F1 Driver Felipe Massa in life-threatening accident

[Lost-in-FL]

Source: swxrightnow.com

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Ferrari driver Felipe Massa remained in "life-threatening" but stable condition on Sunday following surgery on multiple skull fractures.

Peter Bazso, the AEK hospital medical director, told reporters that Massa would be kept sedated until Monday, but will be woken up periodically during that time.

When asked whether Massa's life remained in danger, Bazso answered: "Yes, of course."

Bazso said doctors were able to "remove the broken bones and stabilize the area," procedures required to treat "an open skull fracture and a contusion" that Massa received during a crash in qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix on Saturday.

Read more: http://www.swxrightnow.com/Global/story.asp?S=10791425&nav=menu1641_4

[Lost-in-FL]

1. A link from Associated Press

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hZL4O74AuFCZPVu46lEpnuLXEFzQD99M6L5O0

[Captain Hilts]

2. Fingers and toes crossed. F1 is real driving. nt

[Mopar151]

7. Every form of racing is real driving n/t

[XOKCowboy]

3. After losing Henry Surtees last week this really hurts...

Both freak accidents. Sending healing thoughts to Felipe and hopes for a full and speedy recovery.

[givemebackmycountry]

4. I've seen the replay, from the drivers seat view...

You see this thing (they say it was a spring, but it looked like a silver Coors light can, roughly the same size.
But not the same weight, of that I am sure.

It's bouncing on the track and Massa hits it at 140mph.

His hands never left the steering wheel, then he drives off the track, back across the track, and head on into a tire barrier.
It hit him in his helmet and busted his visor open.

That was ugly, and I heard it was the second injury caused by debris on the same track that week.

[Xithras]

5. The cockpit vid of the crash is on Liveleak

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=80c_1248559622
The vid is German, and the first four minutes are confused discussion as they try to figure out what's going on. Skip to the 3:59 mark to see the crash, and after that to the end in order to see a slo-mo as they identify what hit him. That was NOT a small spring.

And this was Henry Surtee's crash last week. http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=999_1248095967

Two "one in a million" crashes.

[muriel_volestrangler]

6. Bigger, I'd say, and they say it weighs about a kilogram

they showed the equivalent srping from another class of racing car on TV - as big as a couple of fists, I'd say (they said the F1 might be a lightweight alloy).

[Mopar151]

8. Ugly is right

Race control and the track workers have some questions to answer (not to mention the team who lost the spring (likely a spring/shock unit)) - this sort of thing would be unnacceptable at a backwoods dirt track in the US, never mind a racing series which constantly promotes itself as the world's best.

[MaineDem]

12. Why the track workers?

What did they do wrong?

[Mopar151]

14. They are race control's eyes and ears

Part of their jobs is to monitor the track and ensure a clear course.

[MaineDem]

16. Absolutely

But by the time someone could have called in "debris on the track" Massa had struck it.

I can't fault the track marshals for this at all.

[muriel_volestrangler]

17. It was still bouncing from when it fell off

less than 2 seconds before. Neither race control nor track workers could have done anything whatsoever.

The only people you could possibly blame is Brawn, the constructors of the car it fell off. And there, you're going to find it hard to show they did anything wrong.

[Mopar151]

21. I'm not trying to blame anyone

All I said is that they have some questions to answer. As far as Brawn goes, springs and shocks ain't supposed to fall off! Even in the "beer stocks" at Stump Junction Motor Speedway.

[muriel_volestrangler]

23. OK: race control and the track workers have no questions to answer.

You're wrong about that. What question could you ask them?

[Mopar151]

24. Well, Im not wrong.

A debrief after an incedent like this is SOP. I've been a corner worker, flagger, tech inspector, steward and racer for 30+ years. You?

[MaineDem]

27. You insinuated they did something wrong.

Maybe it wasn't your intention but it sure came out that way.

As I'm sure you know based on your experience, freak things happen on a race track. Race control and the course marshals had no time to respond to this incident. Debrief sure but not an interrogation.

I've got 25 years in the business. Perhaps we know each other.

[Mopar151]

29. maybe some of that has to do with the F1 "attitude"

"a racing series which constantly promotes itself as the world's best" ought to look at it's race control scheme, if qualifying cars are only 3 sec apart. Several US series use one-way radio channels or in-car caution lights, the NASCAR boys have spotters everywhere. What did F1 do for Felipe? We likely will never know.....

[Mopar151]

31. And I see in this morning's news

"Governing body FIA was expected to launch an investigation into the crash after several drivers and team principals called for safety measures to be re-examined. " (NECNAPTV)

[MaineDem]

32. There's very little of the course that's not being observed in race control

Almost every aspect of the course is being shown on screens in race control.

There is no single car qualifying in F1.

There is also no safe place at a race track.

Of course they will review safety issues. Almost every incident results in some safety improvement. Even in nascar.

[Mopar151]

37. I won't see my friend till Sept.

He is retired, and works corners at Lime Rock, NHMS, Mt. Ascutney, and the F1 race in Canada, and he'll know more about the details of F1 race control.

[MaineDem]

39. He'll know "more about the details of F1 race control" than I do?

You don't believe what I wrote?

Okay. You win.

This is irrelevant to the issue of Massa's incident and I won't take up bandwidth to discuss it further.

I hope Felipe recovers completely and he's able to hold his child when she/he is born.

[Mopar151]

40. Well, seeing as he is rreally a part of it n/t

[Codeine]

20. Really? In like three seconds

you expect them to stop a Formula 1 car? Nobody even had time to register the presence of an object before it had hit the driver. It was still bouncing, FFS.

[frylock]

9. i may be mistaken, but the in-car vid sounds like he dropped 3 gears before impact..

i wonder if he was still conscious when he hit the barrier? that was a huge hit. it's never good when the track stewards are shielding the camera from view; usually an indication of a dead driver. but i did see massa moving his arms while they were loading the gurney into the ambulance. not good.

[The Sushi Bandit]

10. It was a main rear spring that brook off of Barichello's car

it bounced on the track and struck Masa's helmet, and careened to the left. He lost consciousness, then awoke enough to hit the breaks before hitting the tire wall. Felipe is one of my favorite drivers along with Rubin B. Hang in there buddy!!

[flvegan]

11. Sounds like his injuries are solely related to the spring impacting his helmet.

I wish him a speedy recovery. Happy to see that the car did its job protecting her driver in that crash.

[Mopar151]

15. And a good tire wall!

Look at the wall in the vid. It does a superb job of stopping the car. Tire barriers, catch fences, foam blocks, SAFER barriers, they all help -

[flvegan]

19. Oh, yeah.

Track safety on behalf of the track staff in races of this caliber is usually a given. They do a great job and the "old school" tech of tires and water combined with the new tech is good to see.

[Mopar151]

25. It doesn' take much for things to go wrong

Mike Harmon at Bristol, TN - the "crossover gate" wasn't secured correctly, and he speared the END of the concrete wall.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEv6bxTwNmA

Mike has said, in subsequent interviews, that the track "helped him out" replacing the car.

[Amos Moses]

26. Air Fence has, without a doubt, saved a lot of lives.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5sZxPXcjzg

[Mopar151]

30. Kool!

Better than a haybale that's been soaking up rain for a week. Which is better than Armco....

[Pavulon]

13. Amazing. A Bell HP3

or similar gear was able to save his life, twice. The initial strike and then as part of a HANS device from a 120(est) mph deceleration.

[MaineDem]

18. Massa wears a Schuberth helmet

I wonder why he had a fracture at the base of his skull. I'm assuming that's at the back of his head.

[Amos Moses]

22. I didn't know this had happened so thanks for posting.

I hope he'll be OK.

[Blue_Tires]

28. i hope he recovers

people can forget about just how dangerous motorsports can be

[MaineDem]

33. Massa shows signs of improvement

Massa, 28, who was hit by a spring from Ruben Barrichello's car on Saturday, is able to communicate "actively" and move his hands and legs but cannot speak.

A Ferrari spokesman said: "Felipe had a quiet night. He is OK, and he is due to have another CT scan today (Monday)."

A Hungarian hospital spokesman said they are "optimistic" that a "slow recovery is beginning".

"He's woken up more often and is able to communicate actively," added Istvan Bocskai, a spokesman for the Hungarian defence ministry, which administers the Budapest hospital where Massa is being treated.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/motorsport/formula_one/8169915.stm


Good signs.

[Blue_Tires]

34. i also saw Hamilton dedicated his victory to him...

[Mopar151]

36. Hamilton is a class act n/t

[dugaresa]

35. i hope he recovers completely

he is so young.

[Lost-in-FL]

38. +1

:thumbsup: