Paddon rally crash fatality avoidable, says FIA boss
"Motorsport is dangerous if everybody is not working in the same direction." FIA president Jean Todt, left
The boss of world motorsport’s governing body believes the death of a spectator after a crash involving Kiwi rally driver Hayden Paddon should have been avoided.
Tragedy struck the very first stage of the World Rally Championship event in Monte Carlo last month when Paddon hit black ice on the night-time run and slid into a bank, hitting a 50-year-old Spanish man who was airlifted to a nearby hospital but did not survive his injuries.
The incident resulted in the stage being cancelled and Paddon, who drives for Hyundai Motorsport with countryman John Kennard as his co-driver, later released a statement confirming they had withdrawn from the remainder of the event and expressing their condolences to the family and friends of the spectator involved.
An investigation was taking place but FIA president Jean Todt felt the fatality should never have occurred.
‘‘It’s very sad. It should have been avoidable,’’ the Frenchman told autosport.com.
‘‘In life you must have discipline and if you don’t have discipline you must have respect. Motorsport is dangerous if everybody is not working in the same direction.
‘‘I am very sorry for the family of the victim and I am sorry for the family of rallying.’’
Understandably, much has been said and written about the incident since it took place with many speculating the spectator, who was believed to be taking photos from the edge of the road, was positioned in a dangerous place.
Autosport.com quoted another spectator present on the opening stage at Monte Carlo as saying the place where the fan who died was standing was ‘‘not signed as a nogo area’’.
In his statement, Paddon said the most important thing was that what was learned from the incident would ensure it would not happen again.
The 29-year-old from Geraldine also urged rally fans to be ‘‘considerate where you stand and respect the instructions of the marshals’’ and asking them to request people standing in dangerous positions to move.
Todt offered a similar sentiment. ‘‘I hope this makes people more aware about safety if they are coming to see this great show. People must be educated and follow instructions. The consequences can be horrible and people need to learn.’’
Questions were also raised by some after the incident if the increased power of the new-look 2017 WRC cars may have played a part.
The new cars have up to 380 brake-horsepower, are lighter and deliver improved aerodynamic and grip capabilities.
That theory appears to hold little weight, though, given the low-speed nature of a Monte Carlo run mostly on mountain roads often covered in snow and ice.
FIA rally director Jarmo Mahonen refuted the suggestion the faster cars played a part in Paddon’s crash.
‘‘I say to you what I have said to everybody who works with the FIA: calm down, we have to look at the investigation first and then we look at what can be done,’’ he said.
‘‘This is the launch of the new generation car and, of course, they are a little bit faster. We are going to get the people who are not inside the sport who will start to complain about the speed.
‘‘This [crash] is nothing to do with the new regulations. It would have happened the same with the [slower] Group N car.’’
The next round of the WRC season is in Sweden from February 10-13, with Paddon confirmed on the entry list. In his statement after the Monte Carlo incident, Paddon said they would ‘‘pay tribute’’ at the event.