F1 News

FIA reveal Halo protection in Leclerc crash

FIA reveal Halo protection in Leclerc crash

06-12-2018 14:07

The FIA have revealed how the Halo protected Charles Leclerc from a visor strike at the Belgian Grand Prix.

Leclerc ended up with Fernando Alonso on top with him after Nico Hulkenberg missed his breaking point and shunted Alonso onto Leclerc. The cockpit protection system was still intact following the collision from Alonso's right wheel and the team were able to remove it without issue, as well as assisting in deflecting the Mclaren away.

The FIA's high-speed cockpit camera also revealed Leclerc was only struck by small parts of carbon debris as Alonso flew over his cockpit further proving the Halo's importance in these situations.

Speaking to Autosport, the FIA's safety director Adam Baker said: "From the available data and video footage, we are confident that the wheel would not have hit Leclerc's helmet.

"But, as Alonso's car continued to yaw relative to Leclerc's, we believe that Alonso's front wing endplate would have just contacted Leclerc's visor.

"It is difficult to predict the severity of the contact with any precision, though."

 However, it was revealed that if the full mass of the vehicle had hit the structure it would not have been able to absorb the full impact.