Satos crash last year in Austria

[BebiF1]

Alright, something I noticed when I came across this image. And now my avatar is this image as well. Look at the the ****pit. Sato was hit so hard, his steering wheel came off!?

A little background for those that may not quite know what their looking at. This accident happend at the A1 Ring at Austira last year, when Nick Heidfeld backed into Takuma Sato after losing control of a mechanically flawed car, at over 200 mph. Sato did not break anything amazingly but did leave in the life flight helecopter.

 

[NateDogg]

it defintaly appears that way. I don't know how they are put together, but thats a pretty intense hit. I didn't see the race, did they show it off?

 

[BebiF1]

Man, of the races to miss last year. Remember the controversy of Rubens allowing Micheal to pass two years in a row for the win. Well after one of the usual cautions at Austria, on that first green lap I believe, someone locked up big time going into the second hairpin, Heidfeld took avasive action and lost control after he had a brake disc explode. His car slid up across the corner backwards absolutely plastering Sato and missing Montoyas nose by inches. Quite a spectacular crash. Sato left in a helecopter with severe bruising and a concusion, Heidfeld left unhurt. Another point of this that some saw live but I have yet to find pictures of, is that the monoque, and Nate I know you know what this is, but for the rest of you, its the reinforced carbon and kevlar tub the driver sits in. The onboard was left intact, and after the dust settled they went to satos onboard, where to my surprise, you could see daylight through a 4-5 inch hole in the tub right above his right knee. Obviously where the end of the gearbox penetrated the car. That accident could have very well been another Zanardi accident, and or the first F1 driver to die in 8 years. I will look around for other info, but I like examining accidents that could have resulted in serious injury but proved to be a testament to how safe racing is today.

 

[Zakspeed]

I have always thought that miserable paydriver Alex Yoong contributed to that smash when he moved in on Heidfeld, who took to the grass and thus wound up taking out Sato. I will have to find my tape of that race again...

 

[BebiF1]

Well that could be. I looked at every view I have, including a few that were not shown on tv, and I cannot tell which Minardi to blame. They were sandwiching heidfeld during that restart I am guessing from what you said that Heidfeld was overtaking Yoong while webber in front had a massive lockup to make the corner. I think it was a combination of Yoong pushing him off of the racing line, a dirty track and what the team called a brake disc failure, turned him around at top speed. Once that happend, it was just a matter of who was unlucky enough to be caught in the that cars deadly aim.