As revealed on Wednesday by the strategy director of Mercedes James VowlesLewis Hamilton’s car took a 45G vertical hit in the first lap collision with Fernando Alonso’s Alpine at the last Belgian Grand Prix.
The blow also triggered an FIA light alert forcing the driver to visit the medical centre, something Hamilton was unwilling to do, having received a warning from the stewards. Lewis told reporters he nearly broke his back when the car went uphill before hitting the tarmac hard at Les Combes and blamed himself for the collision with Alonso as they battled for second place.
“It’s a big, big impact. 45G was measured on the car’s SDR (safety data recorder), which is huge in a vertical load,” James Vowles said in a team video.
“Lewis will be fine, he will fight again in Zandvoort. I think he is disappointed, because he has a very fast car and it is possible to get on the podium. But he and all of us are here to fight and keep moving forward,” added Vowels.
There were also concerns at Mercedes about Hamilton’s power unit and gearbox, and possible grid penalties at Zandvoort if broken, which would be a major setback given how difficult overtaking is at the coastal circuit.
Vowles said there was an immediate loss of coolant following the collision. “Now we will need a few days to go through all the parts, obviously there will be overloads on the suspension parts and gearboxes and we have to make sure we understand everything that is needed before Zandvoort.”
Source: La Verdad
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