ferrari tomorrow:

No one else has qualified.

Therefore they can't race.

Thanks.

I just imagine Bernie would want the exposure of one more car on the grid. That's all.

But I agree, nobody will take Felipe's place tomorrow. Mainly because of setup issue for a new driver. It wouldn't be safe.

http://img.mtv3.fi/mn_kuvat/mtv3/urheilu/f...2009/755368.jpg

http://img.mtv3.fi/mn_kuvat/mtv3/urheilu/f...2009/755370.jpg

http://img.mtv3.fi/mn_kuvat/mtv3/urheilu/f...2009/755369.jpg

http://img.mtv3.fi/mn_kuvat/mtv3/urheilu/f...2009/755384.jpg

http://img.mtv3.fi/mn_kuvat/mtv3/urheilu/f...2009/755383.jpg

In the last couple of years the helmet safety improved a lot. Nowadays all helmets are bullet-proof.

Has there actually been official confirmation that he is okay - if not I suggest people just wait rather than saying things like "he will be okay looking at the pic " etc

I remember a woman got hit by a car outside our office once - our first aider came back in after and said she is okay - just a nose bleed - she actually died.

Not saying that will happen here but how anyone can make a medical verdict based on one photo like many of you on here is beyond me...

The helmets are, no doubt. The "Achilles heel" is the visor and this obviously can't be really changed unless they make one homogeneous ball.

Maybe an idea for the future?

Yeah id like to hear something official from someone. For all our speculation we still dont know what his actual injuries are.

Word is that he's stable. I'd presume he's not in any immediate danger, but until we get a confirmation of his exact condition anything else is speculation.

Yes, that can happen if the brain swells up later after a head injury. Nothing is certain yet and I will be worried about Massa for at least the next 24 hours.

From the rules:

19) CHANGES OF DRIVER
19.1 a) During a season each team will be permitted to use four drivers. Changes may be made at any time before the start of the qualifying practice session provided any change proposed after 16.00 on the day of scrutineering receives the consent of the stewards.
Additional changes for reasons of force majeure will be considered separately.

What difference would that have made today ?

it was a full on full frontal blow

that design would not have prevented today

The trouble is where would it end. Motorsport is dangerous and if you went through a process of always adding protective items around a car after every single incident then in 60 odd years time we would be watching cars wrapped up in cotton wool.

Motorsport carries risks and the partcipants that enter are fully aware of this. If participants have concerns about being open to risks in an open wheel formula then there are plenty of other formula's that offer more protection.

They say a piece of a spiral spring fell off the rear suspension of Barrichello's car and bounched along the road until it hit Massa. But how is that possible? The rear suspension spring
is under the engine cover, isn't it ??

Has anyone ever gotten special dispensation to change drivers basically mid-race? In other words, why on doG's lime green polkadotted earth would we think Ferrari might be allowed or even willing to do so? Seriously.

That could work. It'd probably reduce drag quite considerably too...

is it photoshopped or real?

well it certainly brings into perspective that Ferrari/FIA should have called Kimi in last year.

Poor Felipe. I wish him well for a speedy recovery.

It would have deflected off the screen first and been launched over the drivers head.

Photoshoped of course

is this a geniune question ?!?!?!

it would have.


what it wouldnt protect is car landing on driver from above.

There is a problem with visibility. With only the visor the driver at least has the possibility of using a tear off. The solution suggested might as well cause more accidents.

According to this article Massa was placed in an artifical coma as a precaution :S

In German
http://www.speedweekmagazin.com/news/5511/...setzt!.html

Damn good photoshopping if you ask me. Done very quickly and does look real (though totally wrong at the same time).

A full on frontal blow to the visor that a perspex shield could have deflected. I say perspex, there's a large number of different materials that could be used instead, perspex isn't strong enough. Whatever material they make the visors out of seems strong enough.

WHERE IS THE OFFICIAL WORD THAT HE IS OK.. ?
that picture is too scary. Man, I only wish the best for Massa after this horrible accident. I actually thought the steering broke like it happened to Senna .. and I said shit, not this again. then the ambulance - not a good sign.
What are those freaking springs made off.. ? -- I never would have thought after seeing the hit in Tv that the damage to the helmet and Massa's head would be this bad..

Hope Felipe recovers.He just doesn't deserve this,really.

Hope to see the little fellow in stitches prancing about the paddock tomorrow.

What do you mean by that?

What a dreadful accident to end a dreadful weekend, and both accidents (his and Henry Surtees's) being eerily similar.

Massa is very lucky, a few centimeters down, and he would've suffered the same fate of Johnny Servoz-Gavin or Helmut Marko.

The stewards were certainly playing with fire that day. Massa's incident today has highlighted just how serious striking debris fallen from another car can be, so hopefully there will never again be a repeat of the fanboy stewarding at Magny Cours.

Ferrari's Felipe Massa will miss the Hungarian Grand Prix after crashing heavily in qualifying and being taken to hospital.

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/25072009/58/...race-crash.html

He had part of his exhaust flailing about on his car, which could have detached itself at any moment.

no system is 100% foolproof, even that photoshopped cscreen leaves a pretty huge opening for things to hit the driver. For eg he very same suspension fragment can hit the edge of the screen and spin into the driver's face snooker style. Freak accidents are by definition accidents that take place in the 0,00001% space of probability, you can have a 10m2 screen area and a freak accident will be the one that misses the 10m2 of deflective surface and just nicks the edge.

A while ago a 17' wheel managed to get through an 18' opening in the barriers and hit a marshal. You re not safe unless you 're fully enclosed, and if you are fully enclosed you are exposed to different kinds of risks (while possibly eliminating the stray "bird" (or other flying object) attack. It's all about striking a happy medium, unfortunetely there is no way to make cars traveling at 200mph 100% safe.

Aah must be my eyesight lol I thought the perspex thing was purely on the side in which case a frontal hit like today couldn't be avoided

Usual middle finger to Ferrari. I cant see how remembering last seasons incidents have to do with this one,but thats just my IMO.