The organisers of the Hungarian GP have laid a bed of gravel on the outside of Turn 5, where Yuki Tsunoda had the bad accident yesterday that brought out the red flag for Q3.
The Japanese driver, who ran wide during his first run, literally took off over a small dip in the grass run-off area: his RB VCARB 01 did not lose speed but lifted off the ground by about a metre, then bucked violently.
Yuki Tsunoda, RB F1 Team VCARB 01
Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images
The result was that the uncontrolled Racing Bulls skidded into the barriers on the left side before coming to rest. The driver escaped unharmed from the crash although the FIA doctor intervened immediately after having noted that the impact had been significant because the biometric sensor in the glove had indicated a crash with an energy greater than 20G.
The hardest impact was the landing after the flight: Tsunoda suffered a spinal injury, while the bottom of the single-seater cracked, as did the chassis.
Stewards remove damaged car of Yuki Tsunoda, RB F1 Team VCARB 01
Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images
The Faenza team, therefore, was busy rebuilding the destroyed car, starting from the spare body which, from this year, can be pre-assembled with some parts, making the mechanics’ job easier, whereas until last year it was mandatory to start from a bare chassis.
Yuki will line up tenth on the grid alongside his teammate Daniel Ricciardo, who overtook him at the restart of the session after his teammate crashed. The mistake at the start was made by the Japanese driver who, at least initially, had hinted that something had broken on the RB VCARB 01.
Stewards remove damaged car of Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing RB20
Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images
This accident risks “tarnishing” Tsunoda’s good season, just when Red Bull is talking about replacing Sergio Perez: the Mexican had demolished his RB20 in Q1 just when the Milton Keynes team had given him two races to get back on track. The damage bill, which risks limiting the development of the world champion car, is pushing Christian Horner and Helmut Marko to choose an alternative to Checo.
Sergio Perez’s Red Bull Racing RB20 after the accident in Q1
Picture of: George Piola
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