Video showing George Russel’s Crash in the Australian Formula 1 Grand Prix

The Australian F1 Grand prix was certainly eventful.

Whilst we rejoice in the very just and well-earned win of Carlos Sainz for Scuderia Ferrari, it’s very unjust that Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso was penalized because George Russell’s Mercedes hit the wall on exit of the Turn 6/7 complex!

Some say that Alonso is at fault because he entered that turn `differently’ than he did before, however the truth is that it’s the driver’s prerogative to manage the car within the limits of the track and rules governing the regulations. Beyond FIA rules, there’s also science. Specifically the laws of gravity and centripetal force that are at play. If drivers break these natural laws, they pay the price not by a penalty, but by a demolished car and a bruised ego! That’s motorsport and drivers are human and therefore make mistakes.

In this case, from what I see in video footage at different angles, George Russell unfortunately suffered a good old fashioned oversteer and failed to recover! At a few hundred kilometers an hour, that’s understandable, but it is not correct to penalize Alonso as the root cause.

Watch this video which is recorded from the rear of Alonso’s Aston Martin. Those that know how to drive at great speed would recognize the rear end of Russell’s Mercedes flick out on entry to the turn. At that point, the car is sliding and is out of the driver’s control. The trained response to that situation is to lift off the accelerator and initially steer in the direction of the slide. Once traction returns, you recover via a technique called Opposite Lock. For this to work though, the driver needs to be fully aware and conscious that the rear of the vehicle has broken traction. To quote F1 Superstar Nikki Lauda, you need to have a `smart bum!’. Meaning that you can feel slide and loss of traction through the seat.

George came into the turn way too hot! He failed to recognize that the rear end slid out and didn’t execute recovery early enough. When traction returned to the rear wheels, the nose was pointing in the wrong direction, and he rocketed towards the wall. You can see the brakes being applied which was the wrong thing at that point. In fact, at that point, the game’s over already and the driver is just a passenger. Probably the right time to pray to the God of F1. Lucky he’s Ok and to his credit, he doesn’t blame Alonso, but in F1 as it is elsewhere in the world, money and politics unfortunately rule more than justice.

It’s really as simple as that.