Guanyu Zhou or Zhou Guanyu who drives for Alfa Romeo is the first Chinese racer to ever compete in Formula One. In the recent BRITISH GRAND PRIX, the racer encountered an unusual car flip after experiencing two drastic collisions. This was one of the significant reasons for the suspension of the BRITISH GRAND PRIX before the conclusion of the first lap.
Guanyu Zhou saw himself on the wrong side of the Turn 1 section in between the tire barriers. After the fatal flip-over, the emergency team was spontaneous enough to rescue the drivers in the clash.
Zhou, along with Alex Albon was in the hospital.
Fortunately, neither of the drivers was in serious harm. After a quick diagnosis and precautionary checks. The drivers came off quickly from the Coventry Hospital.
What led to : Guanyu Zhou Flip-Over?
In the replay, it was pretty clear what led to the collision of multiple drivers. It was Pierre Gasly, who was in between the Guanyu Zhou on one side and George Russell on the other side.
It was the aggressive contact between Russell and Gasly that bumped Russell onto Zhou and ultimately his car flipped.
Some spectators suggest that it was the second impact that flipped Zhou’s car. His car initially flipped upside down after the impact. Ultimately rolled over the barriers and Zhou found himself in front of the Grandstand.
Guanyu Zhou after the fatal crash said that the F1’S Halo cockpit protection saved his life. The safety Halo came into effect in the 2018 season. It was a controversial add-on at that time. Many traditionalists suggested that it was far away from the unprotected view of the cars.
However, the protection device also saved Charles Leclerc from a fatal injury in the 2018 BELGIAN GRAND PRIX.
Moreover, the device has saved a lot of lives in clashes as of now. A prominent example is the famous fireball crash of Romain Grosjean in the BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX of 2020.
What led to the suspension of the race?
Right after the rollover of Guanyu Zhou, there was a separate clash. Sebastian Vettel crashed onto Albon from behind. The clash did happen because of the initial rollover. Albon pushed his brakes and Vettel was right behind him.
The collision resulted in Albon in impact with the pit wall. Soon after getting back on the track, he came in collision with Esteban Ocon and Yuki Tsunoda.
The Unusual Protest after Guanyu Zhou Crash
A group of protestors known as ‘ just stop oil ‘, came on the tracks to display their protest right during the end of the first lap. Fortunately, the drivers were slowing off after the two crashes.
The protestors were close enough to be in impact with the cars and seriously in danger. However, the drivers were already hitting the brakes after the red flag to suspend the race.
Seven of the protestors were under custody right after the crashes.
Interestingly Lewis Hamilton has been in active support of the protestors. In the post-race conference, Hamilton stated ‘ i had no idea why were the protestors there and what were they supporting’. Later after getting the clarification, Hamilton came in support of the protestors saying ‘ Big up to them’.
Hamilton made it clear that the protestors were fighting for the planet. Lewis simply loved the fact that it was for a meaningful cause.
However, Mercedes later revealed that Hamilton has been in constant support of the protestors but not the method they chose to show their protests. The method could have easily resulted in some serious injuries. After all the chaos and the fatal flip-over of Guanyu Zhou. The race was active again at 3:56 p.m. regional time.