[MEDIA]
That is a big and expensive pileup. Looks like slicks on a wet track. I would not go blaming the girls for the wreck.
W Series drivers Ayla Agren and Beitske Visser have been transferred to hospital after a horrific crash in qualifying at Spa. https://www.autosport.com/w-series/news/w-series-drivers-agren-and-visser-transferred-to-hospital-after-spa-crash/6654820/
This girl is one of the best female drivers I have ever seen in karting. She raced on KZ (6-speed gearbox) with much more experienced drivers and she was a very tough warrior. Not a "top 3" talent but defintely had more than enough talent to move to upper categories. Unfortunately she never had much success in single seaters. The only other woman who I could say was on par or better than her was Bia Figueiredo, who unfortunately only got seats in bad teams at Indy.
I’m glad all these young women are all safe and no real injuries. Is it me, or has Radillion had an increasing number of serious accidents over the last few years. I don’t ever want to sanitize it as it is still one of the last best corners on a real track in the world. I hate to say that modern cars are too fast, but somethings seems to have changed.
That's a fact. The rulemakers don't seem to take the tracks into consideration when they write their regulations. In many instances, the cars have outgrown the circuits.
https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/why-spa-renovation-should-address-eau-rouges-biggest-safety-concern/6655418/ Why Spa renovation should address Eau Rouge’s biggest safety concern By: Jonathan Noble Co-author: Filip Cleeren Aug 28, 2021, 7:41 AM The terrifying accident in W Series qualifying at Formula 1’s Belgian Grand Prix has reignited the safety debate surrounding Spa's iconic Eau Rouge/Raidillon complex. Just a few weeks after Williams development driver Jack Aitken suffered injuries in a horrible accident at the Spa 24 hours, the motorsport world breathed a sigh of relief on Friday when the six W Series drivers involved in an incident at the same spot escaped without anything serious. But with memories of Anthoine Hubert’s fatal accident at Raidillon in 2019 still fresh in everyone’s minds, the recent crashes have served to heighten calls for track changes to be made to prevent something bad happening in the future. The crux of the issue on the circuit layout there, however, is not that the sequence itself is out of kilter with the demands of modern racing machinery. It remains a corner that stands out on the F1 calendar, and provides thrills for both drivers and spectators alike. A few of the calls for changes involve replacing the Eau Rouge configuration with a different type of corner – or even introducing a chicane ahead of it to slow cars down for the challenge ahead. However, the one area that is focused on a lot is the barrier and runoff configuration at the top of the hill. On the left hand side, the way the runoff comes back towards the track can sometimes see it act as a funnel in channelling cars that have gone off there. Image Unavailable, Please Login Jamie Chadwick Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images In Aitken’s crash, the initial impact with the barriers bounced him back into the middle of the track, where he was collected by cars unsighted as they blasted up the hill behind him. Speaking to Autosport recently, Aitken suggested that moving this barrier back here was something that could improve the situation a lot. “The problem is with the kind of crash that I had when you hit the barrier on the left, the distance from the middle of Eau Rouge, when you're going up the hill, into that left barrier isn't big enough. You don't have time to slow down,” he said. "It's also for the type of accident that I had where you are over-correcting a slide, the car was still relatively straight for me. But I knew there was no way that I was going to avoid the barrier or have time to turn away from it, because the runoff is just not deep enough. "So that's one thing, that it needs to be deeper." The other issue is the runoff area after Raidillon, with the large asphalt area and barrier configuration again offering the possibility for cars that have spun off the track to potentially bounce back into more trouble. This was a factor in the Hubert crash. Image Unavailable, Please Login Spa-Francorchamps renovation project Photo by: Circuit Spa-Francorchamps But these issues are something that Spa itself has been well aware of, and already looks to be addressing for 2022 when it plans to host bike racing again, including the returning EWC Spa 24 Hours in June. As part of its efforts to obtain the necessary FIM Grande C licence for the return of motorcycle racing, Spa has laid out plans for a host of safety improvements – including at Eau Rouge/Raidillon. It has announced that its revisions will include an expansion of the runoff areas here, and add gravel traps at Raidillon. Images that Spa has already released show revisions to the barrier through the Eau Rouge complex, at the exact area where Aitken and the W Series drivers hit trouble. The 80 million euro government-backed project should therefore ensure that F1 is able to retain one of its most famous corners, but with improved safety to help alleviate many of the concerns that have been aired recently. And while the Spa revamp was the vision of its former CEO Nathalie Maillet, who was sadly murdered earlier this month, the track has been clear that it will push on with what she had planned.
Ouch, couldnt bear to watch it. Perfect demonstration at how the modern construction of these cars has saved many lives today Anyone who has walked down Eau rouge can testify how steep it is and moreover when looking uphill just how little you can see of the track - blind faith at 160mph, but to be safe at that speed you need to see the track