New Delhi: F1 racer, Zhou Guanyu’s Alpha Romeo flipped over a tyre barrier at Turn 1. The collision was disastrous and almost led the guts of the audience and viewers in their mouths. The accident was so intense that it led to the suspension of the ongoing British Grand Prix as per media reports.
The intensity of the collision was so much that it led Guanyu to cross the barriers and land against the guard rails in front of the audience seating space. The accident was not just limited to a single collision instead, in fact it resulted in two huge collisions. However, none of the drivers were severely injured but Guanyu’s Alpha Romeo was devastated.
According to ESPN’s replay Pierre Gasly got cramped in between Zhou Guanyu and George Russel, which subsequently led to the collision with Russel. This resulted in Russel’s Mercedes which was rammed into Zhou’s Alpha Romeo creating one of the most horrific collisions in the history of Grand Prix.
Halo saved Zhou Guanyu’s life
The race, which was ongoing at Silverstone, proved to be both lucky and unlucky for the Chinese Motorsport racing driver. According to Guanyu the role of Formula One halo cockpit protection device was critical in saving his life.
What led to Zhou Guanyu’s collision?
Following the flip of Zhou’s vehicle, Alex Albon used the brakes which resulted in the initial crash. This led to his collision with Sebastian Vettel from the back. The collision was so powerful that it threw Alex into the pit wall and rebounded back on track which led to his crash with Esteban Ocon and Yuki Tsunoda. However, Ocon and Tsunoda were able to continue their race whereas Zhou and Alex were taken to the hospital immediately after the collision took place. Stretchers were used to carry them both to the ambulance although they were conscious.
What is HALO?
Halo is basically a bar that surrounds the head of the driver and is connected at three junctions on the frame of the vehicle. When the halo was introduced initially in 2016, it weighed around 7 kg. It was later increased to 9 kg in the upgraded version which was released in 2017.
How does HALO work?
The Halo system is not an in-house system which is developed by individual teams rather it is made by three approved external manufacturers which is approved by the FIA (Federation Internationale de l’Automobile). It has the same specifications for all the vehicles on which it is installed.
FIA has performed a simulation based on the data of 40 real incidents. The results revealed that theoretically it saw a 17% increase in the survival rate of the driver.
