Marussia have asked for “patience and understanding” in the absence of further updates on the condition of their injured driver Jules Bianchi.
Bianchi was taken to a hospital in Yokkaichi, 10km from Suzuka, for surgery on “severe head injuries” following a crash in yesterday’s Japanese Grand Prix.
No further official information has been issued about Bianchi’s condition since the last update issued by the FIA.
In a statement released on Monday, almost 24 hours after the crash, Marussia said they “would like to acknowledge the huge outpouring of support and affection for Jules and the team at this very difficult time”.
“With regard to the communication of information concerning Jules’ medical condition, we will respect, and be guided by, the wishes of the Bianchi family. Together with Jules’ care, they will remain our highest priority.
“Therefore, we would ask for patience and understanding with regard to further medical updates, which will be communicated in conjunction with the Mie General Medical Center in Yokkaichi, where Jules is being treated, when they feel it is appropriate.
“Representatives of the Marussia F1 Team and Scuderia Ferrari will remain at the hospital to support Jules and the Bianchi family.”
Amateur video footage of the crash uploaded to YouTube on Monday revealed more details of the crash, which occurred as marshals were recovering Adrian Sutil’s Sauber which crashed at the same spot on the previous lap.
Although the video does not cast any light on how Bianchi came off the circuit, it shows the marshals had already lifted Sutil’s car with the crane when Bianchi went off. The Sauber was being steadied by a marshal with a rope at the front.
The front-left side of the Marussia struck the tractor with sufficient force to lift it into the air and rotate it, dropping the Sauber onto the ground and knocking a marshal over.
Once the Marussia came to a rest a marshal reached the cockpit within a few seconds and immediately gave the signal to summon medical attention.
2014 Japanese Grand Prix
- Streiff’s comments on Bianchi crash investigation prompts legal action from FIA
- No improvement in Bianchi’s condition
- FIA plans changes after Bianchi crash but report says his speed was to blame
- Bianchi returns to France but condition still “critical”
- Bianchi’s family denies reports of return to Europe
Image © Marussia
BasCB (@bascb)
6th October 2014, 8:38
Sad that we have to have patience (wouldn’t we all love to hear some good/great news RIGHT NOW). But, yes, I have complete understanding for leaving it to the family to decide on when what information is given.
Let me use the opportunity to repeat my hope for him pulling through and seeing him back in the paddock.
@HoHum (@hohum)
6th October 2014, 8:41
+1
Timothy Katz (@timothykatz)
6th October 2014, 8:46
I think every one of us will agree with you completely, @bascb. Now is the time to respect the silence and wait for the good news we all hope for with patience.
Sean Doyle (@spdoyle17)
6th October 2014, 9:30
@BasCB You said it for us all. #ForzaJules
bull mello (@bullmello)
6th October 2014, 10:09
Well said. My prayers are with him and his family and hoping for the best.
Funkyf1 (@funkyf1)
6th October 2014, 12:39
+ 1 Good news is the only news I wish to hear.
Carlitox (@carlitox)
6th October 2014, 12:55
Indeed. I find it so damn hard to be patient with this, but ultimately we have to respect the Bianchi family, as we are doing with the Schumacher family. Let’s all stay united as a community and keep sending strength for both Jules and Michael.
Madi Murphy (@ladym)
6th October 2014, 14:05
Well said @bascb. It is so hard to sit and wait for news but totally understandable, and we must all just keep hoping. I like to think the true nature of the majority of F1 fans is shown by the fact that we are 100% united in sending love and support to Jules, his family and friends right now.
I know this is only tenuously related, and it’s something that not everyone can afford to do, but after driving myself mad with feeling hopeless and empty for over 24 hours now, I have just set up a monthly donation to the Henry Surtees Foundation. Among other things, they support people with head injuries and provide training in motorsport-related programmes, in memory of Henry who passed away in an F2 accident five years ago. I know that this donation won’t do anything to help Jules but, but it could help others who sustain similar injuries in the future. I felt like it was the one thing I could do.
Lynsey King
6th October 2014, 8:50
Thoughts and prayers for the family and team . Hope he pulls through this horrendous accident keep strong and positive . 🙏💛 . God bless you
gdewilde (@gdewilde)
6th October 2014, 9:25
L’equipe also says: “We have no idea if Bianchi had a good night, if he was operated a second time last night, if he is in a artificial coma or not, If he is breathing by himself or not” So there is indeed not a lot of information at the moment… Let’s hope he’ll pull through eventually!
BasCB (@bascb)
6th October 2014, 10:28
I did see Sky Sport confirming that Bianchi did not have a second operation (apart from confirming that contrary to some previous reports he is not breathing unaided)
TMF (@)
6th October 2014, 9:33
The kind of injury he suffered seems to be similar to Schumacher’s or Massa’s – so send good thoughts and don’t expect many updates over the coming weeks.
sato113 (@sato113)
6th October 2014, 9:37
hoping he gets better soon.
Chris Lawson
6th October 2014, 9:56
Completely understandable. They can’t be in a position where the hospital are issuing updates while his family are on a plane and out of contact not having a clue what’s going on. The fact that it’s going it take them a day to get there has no doubt added to the time without meaningful updates.
What doesn’t help is idiotic reports from L’Equipe and even the BBC based on absolutely nothing and turn out not to be true. Better to publish nothing then complete rubbish.
It’s a difficult time for all F1 fans, but bet it’s a million times more difficult for his family right now.
ForzaJules
Jonathan189 (@jonathan189)
6th October 2014, 11:57
I agree, and I’m disappointed in the BBC. This is one situation in which Andrew Benson’s tabloid-style approach to F1 reporting is simply not appropriate.
Colossal Squid (@colossal-squid)
6th October 2014, 10:34
I know there’s many people on here that are like me constantly checking several websites to see if there’s any updates on Bianchi’s condition. It’s difficult to not know or understand how he’s doing. All we can do is keep him, his family, friends and team in our thoughts and hope for a full and quick recovery.
WilliamB (@william-brierty)
6th October 2014, 18:45
@colossal-squid – As a former journalist I feel slightly disgusted at my feverish scouring of dodgy and unregulated sources yesterday in the desperate hunt for news when the only information that counts, official statements, are published here. But that is simply the hallmark of an aggrieved fan I suppose, in that I’ve met Jules on a number of occasions and having followed his career with a great deal of interest since he was 18. However all I need do is read F1Fanatic, wish Jules and his family all the very best and say #ForzaJules.
dan
6th October 2014, 11:19
On Yahoo their saying he can not breathe un asissted now. He is using a ventilator. Man this is not looking good. Come JB.
WH
6th October 2014, 11:44
Think about this reasonably. What kind of reliable source of information out of the hospital has new details to share and either:
a) announces it to the media but nobody – not Autosport, not Marussia, not the FIA, not F1 Fanatic, not Sky or any of the drivers – broadcasts the update except Yahoo, or
b) goes directly and exclusively to Yahoo?
All this tells us is which big names are at ease with dragging their reputations through the mud by repeating totally unsubstantiated rumours.
dan
6th October 2014, 12:54
Dude Craig Slater said it he works for Sky
kpcart
6th October 2014, 13:03
you could have said that instead of saying yahoo
WH
6th October 2014, 13:24
So it’s Sky who are claiming uncharted territory in gutter journalism then. Slater’s words begin: “We’re not getting any official updates from the hospital but I understand that…”
That’s all you need to read. Any sentence that begins like that is something that he has no right to know and no authority to report as fact – either by virtue of the simple logic that his “understanding” comes from an inferior source that cannot be relied upon, or even worse because he does have information he knows to be true and is by definition operating in a different galaxy to the world of journalistic ethics.
Pete (@repete86)
6th October 2014, 20:10
He said it, but how does he know? He heard it at the hospital? He certainly wasn’t in the room, and I doubt that it was anyone on that medical team that told him that. Until something official is said, it shouldn’t be treated as a fact.
greg-c (@greg-c)
6th October 2014, 11:49
Hey Bernie !!!
Listen up!!
Jules is one of your boys , better chip in and make sure he has all he needs eh!
Back in the seat soon eh Jules,
We all miss you .
celeste (@celeste)
6th October 2014, 15:41
I think all drivers have a health insures in case of accidents the moment they sing, don´t they? I think there was an article about 2 or 3 years ago.
kpcart
6th October 2014, 13:02
http://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/bianchi-placed-on-life-support-may-need-to-undergo-second-operation
the photos there look terrible, sutil looks quite affected, no wonder he didn’t give much in post race interviews.
Pink Peril
7th October 2014, 7:56
I’ve now seen the footage of the crash and it is worse than I feared. I am really worried there will not be good news from this.
Bruno (@brunes)
6th October 2014, 13:10
No news over here in Japan.
Not even in Japanese.
Japanese people and their culture are very reserved and really demand privacy. They are used to keeping things away from the public. Therefore, I would not be taking any news serious unless they came from F1 or Marussia.
Leonardo A. de Souza (@leonardo-antunes)
6th October 2014, 14:53
Video of Biachi accident from a spectator, and here’s something interesting, at 0:59 of the video the Marshall was waving the green flag instead of the Yellow while Sutil car was still on track.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASnqrbMtnos
Leonardo A. de Souza (@leonardo-antunes)
6th October 2014, 14:57
I misspelled Bianchi, sorry i was in a hurry.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
6th October 2014, 15:15
@leonardo-antunes The green flag was after the crash scene.
Leonardo A. de Souza (@leonardo-antunes)
6th October 2014, 15:49
Ok Keith, but even so i think it was wrong to wave a green flag since the car was being removed right there in front of them.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
6th October 2014, 16:54
@leonardo-antunes Let’s clear this up: the original resting position of Sutil’s car after it crashed was after that marshal’s post (identified as number 12) and on the amateur video you can see them waving double yellow flags.
The marshals then began to recover Sutil’s car and moved it towards the escape road before the marshals post. Once the car was no longer after the marshal’s post, they switched to waving green flags. (Note that by “after” I mean relative to the direction of traffic on the circuit.)
This is correct. A yellow flag indicates danger ahead, a green flag indicates it is clear to go racing. Because Sutil’s car had been moved the marshals at that post were correct to switch from yellow to green flags.
If you compare the amateur video to the footage broadcast during the race you can get a better impression of the relative position of the marshal’s post.
tezza (@terro55)
6th October 2014, 17:30
I would have to agree with you mate, common sense should prevail in these situations if the marshall who is closes to a accident scene or danger can’t wave a yellow due to a technicality then this need to be look at . I don’t think it would have save this accident from happening but it sure does look bad
Slowhands (@slowhands)
6th October 2014, 20:35
Keith has this right. The flag system signifies location of the incident: Yellow at the marshal posts immediately before and/or at the incident, and green at the first marshal post past the incident. It is not based on proximity but sequence, as the green station could well be closer than the yellow. This green is not an “all clear,” it only signifies to the drivers that they are past the incident and that the track beyond is green.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
7th October 2014, 10:03
I wanted to add a little more to this as I’m getting an astonishing amount of questions about it via social media (and I do appreciate that for many the following will constitute stating the obvious).
Just because the flag changed from yellow to green at marshal post 12 does not mean the Sutil crash recovery scene was no longer covered by yellow flags. When Sutil’s car had been moved it was now in the area covered by marshal post 11. The video does not show whether or not a yellow flag was being shown at that post.
However the onboard footage from Ericsson’s car around the time of the incident shows the yellow flag area began well before post 12. He passed the first yellow warning light for Sutil’s crash at post 9 on the entry to the Dunlop curve.
So to be clear, the area where Sutil’s crash recovery was going on was always under yellow flags.
Finally, the FIA’s definition of when the green flag is to be used (from Appendix H to the International Sporting Code) should remove any doubt that the marshals at post 12 acted correctly by switching from yellow to green once Sutil’s car had been moved out of the area they were covering:
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
7th October 2014, 21:17
A further note on the above: I understand many of the videos of the Bianchi crash have been cut from the original and only show the moment of impact. The full length version of the video shows much more of what happened before Bianchi’s crash. As I described in my earlier comment, there were yellow flags being waved at marshal post 12 when Sutil’s car was in the sector of track after it, and they were replaced with green flags after Sutil’s car was moved out of that area of track. Again, this complies with the definition of the purpose of a green flag above.
Mariano (@mariano)
6th October 2014, 17:02
@keithcollantine
In the video you can see the marshall waving double yellow fllags. At 0.58 seconds the marshall is now waving a green flag and they are stilll removing Sutil’s car. The crash happenes at 01:09. (12 seconds later). The marshall in questions isn’t located after the crash, he is a few meters away in the corner. If the marshall is placed after the crash scene as you state, then why is he waving double yellow flags when Sutil crashed?
Mariano (@mariano)
6th October 2014, 17:14
@keithcollantine. Ok, I’ve just read your explanation and you are right, but it’s a matter of just a few meters that might confuse any driver turning into the corner due to the perspective where the marshall is located.
Pat
6th October 2014, 23:26
Here is the video I watched.
http://mirror.ninja/sc60
At about the 1 minute mark you see a marshal(?) in blue, track side of the barrier at the point of Sutil’s original impact retrieving bits of his car. He is clearly beyond the marshal post and, I’d say, in massive danger, so there should have been double waved yellows.
tmax (@tmax)
7th October 2014, 1:42
OMG . That was a horrible crash. I had seen the pictures and I always wondered how Binachi’s car was on the other side of the track from the tractor.
Now I can understand after watching the video that the car went right underneath the Tractor , practically dislodging the heavy tractor itself. All I can say is that the marshals were incredibly lucky that they escaped unhurt.
Once can only hope and pray for Bianchi’s life after such a horrible crash. I have never seen such a terrible crash in many years.
One thing is for sure. I always used to wonder why NASCAR deploys safety car even at the smallest incident. It makes sense now after watching the video.
BasCB (@bascb)
6th October 2014, 15:09
Be warned before watching that video, its really unpleasant to see – you see the car hitting the digger with incredible force as Keith describes in the article above – think twice before watching.
Nick (@nick-uk)
6th October 2014, 23:40
There is an image of a frame by frame breakdown of the video. On reddit one user made the below calculation estimate in relation to Bianchi’s speed.
5 frames (@ 29.97fps) to travel the length of the wheelbase (3.0 3.7m)
[He] used the F1 car wheelbase and timed it as it the front and then the rear wheel passed one of the poles in the foreground
v = 3.7 / (5*(1/29.97))
= 22.18 m/s
= 80 km/h
Nick (@nick-uk)
6th October 2014, 23:48
The post has since been deleted due to a more accurate estimate that was made by another user which took into account to diagonal angle the veichle was travelling in relation to the video cameraman; which came to 145kph. Apparently this is in line with what the F1 app tracker said.
Jordan
7th October 2014, 5:16
145kph seems pretty accurate. There are higher resolution versions of the video on Vine that pretty clearly show Bianchi was not traveling as fast as it appeared on some of the YouTube videos. It also appears that some of the tractor movement was caused by the tractor’s rear wheel rolling over part of Bianchi’s car, or maybe the Marussia’s front left wheel.
I find it odd that Bianchi’s helmet doesn’t show any obvious signs of damage in pictures. In the video, it appears to be level with the counterweight, and, while difficult to tell for certain, seems to make direct contact.
I’m amazed Jules is alive, and I’m still pulling for him.
manu
7th October 2014, 12:16
From a picture I saw, it looked like Jules still had his helmet on and it didn’t look to have too much damage on it, I think it was a small damage on the helmet. The video also shows that more of the left side of the car hit the truck than the right side. So my hope is that Jules didn’t get hit too much himself and that he will be okay and will be racing again.
BS (@bs)
6th October 2014, 15:10
I’ve seen this more often, it was probably the first waved green shown at the first Marshall post after an incident.
But man that is an insane shunt. :(
Robert (@gicu)
6th October 2014, 15:12
That was a huge impact. Unlucky as Bianchi was to have this accident, he’s lucky to still be alive. Let’s hope all will be well and he’ll be able to pull through. Hang in there, Jules.
Lewis McMurray (@celicadion23)
6th October 2014, 15:23
Already blocked by FOM :/
Formula-I (@)
6th October 2014, 15:27
why FOM blocked it??? they just made f1 fans curious :(
JKorz
6th October 2014, 15:46
They blocked it because its horrendous and shows what their incompetence has caused.
Its sickening to see the force of the impact, they want to see Bianchi’s family before the world finds out the truth.
Charley Whiting needs to go, a safety car would have almost definitely avoided all of this pain and suffering.
kpcart
6th October 2014, 16:33
that is not the reason why they block it. they block every f1 related fan video on youtube that they can find, it is merely a money loss issue for them. i see your point though about incompetence, they maybe be covering their back.
Joe Tomlin
7th October 2014, 12:26
You are aware that FOM and FIA are seperate? Even IF the FIA displayed the wrong flags/should of deployed SC etc etc (and I believe the correct flags were shown and the SC was right not to be deployed) this has nothing to do with FOM. In fact, I believe FOM were very competent immediately after the incident, evidenced by the fact they did not show the incident on the FOM World Feed.
Chris (@cgturbo)
6th October 2014, 15:47
The only minuscule positive is that no one else got hurt in the crash.
So easily a marshal or even Sutil could have been caught up in the incident or its aftermath.
I can’t quite get myself to watch the video, but the pictures look absolutely horrendous.
celeste (@celeste)
6th October 2014, 15:48
Shocking images. The fact that car is so low allowed it to get under the tractor, and that is what happen, it works as a crowbar.
It also explain why the car ended as it did.
The fact that there asking for more time mades me think that there won´t be very good news when they finally speak.
Best wishes to Jules and his family.
Dom (@3dom)
6th October 2014, 17:35
@celeste with head/brain sometimes the outcome can only be determined after a certain amount of time, so lets hope that’s the reason that they’re asking for more time
WilliamB (@william-brierty)
6th October 2014, 18:34
@celeste – That’s not necessarily true. Looking at the video we are looking more at skull cap damage and a possible hematoma in the cerebral cortex as the immense impact, unlike the forehead impact Massa suffered, was to the crown. Now the brain is as susceptible to bruising as any other part of the body, but unlike the rest of the body the swelling takes place in a confined area, the skull, and this can cause brain damage. This is the time scale the doctors are asking for, because it is only after this swelling diminishes that Bianchi’s full prognosis becomes clear. This is also the danger period for Jules and his life is presumably in danger at this point, so I think the increasingly widespread #ForzaJules is very much in need right now.
zippyone (@zippyone)
6th October 2014, 15:54
Not nice to watch indeed, I watched just to try and understand what happened, I think the truck was lifted as the roll hoop went under which hopefully seems like it took most of the impact as the truck comes down again way after Bianchi’s car has past through. Not nice to watch at all!!!!!
Chris (@cgturbo)
6th October 2014, 15:57
@zippyone
I’ve heard a lot of people say that the truck, itself, was lifted.
Terrifying to think of the level of force of the impact if a relatively lightweight F1 car could lift such a bulky piece of machinery!
JKorz
6th October 2014, 16:05
The truck was lifted from the sheer impact negating the counter balance while lifting Sutils car, if he had struck the Tractor before it had picked up the Sauber it could have been worse, however how anyone can survive that inpact intact defies belief .
Lets just hope and pray most of the impact was absorbed elsewhere and not on Bianchi’s helmet.
zippyone (@zippyone)
6th October 2014, 16:11
@cgturbo Yes it was lifted, by the roll hoop I believe as the top of Bianchi’s helmet is below the rear of truck, not clear where he hit his head, possibly a glancing blow on the left side of head on the underneath rear of the truck? If the top of his helmet had been above the rear of the truck he would not have survived. Sorry if too much detail. It was a 50G crash I believe?
kpcart
6th October 2014, 17:11
I have read the 50g quote a couple times now, but no reliable source is given on this – the video doesn’t correleate to that number in terms of speed – but maybe against that hard material. he probably impacted at about 100km/h. Robert Kubica impacted in Canada at 301km/h into a concrete wall and the peak was 75g if I remember correct.
Chris (@cgturbo)
6th October 2014, 18:29
@zippyone No, thank you very much for the detailed response (you, too, JKorz) :)
It frightens me how exact that all sounds. I mean, had Jules gone even a metre to the right, he might have instead crashed into the tyre wall and come out with only a few bumps and bruises.
zippyone (@zippyone)
6th October 2014, 18:41
@cgturbo Yes it could have been very different but it happened the way it did. Maybe I shouldn’t try to analyse the video, I don’t normally watch these kind of things, just such a strange crash and no one really seemed to know what happened.
I have said this before but just really really hope he will be ok and maybe be a Ferrari driver one day as he seemed destined to do.
Bruno (@bminasi)
6th October 2014, 15:45
Heres somebody video showing the exact momento of the impact!
http://esporte.uol.com.br/f1/ultimas-noticias/2014/10/06/video-mostra-momento-do-acidente-de-jules-bianchi-no-gp-de-suzuka.htm#fotoNav=15
Lewis McMurray (@celicadion23)
6th October 2014, 16:54
oh god, that is sickening :( almost wish I hadn’t watched it
Mayank (@mjf1fan)
6th October 2014, 17:02
That is really terrifying video. I dont know why the marshal post was waving green flag when sutil’s car was been recovered. Even after Bianchi crashed he was waving green flag. Should have been double yellow flags through out the corner, may be Bianchi would have been still with us healthy and fit.
My thoughts goes to Jules and his family. #ForzaJules.
Bobby (@f1bobby)
6th October 2014, 20:00
After watching that it’s a miracle he’s made it this far. The impact lifts the tractor off the ground… oh my god.
Andy
6th October 2014, 16:10
When Bianchi’s car hits the tractor Sutil’s car is flailed around with marshals stood right next to it. A marshal could easily have been seriously injured as well.
Q85
6th October 2014, 23:44
exactly .When the sauber went off & the tractor wondered on i said to my mate i was watching with ‘ if one car can aquaplane off their then so can another, those marshals should not be out there’
So it was pretty easy to predict. Cars do not fly off the road for reason. There is always a cause so if one comes off there is infact a higher chance that another will in the same place. This has been on the cards for years and frankly not a surprise to anyone thats watched for a long time.
Marshals need to be protected. They need to be paid and they beed to responsible & accountable for their performance. F1 & FIA is letting them down, its easy to blame them and they are at times led into stupidly dangerous positions (like germany this year, Germany 07, Germany) but thats mostly down to poor leadership. Without them we do not go racing.
The problem is even worse in motorcycling when everyone seemed to say ‘wow’ to marquez bike missing 4 marshals by meters moments after Cal crashed. Everyone should of been shocked and silverstone should of been punished for such stupid actions.
F1 will bury its head in the sand and blame the weather. But there was very few crashes in that race so the weather was good for racing & there was clearly plenty of grip which is a testament to drivers skill, the tyres and the modern cars.
kpcart
6th October 2014, 16:29
http://video.repubblica.it/dossier/f1-2014/in-un-video-lo-schianto-di-jules-bianchi/179305/178079?ref=HRERO-1
kpcart
6th October 2014, 17:01
notice the green flag waving…. dear o dear
kpcart
6th October 2014, 16:36
the speed impact was not that great, crashing into a tyre wall would have resulted in no injury, but crashing into a cast iron turck (or whatever heavy material the truck was made of) is what caused the damage.
pSynrg (@psynrg)
6th October 2014, 20:59
160mph impact speed and when you watch the fan video and how much an 8 ton tractor is lifted into the air it looks quite feasible. Can’t believe he’s survived at all.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v62763_d2HE
James Lake (@dezerov)
6th October 2014, 16:43
Thoughts and prayers to Jules and his family! Such terrible irony that this is the 2nd time that a Marussia driver has had contact with a stationary support vehicle. Just hope that this one has a better outcome than the first.
Ashwin (@redbullf1)
6th October 2014, 17:17
God , saddens me every time I think of F1. These guys are my heroes. Hope to hear some good news soon.
Rigi (@rigi)
6th October 2014, 18:53
ok, whilst we wait for more news something’s come up in my mind.
i apologize in advance if you think the comment is inappropriate, and i still remain sending my prayers to bianchi.
what i’ve thought, will marussia even run in sochi? with one or two cars? also i understand that the japanese police confiscated bianchis car, so what about that?
i know it may seem a little morbid, but right now we can’t do much else than pray and hope for bianchi, but i can’t help it, this came up in my mind. apologies again to everyone that is offended by my comment.
Marc Thielke (@motor)
6th October 2014, 22:07
It isn’t morbid or inappropriate to think about the coming race. The clock is running; Sochi is going ahead in 3days 8hours. The crew had to pack up the gear quickly while worrying about Bianchi in the hospital; that must have been rough. For the team to come together and campaign both or even one car in Sochi is going to be a huge emotional ask.
This sport asks people to sacrifice a great deal; sometimes too much.
Thoughts are with his family and I hope for a good outcome for Jules.
Chris (@cgturbo)
6th October 2014, 22:12
@rigi
I’ve heard some people (no ‘reliable’ sources, mind) mention that Marussia will turn up at Sochi, but they will not race out of respect for Bianchi.
Though, I respect whatever decision Marussia come to in regards to the race, and, indeed, the rest of the season. The situation is horrible for them in more ways than one.
Marc Thielke (@motor)
6th October 2014, 22:53
I wish the team the best and I understand if they must race in Sochi. Marussia needs points for prize money so they have a better chance of surviving as a team. It is a heck of a thing to think of when a member of that team is fighting for his life.
Whatever they choose I have to respect it, like you said Chris.
@InnoBeach_LLC
6th October 2014, 19:03
Praying for Jules. FIA should use available today’s technologies, to force a temporary speed limit in the corner areas prior to the crash site, where the marshals and cranes are in action. This could even be done using the the pit stop speed limiter button, etc. We all know which dangerous corners are the ones where this is needed. This kind of solution could be enabled immediately and doesn’t necessarily require a safety car, thoughts?
Slowhands (@slowhands)
6th October 2014, 23:59
@InnoBeach_LLC This kind of solution is the one most likely to be effective in terms of safety. It can be immediate, invariant, and allows absolute control of speed from a source external to driver and team. A variation could be enabled in all cars simultaneous with safety car release to stop safety-car related shenanigans and errors. Once the incident is cleaned up, cars could be freed to close gaps under direction from race control. There are some issues to work out, e.g. with a local yellow there must be simultaneous activation in cars that are following each other closely, otherwise one will run into the other.
dam00r (@dam00r)
6th October 2014, 19:04
At least the marshall behind the tractor(holding down Sutils car on the other side) did not get hurt.
Jonathan189 (@jonathan189)
6th October 2014, 21:28
True. There could so easily have been multiple casualties — even multiple fatalities.
JohnNik (@johnnik)
6th October 2014, 19:15
I make a point of not watching bad accident videos/footage by choice.
I still haven’t seen Simoncelli’s fatal accident and I don’t intend to either.
Unfortunately for me, a shortened version auto played on my Facebook stream and I wish it hadn’t. Please consider before watching you may not like what you see.
Having seen it though, having agreed with comments that the crane should have had some sort of skirt to stop cars going underneath, I don’t think it would have worked.
I think the WEC style slow zones are a much better idea.
carbon_fibre (@carbon_fibre)
6th October 2014, 19:22
It’s a very similar accident to María de Villota’s fatal (in the long run) crash. Hell, it could be even worse…
carbon_fibre (@carbon_fibre)
6th October 2014, 19:23
Both while driving a Marrusia…
Barry Miller (@bmk1586)
6th October 2014, 20:00
Just saw the video. Hope Jules is OK but the footage looks grim. He went completely under the back of the tractor with enough force to buck the tractor into the air several feet.
Jonny Edwards (@racectrl)
6th October 2014, 20:44
I think it was more the left hand side of the car going under the JCB and scooping it up into the air (lessening the blow to Bianchi’s head) I say this because a direct hit at that speed surely would have killed him instantly? It had to be more of a glancing blow.
rsp123 (@rsp123)
6th October 2014, 20:49
We can only wonder what contortions the FIA and FOM would be going through had Max Verstappen – a minor – been involved in this crash.
Jonathan189 (@jonathan189)
6th October 2014, 21:30
It does raise/reinforce questions about the wisdom of putting Verstappen in the car, particularly if lack of experience turns out to have been a factor.
JKorz
6th October 2014, 20:51
I am currently in France, tonight on the main nightly news they had the full crash video of Bianchi hitting the tractor and played it several times (inc slo motion) not only that.. they then showed images of Jules in the car before and after his helmet was removed, his head was heavily bandaged but his eyes nose and mouth were exposed.
After all the uproar and complaining about people posting videos on twitter,youtube etc, and the consequential removal for copyright infringements i was shocked to see such horrible detail in full HD on the eight o’clock news :/
tezza (@terro55)
6th October 2014, 21:08
maybe that was his race balaclava . not bandaged
JKorz
6th October 2014, 21:31
I’m pretty sure it was bandages :/
Jonathan189 (@jonathan189)
6th October 2014, 21:32
These events always produce sickening footage. I have not gone anywhere near Twitter since Sunday because I know what’s on it. I am glad this website and the BBC both have the decency not to show it.
Timothy Katz (@timothykatz)
6th October 2014, 22:09
Yes, I found it on the front page of Corriere Della Sera too. I didn’t watch it the frame by frame sequenza, I was just rather disappointed to see it there.
celeste (@celeste)
6th October 2014, 23:54
Isn´t part of the protocolo to cover the driver with blankets to prevent images like that to be bradcast during the extraction? I remember 2 years ago when Checo crashed in Monaco that they usen them.
Francorchamps (@francorchamps17)
7th October 2014, 2:43
@celeste I suppose that’s only when they have the time. I remember that Perez’s extraction was very long. Here’s the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QOM5SzxEFGU It takes them a little bit less than two minutes to hide the scene and they’re the best and most organised marshalls in the world.
Kiefer Hopkins (@kieferh4)
7th October 2014, 0:59
they should have moved the race back a few hours, not only that, the FIA needed to bring out the safety car to test the track, as they did in australia last year. Then the idiot driving the tractor could’ve been looking where he was going. God that makes me wild, we have already seen one Ayrton Senna go, we don’t need a repeat of what happened.
JerseyF1 (@jerseyf1)
7th October 2014, 9:16
@kieferh4
The timing of the race wasn’t a cause of this accident as the majority of racing took place in good conditions.
Last year’s Australian grand prix was run in dry conditions. The first 9 laps of this race were run behind the safety car.
The guy driving the tractor did nothing wrong.
Ayrton Senna wasn’t the only driver to die in F1, and this was nothing like a repeat of his accident.
Ill informed rapid judgements are what I’m hoping the FIA avoids, I think the only thing which needs reviewed is whether drivers are adequately slowing down under double waved yellows in line with what is required under the rules. The rules say “slow down and be prepared to stop if necessary”, but I think the drivers interpret it as “slow down enough to be able to demonstrate on telemetry that you slowed down but not enough to lose any significant time”.
Kiefer Hopkins (@kieferh4)
10th October 2014, 5:44
in qualifying in Australia last year, they drove the safety car around the track to see if it was up to standards. But even you could’ve seen that the double waved yellows were far to high for the drivers to see and in the rain, with those conditions, it would’ve been a lot harder to visually locate the flags. Yes they might be yellow, and yes, yellow is the most notable color on the spectrum (in other words, you can see that color a lot quicker then all the others)
but if the race was taken back a few hours, the rain would’ve been avoided or even just a light spit as the race was ending. That would’ve prevented all this drama
Jimi (@hendrix666)
7th October 2014, 1:57
Another thing that may have saved Jules life is the HANS device. That car came to an abrupt stop, much like Earnhardt. If not for the HANS, he surely would have suffered a basal skull fracture.
Fun
7th October 2014, 7:20
I’m hoping Jules Bianchi recovers and live a normal life.
A man who’s won Marusia’s first ever 2 points, is in such critical situation.
[Warning: unfortunate -ve consequences analysis ]
But I’ve to say it’s a fatal accident after having analysed the video and impact with each positions of truck both edges, height, impact force. It could have been worse, if the truck wasn’t lifting Sutil’s car as the weight of Suti’s car at-least made the car not hit head-on with truck and lifted a bit to keep his helmet/head intact although destroying the roll-hoop. It’s one of the worst accidents I’ve seen in F1, unlike Kubica’s crash – where his roll hoop was intact. Last time someone hit hard thing (wall) head-on i.e. Aryton, it was fatal.
Hoping Jules to be lucky and fight through and pull out of such a horrible accident.
And unfortunately, past 2 days I’ve been having clear-cut dreams that it’s no good. Maybe it’s such a traumatic effect on someone(me) who was watching the race. And also I share the same date of birth with Jules Bianchi and it maybe some frequency match. Moreover, the media and family and F1 etc. hides and delays news and updates for minimizing damage to their sport (and getting less attention to -ve events from races)
Pinnacle of motorsport and so much technology & crash testing, but rules / mistakes resulting in “fatalities for entertainment value”? I might stop watching motorsport which isn’t safe, just to see someone having difficult time for my pleasure?!. Maybe not for a bit sensitive person like me.
Many guys jinxed this as he is expected to be Ferrari driver for 2016, and also his performance in Monaco. For fanatic guys who don’t understand the safety of drivers during races, and are eager to get start racing without proper safety procedures, don’t have much concern about driver’s life. I’ve seen unhappy comments such as “Safety car ruining race, come in to get race started”, “No safety car please now”, “The race is delayed” etc in the live chat.
What they’re doing is trying to follow safety procedures, so what if the race is delayed, so what if we get less no. of laps, so what if the race doesn’t happen at all. I do understand it’s nature of motorsport, but asking for something unsafe, for just one’s entertainment value and then “Hoping & concerned & sympathy” about consequences late on seems illogical. Everyone should fix their attitude towards it.
JerseyF1 (@jerseyf1)
7th October 2014, 9:20
There is no black and white when it comes to how much the safety car should be used, it is always trying to tread a fine line between safety and good racing since racing can never be 100% safe.
Having a different judgement on whether in a particular case a safety car should be deployed doesn’t mean that you are then being hypocritical in being concerned or wishing Bianchi well. In my view the case in Germany this year should undoubtedly have brought out a safety car (though in hindsight no-one was hurt) whereas here I think the call was right not to bring out the safety car (though in hindsight it would have helped Bianchi).
Sheba
7th October 2014, 20:35
This has affected me more than I realised. Watched the video like others to get an understanding of what actually happened and why the two wheels were pushed together. OMGOSH! its horrendous I wish I hadn’t watched it. To know that Jules was under that truck intact is beyond belief. The reactions of the marshals seemed very very slow getting help for Jules almost like they couldn’t believe their eyes. I hope and pray for a quick and full recovery for Jules. Thank you for this thoughful respectful outlet to vent my thoughts.