Official 2014 Japanese Grand Prix Thread #ForzaJules

There is lots of speculation around that Bianchi is out of surgery (not a surprise by now) and that he's breathing unaided. Apparently the basis for this rumour comes from Ferrari press officials, which if true would at least add a little depth to the reports.

We know brain injuries can be especially fickle and I'm sure there'll be no official word until tomorrow depending on his stability through the night, but it's a glimmer of positivity.

Watching again, there was plenty of discussion about the tractor looking low at the rear, but on the HD TV footage you can clearly see the right-rear of the tractor is completely flat. Other than the fact it takes a heck of a lot of force to puncture a tractor tyre to have it deflate so quickly, it suggests Bianchi's car went under the left side of the tractor and his car got all the way to the right-rear of the tractor with sufficient force to puncture it the tyre, before most of the car emerged out of the rear of the tractor and came to rest.

I wasn't up during the race and watched a re-broadcast. When Sutil crashed, my dad and I noted that the cameras were showing the Marussia garage, and nervous faces. We even thought Bianchi was somehow in the points, but when we looked he was out. Then we realised, when did he retire? We never imagined this had happened.

Having seen photos of the wreckage (seriously scary photos, look them up at your own risk), it is obvious that despite the yellow flags, he was anything but slow. Ripping off the rollhoop is not easy, it is part of the safety cell and therefore the hardest part of the car.

Having a crane on the track with just yellow flags is not new, remember the Nurburgring 07 carnage?
video: [youtu.be]

Anyways, praying very hard for Jules.



Stats: 139 Starts / 7 Wins / 9 Poles / 5 Fastest laps

The only other time I remember seeing a roll hoop break was Pedro Diniz's flip at the Nurburgring in 1999, which was, obviously, a completely different type of accident.
BBC have reported too, a while ago now, that he is out of surgery.
Godspeed, Jules.

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Craig Scarborough annonced that Andrea De Cesaris is dead in an motorbike accident.

Sad Day.

EC83 Wrote:
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> The only other time I remember seeing a roll hoop
> break was Pedro Diniz's flip at the Nurburgring in
> 1999, which was, obviously, a completely different
> type of accident.
> BBC have reported too, a while ago now, that he is
> out of surgery.
> Godspeed, Jules.

What makes this accident particularly galling is that roll structures were massively beefed up after that accident, specifically to prevent them from deforming when a rearward load was applied.

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Don't know how accurate is this, but...

Does this mean the rollhoop in Bianchi's car sustained (better stated, suffered) more than 12 ton (117 kN!) of impact force?
Kenny Bräck comes to my mind and the safety cell there survived.



Stats: 139 Starts / 7 Wins / 9 Poles / 5 Fastest laps

Sky F1 have pulled all their usual programming and gone off air, just showing features on a loop. A measure of how hard-hitting events have been, I guess.

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Quote
Carlitox
Does this mean the rollhoop in Bianchi's car sustained (better stated, suffered) more than 12 ton (117 kN!) of impact force?
Kenny Bräck comes to my mind and the safety cell there survived.

It's not that simple. The 12 ton force mentioned there would be from a downward position (or upward when upside down of course). In this case it wouldn't be that simple - it looks more like it's been ripped off in a front-to-rear (like Diniz) or rear-to-front impact (though it very much looks like a front-to-rear).

gav Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> It's not that simple. The 12 ton force mentioned
> there would be from a downward position (or upward
> when upside down of course). In this case it
> wouldn't be that simple - it looks more like it's
> been ripped off in a front-to-rear (like Diniz) or
> rear-to-front impact (though it very much looks
> like a front-to-rear).


I knew it couldn't just be like that, thanks for clarifying. I too guess it was a front to rear collision, since a rear to front would've had less impact on Bianchi's head (though still bad). Anyway it still amazes me that such a strong structure was just ripped by the impact. Given F1's exhaustive crash tests, one could think it would've resisted.



Stats: 139 Starts / 7 Wins / 9 Poles / 5 Fastest laps

EDIT: didnt read De Cesaris death was mencioned above, sorry

this day needs to end now.



also, RMC sport (that was a fiable source during michael schumacher accident time) reported that Bianchi´s status has worsened as he´s been intubated and could face another intervention shortly...





Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 10/05/2014 10:46PM by Frantic.

According to Radio Monte Carlo (their journalist Antoine Arlot is in Japan), Bianchi will likely need another operation as there is bleeding. He is now breathing under assistance (in French) :

[rmcsport.bfmt...ere-838397.html]

#ForzaJules

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GPGSL -
GPGSL-3 - Pizza Party Racing manager and driver
Nations Cup - Team Scotland manager

gav Wrote:
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> Sadly in more ways than you could ever have
> known.

As it turns out Sky were due to show a re-run of that very race tonight. I'm glad they haven't.

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Just read somewhere on Twitter than Sutil said Bianchi hit the truck sideways.

And, apparently, the shots that are available of the wreckage were taken once they'd moved the tractor OFF the car, as in the Marussia ended up underneath it.

I'm pretty scared having started piecing this together, I guess we should be happy/hopeful that he is still alive.



There's a shot of the car just as the first doctor arrives, but be warned it is not a pretty sight: look on Bing image search, I'm not posting the image here.







Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 10/05/2014 11:37PM by Laton.

By the way, not the most important thing I know, but am I the only one who thinks Nigel Mansell acted like a tit when he interviewed the drivers on the podium? Rushing the interviews, cutting Vettel off in the middle of his comment about Bianchi, and generally looking like he didn't know WTF he was doing. Maybe he just got nervous in the heat of the moment or the news about Jules spooked him, I'm not sure. But apart from hugging Lewis, which was nice, I thought it was the worst podium interview so far.

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There shouldn't have been interviews at all, I don't blame Nigel as there were extenuating circumstances, would have been very difficult.

Ferrari have apparently denied telling L'Equipe that Bianchi was breathing on his own which isn't good news.

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X (@ed24f1)

Yes mansell was a twat as normal trying to make it about himself.

But did anyone actually listen to Vettel and that's why he was booed. He said he was lucky that there was a red flag or he would not have finished 3rd. I mean come on a driver just got hurt and he's lucky? What a thing to say!

Probably just uncomfortable about the situation and trying to deflect some of it, same with Mansell. People deal with such situations very differently.

I thought of those interviewed in the pen, Vettel was one of the more compassionate, uncomfortable and looked on the point of tears (as did Sutil of course). He's not a robot - he did after all ask over the radio if Ricciardo was OK after his shunt on Friday.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/06/2014 09:31AM by gav.

gav Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> > Does this mean the rollhoop in Bianchi's car
> sustained (better stated, suffered) more than 12
> ton (117 kN!) of impact force?
> Kenny Bräck comes to my mind and the safety cell
> there survived.
>
>
> It's not that simple. The 12 ton force mentioned
> there would be from a downward position (or upward
> when upside down of course). In this case it
> wouldn't be that simple - it looks more like it's
> been ripped off in a front-to-rear (like Diniz) or
> rear-to-front impact (though it very much looks
> like a front-to-rear).

I'm 99% sure they added a frontal or lateral deflection test from 2000 onwards, as a direct result of Diniz' accident.

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So Felipe Massa said he radioed to his box that the track is too wet: "I was already screaming on the radio five laps before that there was too much water on the track but then they just took a little bit too long and it was dangerous."
Am I wrong or was he driving on Intermediates at that time? If so it echoes what I have written at the start of the race, about the heavy wets only being used under Safety Car.
BUT one thing that the drivers complained on is understandable: The level of light at the circuit. No, it's not a good idea to pull a Singapore and install big lights everywhere. I'd rather see starts happening earlier, the starting time of 14:00 local time for every race would be great. I don't care if I have to get up one hour earlier in this case, have been watching Melbourne at 04:00 in my timezone. However having more light(s) on track is a must, according to the many drivers and team principals who complained about the darkness.
Code 60 (maybe because it's F1 Code 100 or the like) could also be a great addition.