Victim of a terrible accident right from the start of the Bahrain Grand Prix, Romain Grosjean caused a lot of fear in the paddock after a horrifying crash into the Armco barriers on the first lap of the Formula 1 Grand Prix.
Max Verstappen finished 2nd in the Bahrain Grand Prix and came very close to Valtteri Bottas in the overall classification. But then, the sporting aspect took a back seat this Sunday. Indeed, from the very beginning of the race, the incident of Romain Grosjean horrified the world of Formula 1 and even beyond.
The French driver survived by a miracle, seemingly saved by the various safety devices including the much maligned Halo driver head safety structure. His accident resulted in a red flag and the race was neutralised.
🗨️ @Julien_FEBREAU : "L'une des envies de Romain Grosjean, c'est d'essayer d'être a Abou Dabi dans 15 jours. Ce qui serait normalement son dernier Grand Prix de #F1"#DSS #BahrainGP pic.twitter.com/jm4dqomA5i
— Dimanche Soir Sports (@DimancheSports) November 29, 2020
An opportunity for the various drivers to take a look at the images of the violent Haas run off the road. The amazement and perhaps fear could be seen in the eyes of the different participants. Shocked, Daniel Ricciardo was indignant about the looped broadcast of the images, blaming the powers that be to be capitalising on the horror of the footage with little respect for Grosjean’s family and friends.
After the race, the drivers joined the cause of Romain Grosjean, happy with the positive outcome of this misfortune.
The incident was at the heart of all the questions during the press conference, and Max Verstappen was particularly noted for one of his answers.
“Did I hesitate to take the race again?” says the Dutchman during the interviews,
“I don’t see why we wouldn’t want to race. If I were team manager, I would kick that guy out of his job…”
Interesting fact I learnt from someone at the @fia last night :
They introduced a new race suit this year which is heavier but protects the driver from fire for 20 seconds, whereas the gloves still only do 10 seconds, like the previous suits. Another lucky break for @RGrosjean pic.twitter.com/6UvVolN3rs
— Karun Chandhok (@karunchandhok) November 30, 2020
When asked to elaborate, Verstappen clarifies saying:
“If the guy didn’t want to race and I was the team manager, I would say ‘well, you’ll never sit in the car again'”
Immediately Lewis Hamilton replied to his junior ‘hotshot’ saying: “I hope you won’t be my team manager… I’m sorry, I feel sorry for whoever will be your driver in the future. ”
Perhaps a generational thing, perhaps a show of arrogance in Verstappen…? Or just the fact he is still so young whilst in the spotlight.
https://www.haasf1team.com/news/haas-f1-team-confirms-fittipaldi-sakhir-grand-prix
This could have been any one of us sitting in hospital but the strength he’s shown is amazing to see. I’d like to thank our marshals and medical team for being on the scene and tending to Romain without hesitation. Knowing that you’re there to pick us up when we fall is helpful. pic.twitter.com/MHoUlQf3Ix
— Lewis Hamilton (@LewisHamilton) November 30, 2020
Many other ex-drivers, including Hunt and Stewart, have said much the same thing. The day you fear driving a racecar is the day you should retire.
There’s a big difference between a momentary reflection to stand down and a directive from a team boss which provides no way back.
Sorry, but Verstappen continues to demonstrate his immaturity to face the world’s press and to nuance his style of public manifestation.
There is nothing wrong with what he said. He is absolutely right. A driver who is afraid is not a racing driver. Especially in this era, there is no added danger like in the 70’s so no driver will have a good reason to refuse to race. this was a freak accident, so race or get out!
I agree that Verstappen is right. Don’t know if it is just Dutch directness/bluntneess or it something he learned from his dad. I wonder if Max ever asked his dad if he ever thought of not racing after Hockenheim 94.
He is right and later also clarified in this case Romain got out without major harm. If it was a deadly accident it would have been different. In Spa when Hubert died Verstappen actually said he didn’t feel like driving and didn’t mind when he crashed out of the race.