Does F1 Need Its Head Testing?

‘On your head son’ works in football, but not F1. One of F1’s recurring rows was reopened in the wake of the Belgium GP’s first corner pile-up, where Fernando Alonso was treated to the ungratifying sight of a Formula One car skimming over the nose of his Ferrari, clearing his head by, what, a good foot or so? The arguments about flaky tyres and ‘fake’ overtaking tech calmed down: for the first time in a while, safety was back on the agenda.

We’ve had drivers complaining before that the poxy little mirrors are too small and prone to vibration to be of any use, and that lack of visibility causes accidents. But head safety is more important, because all the really serious recent F1 incidents have centred on head injuries. Felipe Massa catching a rogue Brawn GP spring full in the face at 160mph. Ayrton’s Senna’s death at Tamburello in ’94 when his helmet was breached by the torn front suspension and wheel of his Williams. F1 prides itself on being the most glamorous, tech-proud sport in the world, but there’s an ugly truth: the driver’s heads are sickeningly vulnerable.

So, what to do? There are two options really: a roll bar arrangement with some form of deflective shape, to push flying debris away from the driver, or a full bubble canopy like a fighter jet. Both have their disadvantages. A big steel or carbonfibre hoop would add yet another blind spot, and you just know loads of close-quarters racing accidents would be blamed on cars being hidden behind a whacking great safety pillar. Ironically, at least the drivers would be better protected during the crash by the thing that caused it in the first place...

A pillarless bubble canopy sounds cool, and it’s not without precedent either. When Red Bull came up with the X-1 Gran Turismo game special, as a kind of ‘what would the ultimate no-rules F1 racer look like’, it had an aerodynamic fully-enclosed cockpit, alongside faired-in wheels and a big ground-effect fan. So, if the best possible fantasy racing car has a canopy, why not a real-life best one?

There’s detractors who argue that it’d get too hot, or steamed up, and it’d need to be immune to rain, oil and dirt obscuring vision. Then there’s the nightmare scenario of being trapped in the cockpit after a crash, especially bad if the car’s on fire. Hmm, not sure about that – personally, if I was lying dazed in an upside-down F1 inferno, I’d rather be in a canopy-fitted car. You never know if the little bubble might protect you from heat or dangerous fumes in those crucial minutes before the marshalls can get you to safety.

And, if anyone can solve the safety issues a canopy can create, it’s F1 bods. James Bond fans, I doubt you’d get an ejector seat, but just because it’s a difficult problem to solve, doesn’t make it impossible. These are 700bhp machines that can take Eau Rouge flat out. Hardly go-karts, are they?

Problem is, as we enter the silly part of the 2012 season with nine races in thirteen weeks, Alonso’s Spa incident will be swept away quickly. Right under the carpet. And it might not rear up again until the FIA’s flag is flying at half mast.

Someone’s bright idea is in a race against a tragedy, because frankly, we’re overdue one in F1. Guys still die in IndyCar. Kubica was lucky to survive his rally smash. Motorsport can be dangerous. But there’s surely a way around the exposed head timebomb in F1. Have you got the answer? Use your head! Pitch your thoughts in the comments, and remember to name-check CT as Bernie signs you a blank cheque for safeguarding the future of the world’s best motorsport.