F1 photographer rushed to hospital after being struck by flying debris following shocking first-lap crash at Monaco GP
A PHOTOGRAPHER was rushed to hospital after being hit by flying debris following the horror crash at the Monaco Grand Prix.
During Sunday’s Formula One race in Monte Carlo, three cars were involved in a shocking first-lap pile up.
Red Bull driver Sergio Perez was tagged by Haas driver Kevin Magnussen on the inside of the track when heading up the Beau Rivage on the way to turn two.
The shocking 160mph crash saw Perez’s rear right wheel clipped by Magnussen before he violently spun to the right and into the wall before the momentum took him further up the track.
Fellow Haas driver Nico Hulkenberg was then caught up in the madness as Perez’s car caught him and sent him spinning around.
The track was left covered in debris in the aftermath, while Perez’s car was left without any of it’s wheels and only the monocoque left intact.
It’s magnitude was so potent that debris spilled over the top of the safety barriers, leading to a lengthy delay as the barriers were repaired.
The drivers miraculously escaped with no injuries, but one F1 photographer was caught by debris.
Why do F1 cars come apart so dramatically in a crash?
F1 safety has come a long way in it's 74 year history.
Indeed, a massive tell of this is the safety features of the cars in the modern era.
One feature of this is the way the cars break apart in a high-speed crash much like crumple zones seen in road cars.
F1 cars now break apart during severe collisions as a means of dissipating the kinetic energy away from the driver taken during the incident.
The cars themselves are built around a monocoque – also known as a “survival cell” – with 2018 seeing the introduction of the halo prominently on top around the drivers head to boost this further.
This safety cell is made from 6millimetre of exceedingly strong carbon fibre composite with a layer of kevlar, which is penetration resistant and can absorb a huge amount of energy in a crash.
Meanwhile, the halo was a large reason as to why Romain Grosjean survived his horror crash at the Bahrain Grand Prix in 2020.
A picture after the crash showed one person in a hunch on the floor by the track with debris littered around them.
One Italian photographer was taken to hospital over fears of a possible injury.
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Fortunately, they were later released with the FIA confirming the photographer had not suffered any “open wounds”.
The photographer then returned to the circuit and was able to resume his duties.
Stewards deemed there to be no investigation necessary for the crash, judging it to be a racing incident which ensured no driver received a punishment for their involvement.
Charles Leclerc eventually took first place in his home race, ahead of Oscar Piastri and Carlos Sainz.
However, the race was slammed for being a procession, with even Max Verstappen, who came sixth, joking that he has “wished he’d brought his pillow”.
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