Cockpit Protection in Open Wheel Racing

Posted by Kevin Guthrie Jul 28, 2009

The accident which killed Henry Surtees last week at Brands Hatch was viewed at the time as a freak event: a set of circumstances combining to produce a tragic result. Yet, just six days later, Ferrari driver Felipe Massa was left with serious head injuries after a similar incident during qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix.

In the case of Surtees a wheel detached itself from another car and struck the unfortunate Englishman's helmet as he passed the scene. Massa was also struck on the helmet, by a spring which fell off the back of Rubens Barrichello's Brawn. Fortunately Massa's condition is no longer life threatening, but the Brazilian has been left with skull fractures and an eye injury.

In the wake of these accidents some have called for a radical review of cockpit safety in open wheel racing, but I can't help think that efforts to avoid a repeat should be focused in other areas. In both cases the cause of the accident was not an exposed cockpit, but a part detaching itself from another car. Wheel tethers have been around for a while now, but perhaps there is more that can be done in that area. In the case of the Brawn incident surely the best idea would be to look at ways of containing suspension and engine components within the bodywork of the car if they should fail.

Such incidents have happened before. Anyone with a decent knowledge of Formula 1 could ever forget the terribly freak accident which claimed the life of the brilliant Tom Pryce in 1977. Formula 2 driver Markus Hottinger suffered a similar fate three years later, hit on the helmet by a wheel from another car.

At the moment it seems Renault have been made the scapegoats for recent events. The French team has been suspended from the next Grand Prix for releasing Fernando Alonso from the Hungaroring pits with a loose wheel and not informing the driver. Alonso's wheel eventually detached itself from the car, fortunately without injury to anyone.

Personally I think the two accidents are just a tragic coincidence, just as the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix weekend was. Hopefully there will not be an ill thought out knee jerk reaction from the sport's governing body. Open cockpits have been around since the first motor race over a century ago and incidents such as those which befell Surtees and Massa are incredibly rare.