Indian driver Kush Maini on Sunday survived a horrifying crash after he stalled at the start of the feature race in Formula 2, a support race to Formula 1. (More Motorsport News)
The scary incide🐲nt occurred on the opening lap of the Formula 2 race which preceded the For💖mula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
The 23-year-old Indian had nowhere to go at the race s♓tart as his car's engine stopped working suddenly. That left✱ fellow drivers Josep Maria Marti and Oliver Goethe unsighted, leading to a massive collision.
The rear of Maini's car was totally destroye𓃲d by t🦋he impact of the crash and fortunately, he came out of it unscathed.
Maini's father Gautam confirmed to PTI that hi📖s son is doing fine.
"He is doing okay. As part of the standard protocol all medical chec🦹k ups were conducted on Kush and all reports are normal," he said.
Ma🥀ini, representing Inꦛvicta Racing in his second Formula 2 season, is 11th in the standings. The race was won by Richard Verschoor of Trident.
Following the investig๊ation of the inc𒈔ident, the stewards handed the Indian a 10-second time penalty for causing the collision.
"After the race, the Stewards heard from the Team Representative and examined available video evidence beforeꦅ determining that the driver of Car 9 had failed to engage the Start Set Up Procedure for the sta♔rt of the race, an error that led to the car stalling on the grid causing the subsequent collision.
"The Stewards determined that because of this, Maini was wholly responsible for the collision and, as a result, elected to hand him a 10-second time penalty. With Maini not finishing t💫he Feature Race, his time penalty has bee𝓰n converted into a five-place grid penalty," read a Formula 2 statement.
Maini will serve the penalty in the next race.
Safety has improved drastically in motorsport over the🍌 past two decades but the sport remains dangerous. Formula 2 driver Anthoine Hubert had succumbed to his injuries following an accident at the iconic Spa Francorchamps circuit in Belgium in 2019. The Frenchman was only 22.
Jules Bianchi, who was only 25, had died following a collision with a recovery vehicle dꦦuring the Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix in 2014. The FIA had introduced Halo, a head protecting device, on all Formula 1 cars post the fatal acci♍dent.
