All-purpose open-wheel (F1, IRL) racing thread

The photographers at that corner were incredibly lucky.

 

Including the poor photog who runs away and keeps looking behind him to see a tire chasing him.

http://tinyurl.com/3knkefv

That's one hell of a wreck. Glad everyone's apparently ok.

 

Those tire barriers have to be raised. How the laws of physics prevent McNish's car from going over, I have no clue.

 

It did go over. You're spot on that landing back on the track side looks like a breakdown of physics.

 

And apparently another Audi had a rather harrowing wreck in the dark.

 

Here's some footage, apparently he walked away on his own.

 

Holy crap. That McNish wreck is something else.

Weird accident too. You don't expect a car to pick up speed going (slightly) uphill into a sand trap, but he was obviously carrying a lot of speed into that turn and the slope basically served as a launch pad.

You can tell that they didn't count on an accident of that severity at that spot on the track, but that area is going to have to be redesigned. That had all of the makings of a major disaster. Deeper sand (or no sand at all), higher tire barrier, etc.

And it has to be said that McNish was totally at fault and to say that his pass of a slower car was "optimisitic" doesn't do justice to the term. Stupid jumps to mind.

 

How 'bout the dude near ground zero who stands there and protects his motorcycle? It's as if he knew he was fucked and just stood there ready to take his mortal blow.

Not only didn't he get hit (thank God for that), but his motorcycle came out unscathed too.

 

Wow. Looks like the slower car moved into the Audi's lane. Two fortunate escapes so far.

 

Yeah, I wasn't sure if he was protecting the motorcycle or ducking behind it. He's a very lucky guy.

Anyone watching Indycar from Texas? The drawing for starting position in the second heat was... odd. And long.

 

Dario dropped some words on the radio broadcast that might get the FCC interested voicing his frustrations with the draw ... and that was after winning the first race. He suggested -- both before and after -- inverting the field for the second race based on first race finishing position. Really, that's not a bad idea.

Franchitti & Power win. Texas always a good show. Tonight doesn't disappoint, especially in the first race.

One accident in the two, but the car that got wadded up -- Wade Cunningham's -- was the car Dan Wheldon won Indy with two weeks ago.

 

They can fix the tub on the Cunningham/Wheldon car, repaint it in 500 colors and it'll be fine. But doesn't it race the rest of the ovals after repairs anyway?

Meanwhile, they're racing at Le Mans again after the umpteenth safety car. Dawn had broken and it's the last Audi back in front, followed by three Peugeots.