Catch-up Session – Week No. 30
After the dismissal of Sébastien Bourdais last week, this week has been overshadowed by the dramatic accident of Felipe Massa during the Hungarian Grand Prix. Motors Inside offers you a detailed look at this significant event in the career of a driver. This tragedy occurred at the Hungaroring circuit in the middle of the race […]
After the dismissal of Sébastien Bourdais last week, this week has been overshadowed by the dramatic accident of Felipe Massa during the Hungarian Grand Prix. Motors Inside offers you a detailed look at this significant event in the career of a driver. This tragedy occurred at the Hungaroring circuit in the middle of the race weekend. It is therefore also important to revisit this GP because the championship continues even when one of its protagonists is injured. Finally, following a race incident that could have also turned into a tragedy, the Renault team has been suspended from the next European Grand Prix in Valencia. The main news from last week revolves around the Hungarian weekend, and Motors Inside will deliberately not mention other news events to focus on the most important issue, Felipe Massa’s health.
Despite the beautiful sun, a Saturday of Qualification experienced with dread
It is 2:45 PM on this Saturday, July 25, 2009, the qualifying session of the Hungarian Grand Prix is in full swing. However, an event is about to change everything. The second session is about to end when Felipe Massa in his Ferrari goes straight off at turn 4. He crashes heavily into the tire wall. What happened? The yellow flags are immediately waved, and the first images show an F60 that no longer responds. It is initially thought to be a mechanical problem, but soon the images focus not on the car, but on the driver inside. With various slow-motion replays, Felipe Massa was struck on the head by an unidentified object. Shock! How did this element come to strike the Brazilian’s helmet just above his left eye? No car in front, no stands nearby (there was talk of a malicious act), yet this object arrived straight horizontally while Massa was driving at 250 km/h. After several minutes and while Q3 has been temporarily suspended, attention turns to Rubens Barrichello’s car, which was seen losing small elements. And this turns out to be the solution, the Brawn driver lost an 800-gram spring, and, unfortunately, it hit Massa head-on. Unconscious, he goes straight at turn 4, here’s the explanation. He completely let go of the controls, so his speed is slightly lower than previously mentioned. The medical team is called for assistance, the car is extracted from the wall but held up well to the impact. All attention then turns to Massa’s head. He is evacuated to the medical center, then by helicopter, he will be taken to AEK hospital in Budapest, making a brief hand gesture. Reassuring when we know the white sheet was drawn. The first news of his condition comes the same evening from his Ferrari team. Felipe Massa is in intensive care in stable condition, but it is later learned that an operation is necessary. The diagnosis comes in: concussion, skull fracture, and facial cuts. To facilitate the doctors’ work, he is put into an induced coma for the operation, then briefly wakes up before being put back into the coma for his well-being and to facilitate his treatment. The operation is successful, there were no complications, but the next 48 hours will be critical. This morning, the doctors were reassuring about the Ferrari driver’s condition after a calm night. This evening, things get a little complicated since AEK hospital reveals that his left eye has suffered damage and his career could be in jeopardy. Motors Inside will, of course, keep you updated on Massa’s health status as soon as an official bulletin is communicated.
Read the article announcing Massa’s accident
Read the confirmation of Felipe Massa’s absence from the Hungarian GP
Read Massa’s first diagnosis from Saturday night
Read the article announcing the success of the surgery
Read the latest health report on Massa from Monday morning
A Hungarian GP Experienced in the Shadow of Felipe Massa
All attention was focused on the health status of Felipe Massa, who was the victim of a dramatic accident, but the race took place just the same as the qualifying session, which was ultimately delayed by 30 minutes. Fernando Alonso unexpectedly clinched the pole position, although the Spaniard was very light on fuel. Brawn GP was already far behind. The start of this tenth round of the 2009 championship was announced. The first corner passed without incident or accident. But things quickly changed, Sutil retired before a twist of fate that could have turned into another drama. After leading the first stint, Alonso made a pit stop, but a mechanic made a mistake and didn’t tighten a nut properly on the R29’s right front wheel. The Spaniard returned to the track, and a few hundred meters later, his wheel detached and rolled across the track before hitting the tire wall. It was the end of the race for Alonso. Vettel followed moments later due to a collision at the start that disrupted everything on his car. The big winner, and also a surprise, was Lewis Hamilton, who masterfully dominated this race. It was the Briton’s first victory since the 2008 Chinese GP. He was followed by Kimi Räikkönen, who brought a smile back to Ferrari, and Mark Webber, who limited the damage for Red Bull with a third place. Nico Rosberg with Williams was once again fourth. Heikki Kovalainen in the second McLaren secured another 4 points. The Toyota drivers finished in 6th and 8th, sandwiching Jenson Button, who had his worst weekend since the start of the season. The same goes for Barrichello, who might have much to think about knowing it was his spring that nearly killed his Brazilian colleague, Massa. In the driver rankings, Webber took second place over Vettel, and Button maintained a more than adequate lead, but caution…
Read the summary of the Hungarian race
See the full live coverage of the Hungarian GP
Blow for Renault ahead of the next GP
A dramatic turn of events just hours after the race ended, the Renault team has been suspended for the next F1 meeting which will be held in Valencia at the end of August. After convening and questioning members of the French team, the track stewards ruled that Renault had made a serious error by allowing Fernando Alonso to continue with a poorly secured wheel nut. As a result, his wheel detached and endangered the driver as well as other drivers potentially behind the R29. It’s a heavy sanction as both cars will be banned from the race. The FIA did not hesitate to punish in light of recent on-track incidents. Renault will appeal this decision, with the hearing set to take place during August before the European Grand Prix.
