How did Romain Grosjean crash?
Romain Grosjean’s crash during the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix was a horrific incident where his car split in half and caught fire after hitting a barrier at high speed. Grosjean’s car was pitched to the right, head-first into the barriers. The car itself was torn in two: the front half went through the guardrail, into a mangled mesh of carbon fiber, while the back half was sent careening further along the barriers. The car immediately burst into flames.The FIA’s investigation into the crash later determined that Grosjean hit the barrier at 192 kph (119 mph), at an estimated yaw of 22 degrees from the normal direction of travel. The resultant peak force was equivalent to 67 Gs.Grosjean was a fierce critic, saying I don’t think it has a place in F1. On that day in Bahrain, the halo proved vital. In the pre-halo era, Grosjean’s head would have been exposed to the guardrail his car struck at 119 mph. Undoubtedly, this was one aspect of technology that saved his life.
How long was Romain Grosjean stuck?
Astonishingly, after spending 27 seconds in the car following an impact which measured 67G, Grosjean escaped from the flame-engulfed wreckage. His injuries were limited to burns to the back of his hands. The former Haas driver hit the wall at almost 120mph during the opening lap of the race, and spent 28 seconds engulfed by fire before climbing out to safety. The remains of Grosjean’s car, which split in half at high speed and instantly exploded, have been kept under wraps for three years.
Why did Romain Grosjean quit F1?
In what would be his final race, Grosjean suffered a serious crash in the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix on the first lap in which his Haas VF-20 made contact with the AlphaTauri AT01 of Daniil Kvyat, and hit the barrier at high speed, splitting the car in half, releasing the fuel and causing a significant fire. At one point I thought that was just it. And then thinking about the kids, I was like ‘Well, no, it cannot be’. The 2020 accident at Bahrain’s Sakhir circuit ended Grosjean’s Formula One career but he hopes to extend his time in IndyCar and is not ready to retire.
How did halo save Grosjean’s life?
Grosjean was a fierce critic, saying I don’t think it has a place in F1. On that day in Bahrain, the halo proved vital. In the pre-halo era, Grosjean’s head would have been exposed to the guardrail his car struck at 119 mph. Undoubtedly, this was one aspect of technology that saved his life. The presence of the halo safety device, a curved titanium bar fitted over the cockpit directly in front of the driver, has been credited with saving Grosjean’s life. This controversial feature was pushed through by FIA president Jean Todt in 2018, primarily to protect the driver from loose wheels and other debris.Since 2018, the halo crash protection device has been mandatory on cars in numerous FIA-regulated open-wheel racing series, including Formula 1. The FIA had been working on the halo’s design at the time of Jules Bianchi’s fatal accident at the Suzuka Grand Prix in Japan.