Formula 1 praises cockpit protection: “Halo definitely saved Lewis’ life”


Formula 1 praises cockpit protection
“Halo definitely saved Lewis’ life”

The Halo cockpit protection is extremely unpopular when it was introduced in Formula 1. But now he saves lives for the second time within a year. World champion Lewis Hamilton escapes even worse drama after the crash with challenger Max Verstappen. The relief is great.

The Halo safety system prevented worse things from happening in the accident between Formula 1 record world champion Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen on Sunday in Monza. For the second time in less than a year, the cockpit protection may have proven to be a lifesaver. “I have to consider myself very lucky. Thank God there is the Halo. It saved me,” said Hamilton after the Italian Grand Prix.

Defending champion Hamilton and Red Bull challenger Verstappen collided at the beginning of the 26th round. On contact, Verstappen’s car was catapulted over Hamilton’s Mercedes, the right rear tire hit the Briton on the head, and the Halo cockpit protection weakened the impact.

“I have a bit of a pain in my neck that is getting worse now that the adrenaline is running out,” said Hamilton: “It was a tough hit.” He’s still in shock.

Mercedes sports director Toto Wolff praised the system. “The Halo definitely saved Lewis’ life. It would have been a horror accident. I don’t even want to think about what would have happened if we hadn’t had it,” he said. Jean Todt summed it up in a few words: “Glad that Halo was there”, wrote the President of the International Automobile Federation FIA.

The halo – in German a halo – was introduced for the 2018 season to protect drivers from flying parts or when one car slides under another, as happened in a similar way in Monza. When it was introduced, there were also critical voices at the time, both because of the optics, which initially took some getting used to, but also because the driver’s field of vision is restricted.

Not for the first time, however, Halo proved to be the right and important measure to further increase the safety of pilots. At the end of November last year, Romain Grosjean raced at high speed into and even through the crash barriers in the fire accident in Bahrain. The car had been broken up, but the cockpit protection had held and the French pilot was not seriously injured except for burns, especially in the hands.

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