Sports Rubbish » F1

Formula 2 Driver Henry Surtees Killed In Freak Crash At Brands Hatch: Video

Jonathan Sacks — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 07:23:20 +0000

Formula 2 driver Henry Surtees was killed on Sunday in a crash at Brands Hatch in England. While there have been many incidents where drivers have been killed during a race, this one is particularly shocking.

The car driven by Jack Clarke lost control in a turn and hit a wall. A tire came loose from his car and bounced across the track. In a freak bit of horrific timing, the tire hit Henry Surtees in the head. He was immediately knocked unconscious and drove straight through the next turn with his foot still on the accelerator. He was taken to a local hospital where he was later pronounced dead.

Henry Surtees was the son of 1964 Formula One World Champion John Surtees. Just 18 years old, he was just beginning his move up through the racing ranks, reaching the podium for the first time in Formula 2 on Saturday. Perhaps F1 could have been in his future. Sadly, we will never know.

The video below shows the broadcast footage of the crash. Obviously, since we are dealing with a deadly accident, viewer discretion is advised.

Although some might argue that the wheel tethers were insufficient in this crash (the video shows tires coming off of each car when they hit the fence – so either the tethers on both cars failed or they were not being used on these cars, this is still being debated), the reality is that no car will ever be perfectly safe, no matter what safety measures are implemented. This was just a freak accident that is part of the danger of open-wheel, open-cockpit racing. A split-second difference either way and that tire misses Surtees completely. It is a sobering to all of us that a life can be taken so quickly with no warning.

RIP, Henry Surtees.

Tragedy for ex-Formula One champion Surtees as son, 18, killed at Brands Hatch [Daily Mail]

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Bernie Ecclestone Really Needs To Stop Talking

Jonathan Sacks — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 20:16:00 +0000

Bernie Ecclestone started a controversy over the weekend by making some ill-advised comments about Adolf Hitler and his ability to “get things done.”

Ecclestone apologized for his statements, but that hasn’t stopped him from opening his mouth again and inserting his foot even deeper.

After being told that the World Jewish Congress had called for his resignation, Ecclestone responded by blaming the financial crisis on Jews.

“It’s a pity they didn’t sort the banks out,” he said. ‘ He was then asked to elaborate and added, “They have a lot of influence everywhere.”

More and more voices are expressing their outrage and are calling for a boycott of Formula One. “No team should work with him any more – a boycott would be more than appropriate,” said a spokesman for Germany’s Central Council of Jews.

Between the remarks about Hitler and the implication that Jews run the banks, it’s hard to not see a pattern here. Throw in Max Mosley and F1 really needs to take a hard look at the people who are in charge and the image they are portraying.

A boycott might get Bernie Ecclestone & Co. to realize they need to stop making such insensitive anti-Semitic statements, but will it ever change their views? Quite likely it won’t, and that’s just sad.

Just days after praising Hitler, now Bernie Ecclestone ‘blames Jews for banking crisis’ [Daily Mail]

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Will F1 Some Day Use Remote Controls Instead Of Drivers?

Jonathan Sacks — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 00:11:15 +0000

Who needs real drivers when people can control Formula One cars with cellphones?

A new viral advertising campaign from Vodafone that features Lewis Hamilton features a couple of British Formula One fans building a model F1 car that can be controlled with a cellphone.

The fans then go to McLaren, who then put the idea into a real F1 car, which Lewis Hamilton is then able to drive around a test track in Portugal using a mobile phone.

Okay, it’s just an ad campaign, so the whole premise of these being fans who are found on YouTube is a bit much, but it’s still pretty cool.

Lewis Hamilton Now Can Win Races Ghost Riding [Total Pro Sports]

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Bruno Senna Hits Dog During GP2 Race

Jonathan Sacks — Tue, 13 May 2008 06:38:00 +0000

On my way home last night, I saw two coyotes dart out in front of a car. The car slowed down, and the coyotes went on their way. One of their distant canine relatives was not quite as lucky during this weekend’s GP2 race in Istanbul, Turkey.

Watch as driver Bruno Senna (nephew of Formula One legend Ayrton Senna) enters the pits with heavy damage from an unknown source. He eventually can be overheard explaining it all though: "F—ing dog in the middle of the circuit, man!"

Sure enough, not one but two dogs had wandered on to the track in the middle of the race. The 2nd dog brought out a caution. The first, well, you can see what it did to Bruno’s right front wheel. The video doesn’t show too much of the incident, but if you don’t want to see a dog getting hit by a race car, you might want to skip this one.

Following in the trend of last week’s horse attack, I fully expect to see a story soon where a dog driving a car runs over a human. This war between animals and man is only just starting.

Senna retires after hitting dog during GP2 race (Reuters)

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Hoping Lightning Strikes Twice, 4-year-old Signs Driving Contract at Go Kart Track Where F1 Driver Started Out

Jonathan Sacks — Fri, 06 Jul 2007 05:13:00 +0000

Lewis Hamiton is taking the F1 world by storm this season. In a couple of decades, perhaps Ben Kasperczak will do the same.

The 4-year-old races go karts on the same track where Hamilton got his start, and he has been signed to a 4 year racing contract where he will be provided go karts and training.

He can’t even ride a bike without training wheels, but he can drive a go kart at over 30mph.

If he is succesful, look for drivers to start signing contracts while still in the womb.

Source: (The Sun)

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