World Cup favorites Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen eliminated themselves in Monza.
Hamilton thanks God and the cockpit protection after the race.
Monza - The Italian high-speed autodrome in the north of Milan is always good for a surprise.
Sebastian Vettel * won his first Formula 1 victory there in 2008 in the defeated Toro Rosso, and in 2020 Pierre Gasly won sensationally in the Alpha Tauri.
A year later there was another surprise winner at the weekend: Daniel Ricciardo * in the McLaren.
The Australian won because he drove a fabulous race - and because World Cup rivals Max Verstappen * and Lewis Hamilton * robbed themselves of their chances of victory with a crash.
It happened on lap 26: Hamilton drove out of the pits, Verstappen rushed up the home straight at over 300 km / h.
The two drove side by side into the narrow first chicane, then there was a crash.
Neither of the two wanted to give way to the other.
Formula 1: Hamilton and Verstappen shoot each other - "His car was on my head"
Despite the low pace, the crash was tough, because Verstappen's Red Bull pushed over the Mercedes from Hamilton, the wheel of the bolide hit the British on the head.
"It was a hard impact, his car was on my head," said Hamilton afterwards, still visibly battered.
“I have to consider myself very lucky and am grateful that I am still alive.
Thank goodness there is the halo.
He saved me. "
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That could have ended badly: The wheel of Max Verstappen's car hits the head of Lewis Hamilton.
© ANDREJ ISAKOVIC / AFP
The so-called "Halo" is a titanium cockpit protection that was introduced in 2018.
In the meantime, the safety bar has proven itself and has prevented worse things from happening in a few crashes.
Again, you don't want to imagine what would have happened if the halo hadn't significantly weakened Verstappen's impact on Hamilton's head.
Formula 1: Hamilton changes his mind about the Halo - "Definitely saved his life"
In 2016, some drivers fought vehemently against the introduction of the Halo, above all Hamilton. The essay was “the ugliest modification in Formula 1 history”, he criticized in 2016. At the time when the introduction was being discussed, he wrote on Instagram: “Please don't! The way it is, it's perfectly fine. ”Now the seven-time champion has changed his mind. He might not be alive without the "ugly thing".
"The Halo definitely saved Lewis' life," said Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff *.
“It would have been a terrible accident.
I don't even want to think about it. ”In the end, Verstappen was punished for the crash, he has to start three places further back in the upcoming race in Sochi.
Hamilton complains of neck pain from the accident and does not yet know whether he will be able to start the next race.
But it's not a worse injury.
Thank God (and Halo).
(epp) * tz.de is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA
List of rubric lists: © ANDREJ ISAKOVIC / AFP
