Sunday’s British Grand Prix was won by Carlos Sainz after Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu narrowly avoided a major collision on the opening lap.
Zhou’s car was clipped shortly after the race began, causing it to tip over and crash into a fence and requiring a restart.
The motorist was eventually deemed fit after a protracted delay and evaluation at the medical facility. After the race was restarted, Red Bull drivers Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez suffered vehicle damage and fell out of contention, which gave Ferrari’s Sainz and Charles Leclerc the opportunity to take a commanding lead.
With 10 laps remaining, though, a safety car allowed Perez to catch up, and in a thrilling finish to the race, both he and Lewis Hamilton passed Leclerc to take second and third place, respectively.
After the safety car, Sainz, who had also passed his teammate, found it difficult to control his feelings. Sainz commented, that he don’t know what to say, it was unbelievable, following the race. It was a day I’ll never forget; it was truly spectacular.
Even though it was challenging and I frequently struggled with my equilibrium, I remained steadfast in my conviction.
Destructive Crash
There was a lot of anticipation before the race because the grid was occupied by a large number of international names. However, after the massive crash that stopped racing on the first lap, enthusiasm soon gave way to anxiety.
A dramatic event involving Zhou, George Russell, and Pierre Gasly was captured on camera, and it included footage of Zhou’s Alfa Romeo flipping upside down. Zhou’s vehicle crossed the track upside down, flipped over the tyre barrier, and then slammed into the fence.
Zhou’s vehicle crossed the track upside down, flipped over the tyre barrier, and then slammed into the fence.
Medical personnel attended to the Chinese driver as they nervously awaited news, and he was eventually stretchered into an ambulance after escaping major damage.
He was fine, no problems. Today, Halo saved me. Thank you all for your sweet messages Zhou tweeted following the accident. Williams Racing driver Alex Albon was sent to Coventry Hospital for precautionary checks after being involved in a secondary collision as a result of the incident.
Even though Verstappen passed Sainz during the first start and Hamilton initially jumped from fifth to third, the race finally started with a standing start in the original grid positions after a lengthy delay.
The relaunch went smoothly, although not without incident. The first four positions were contested by the Ferrari and Red Bull vehicles, with Perez’s car suffering damage and dropping back in the race during a compelled pitstop.
Verstappen initially resisted Sainz effectively, but the Red Bull driver quickly overcame and established a comfortable lead. But it didn’t take long before the defending F1 champion looked to receive a puncture and the back of the car sustained damage.
Perez and Hamilton were able to battle their way onto the podium because the safety car regrouped the pack just when it appeared the two Ferraris would drive clear.
Sainz will look to build on his first victory in the sport when he competes in Austria the following week.
Disclaimer: The insights expressed in this article are those of the author. This article was not written or edited by Empireweekly.com; it was published on July 24, 2022.
