British Grand Prix: Terrifying replays put George Russell-Zhou Guanyu crash in perspective
By Mark Powell
![Alfa Romeo Chinese driver Zhou Guanyu is seen in the crash barriers during an incident at the star during the Formula One British Grand Prix at the Silverstone motor racing circuit in Silverstone, central England on July 3, 2022. (Photo by Ben Stansall / AFP) (Photo by BEN STANSALL/AFP via Getty Images) Alfa Romeo Chinese driver Zhou Guanyu is seen in the crash barriers during an incident at the star during the Formula One British Grand Prix at the Silverstone motor racing circuit in Silverstone, central England on July 3, 2022. (Photo by Ben Stansall / AFP) (Photo by BEN STANSALL/AFP via Getty Images)](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/dbaa64ad0cd78bd6097c36334657aa38823ee827f33a65547b2bbca1c9dcadc0.jpg)
At the start of the British Grand Prix, Zhou Guanyu and George Russell were involved in a scary crash just off turn 1.
21 seconds. That’s all it took for the first red flag of the race, and it’s all thanks to a freak crash between Russell and Guanyu, in which the latter’s care flipped upside down in a scary incident.
While no one appears to have been harmed in the accident, it’s still a reminder just how quick things can go off the rails.
The crash between Gasly v Russel v Zhou #F1 pic.twitter.com/be2n6Y75YW
— Rel'³³.̷̴̶̶̧̡̡̧̢̢̢̧̢̡̧̨̢̢̧̢̡̢̧̡̢̡̢̨̡̨̨̧̡̢̨̨̡̡̧̢̡̡̧ (@relbug) July 3, 2022
The cars were clearly damaged in the accident, and while thousands if not millions of dollars will be lost as a result, what’s most important is that no one was injured — at least upon first look. Guanyu is conscious and undergoing further evaluation.
Following a crash at the start of the British Grand Prix, Zhou Guanyu is conscious and now at the circuit’s medical centre to undergo evaluation. #BritishGP
— Alfa Romeo F1 Team Stake (@alfaromeostake) July 3, 2022
Yuki Tsunoda, Esteban Ocon and Alexander Albon were all involved in the accident. Russell is out of the race, which will end his streak of top-5 finishes.
None of this seems like it should even be possible. pic.twitter.com/BuyEc5K0TK
— Timothy Burke (@bubbaprog) July 3, 2022
British Grand Prix accident was terrifying
As the second replay shows, Zhou’s car rolled over several times and nearly made its way into the stands. A barrier protecting the grandstand kept an ugly incident from getting much, much worse.
https://twitter.com/soundofmotor/status/1543602592168697861?s=21&t=UbzwUj8CK4dCdh9PTVoEfg
With protestors invading the racetrack before the first lap as well, the British Grand Prix has had plenty of fireworks early on, and not for good reasons.
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