Breaking news
Formula 1 Italian GP
Ricciardo "couldn't believe" airborne Peroni F3 crash
Daniel Ricciardo admitted he could not believe what he was seeing when he watched Alex Peroni’s mammoth FIA Formula 3 crash at Monza on Saturday, as fellow grand prix drivers agreed that lessons needed to be learned.
Jonathan Noble Adam Cooper
Published: Sep 8, 2019, 10:04 AM
Copy link
Share on Viber
Peroni's Campos Racing car was launched into a series of terrifying barrel rolls during Saturday’s F3 race after striking a sausage kerb that had been placed in the run off area at Parabolica.
The Australian driver impacted the barriers upside down before flipping the right way up as his stricken car came to rest right-side up (pictured top).
Having watched the events unfold live on television, Renault driver Ricciardo said that such an accident had previously been unthinkable.
“It’s weird and you would never think that that kerb there would have such an impact,” said Ricciardo. “Unfortunately, sometimes you need something to happen so that you realise the consequences.
“I’d never looked at that kerb thinking of it as a danger or a threat. I don’t know whether the kerb had lifted off the ground but yeah I couldn’t actually believe what I was seeing. I was actually happy to see it, because I know if they show a replay it means the driver is okay.
“So I’m glad he’s okay but it’s crazy. It’s another lesson for us, so even if it seems like nothing - at those speeds you can just get a little turbulence under the car and it can take off.”
Red Bull’s Alex Albon reckoned the nature of the crash should serve as a prompt for F1 to think more about how it deals with track limits – and whether or not kerbs were the best solution.
“Even with Formula 1 I don’t think we’d have had that kind of reaction because how our cars are set up over bumps and stuff like that,” said the Anglo-Thai driver. “But yeah, that’s obviously a bit of a wake-up call.
“Luckily I don’t think we have kerbs like that anywhere [else] we go to, and I’m sure we can redesign that. I’m surprised it’s not one long one. It’s basically a roadblock on the exit.”
With F1 organisers having removed the kerb that Peroni struck before final practice, world champion Lewis Hamilton suggested that the best solution in that place would be grass and gravel.
“It was much better when it was grass and gravel on the exit there because I remember you used to come into that corner, you kind of… you were a bit nervous going in too deep because you might end up in the wall,” explained the Mercedes driver.
“The grass would pull you out wide and you’d pay the price for pushing beyond the limit. So now you can go beyond the limit and that’s the biggest – for me – the biggest problem with all these run-off areas that are tarmac now.
“We didn’t need to be consulted about the kerb. It’s a band-aid on the issue of putting tarmac there in the first place. I don’t think they needed tarmac round there.”
But while the Peroni accident prompted some discussion about the use of asphalt run offs, Nico Hulkenberg was not convinced that such a big reaction was needed.
“I don't think it's time for a big debate,” said the Renault driver. “I think some things you have to think about and look at, but it's also for the driver and everyone to apply common sense and be reasonable, keep things controlled and it's fine.
"Of course sometimes an extreme situation brings extreme accidents.”
McLaren's Carlos Sainz added: “I didn’t expect that a car could actually do that on that kerb, but it is something that we’re going to take into account in the future.
"That kerb was meant to be there just for track limits not for an unsafe situation, and I think no one expected that. It’s a lesson learned again for the F1 family that that kerb could create that kind of flip.”
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB15
Photo by: Mark Sutton / Sutton Images
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Verstappen's Rosberg comments made Hamilton "crack up"
Next article Why Vettel escaped track limits penalty at Monza
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Jonathan Noble
Brundle awarded OBE in King’s New Year’s honours
Formula 1
Formula 1
Brundle awarded OBE in King’s New Year’s honours
The new rules dilemma that will define the 2025 F1 season
Formula 1
Formula 1
The new rules dilemma that will define the 2025 F1 season
Verstappen issues Red Bull title warning in push for RB21 progress
Formula 1
Formula 1
Australian GP
Verstappen issues Red Bull title warning in push for RB21 progress
More from
Daniel Ricciardo
Daniel Ricciardo shares heartfelt message after first Indy 500 visit brought back "childhood feelings"
Formula 1
Formula 1
Barcelona-Catalunya GP
Daniel Ricciardo shares heartfelt message after first Indy 500 visit brought back "childhood feelings"
Lando Norris reunites with Daniel Ricciardo for Indy 500 celebrations after disastrous Canadian GP
Formula 1
Formula 1
Canadian GP
Lando Norris reunites with Daniel Ricciardo for Indy 500 celebrations after disastrous Canadian GP
Daniel Ricciardo says life feels "more real" after abrupt F1 exit
Formula 1
Formula 1
Canadian GP
Daniel Ricciardo says life feels "more real" after abrupt F1 exit
More from
Renault F1 Team
“I went back to the car and cried” – Esteban Ocon opens up about his unexpected year on F1 sidelines
Formula 1
Formula 1
“I went back to the car and cried” – Esteban Ocon opens up about his unexpected year on F1 sidelines
You Ask The Questions: Robert Kubica
Formula 1
You Ask The Questions: Robert Kubica
On this day: Michael Schumacher’s final unsportsmanlike manoeuvre
Formula 1
Formula 1
Monaco GP
On this day: Michael Schumacher’s final unsportsmanlike manoeuvre
Latest news
How Geri Halliwell helped Christian Horner deal with fan hate
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1 4 min
How Geri Halliwell helped Christian Horner deal with fan hate
Max Verstappen stars with 15-place charge in 45 minutes: 'I learned a lot and had fun'
GT World Challenge Europe Endurance
WCEE GT World Challenge Europe Endurance
Portimão
30 min
Max Verstappen stars with 15-place charge in 45 minutes: 'I learned a lot and had fun'
The closest finish in MotoGP history: Toni Elias over Valentino Rossi 20 years ago
MotoGP
MGP MotoGP
Portuguese GP
2 h
The closest finish in MotoGP history: Toni Elias over Valentino Rossi 20 years ago
Feature
Discover prime content
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe