THE GREAT ESCAPE II
NOW ERICSSON WALKS AWAY FROM 220mph HORROR CRASH ...DAYS AFTER SPA MIRACLE
FORMULA One staged its second great escape in five days when Marcus Ericsson walked away from one of the most dramatic crashes of recent years.
The 27-year-old Swede lost control of his Sauber at 220mph going into the first corner at Monza — the Temple of Speed — during yesterday’s practice for the Italian Grand Prix. The car veered left into the wall and somersaulted three times.
The maximum impact was 20G — seven times the force of a launching space shuttle. The entire front of the car lay in bits on the Tarmac, along with the polystyrene 100-metre and 50-metre brake boards.
Ericsson was helped out of the cockpit and taken to the medical centre. He walked through the doors for his checkup while marshals in orange overalls cleared up the mess as the second practice session was stopped for 20 minutes. Ericsson’s crash followed his team-mate Charles Leclerc’s deliverance at Spa last weekend, when the halo safety device saved him from Fernando Alonso’s flying McLaren. As with Leclerc’s car, there were scuff marks on Ericsson’s halo, from its impact as it bounced off the ground. Sauber principal Frederick Vasser confirmed the DRS flap did not close, resulting in Ericsson carrying too much speed into the braking zone.
He was limping as he returned to the garage and rubbing his neck, but was declared fit to take part in qualifying today.
‘I am all fine,’ said Ericsson. ‘It was a big one. The safety of the cars is incredible. I look forward to fighting back.’
A decade or two ago, Ericsson would have been seriously injured. Indeed, his escape came 40 years after fellow Swede Ronnie Peterson died of injuries suffered at the same race.
When practice resumed, Sebastian Vettel was fastest, despite spinning off at the Parabolica. His Ferrari teammate Kimi Raikkonen was second best, with championship leader Lewis Hamilton third, 0.287sec off the pace. THE British Grand Prix will clash with next summer’s Wimbledon men’s final after being moved back a week. The 2019 schedule, announced yesterday, also confirmed that Formula One’s 1,000th race will be in China. 2019 SEASON — Mar 17: Australia; Mar 31: Bahrain; Apr 14: China; Apr 28: Azerbaijan; May 12: Spain; May 26: Monaco; June 9: Canada; June 23: France; June 30: Austria; July 14: Britain; July 28: Germany; Aug 4: Hungary; Sept 1: Belgium; Sept 8: Italy; Sept 22: Singapore; Sept 29: Russia; Oct 13: Japan; Oct 27: Mexico; Nov 3: United States; Nov 17: Brazil; Dec 1: Abu Dhabi.