“It’s happened twice now so it’s imperative that a step is taken now.” – Following Dilano van ‘t Hoff’s fatal accident, Lewis Hamilton is calling on those responsible at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps to take action.
After Antoine Hubert, the young Dutchman is the second driver in four years to have a fatal accident on the Kemmel straight after the notorious Eau Rouge/Raidillon passage. In both cases, a car parked across the lane was involved in a serious side impact.
“It’s really devastating that we’ve lost two young drivers in such a short space of time,” said the seven-time world champion ahead of the Formula 1 British Grand Prix.
“But I have faith in the FIA because they’ve done a great job on safety. I know that’s an important issue for them. They make so many changes to every track year after year and I’m sure they’re changing will be looking very closely at Eau Rouge to see if there’s anything we can improve on or not.”
“We have to change something”
The focus of the discussions is the poor visibility in wet races. Solutions are already in the works, but tragically come too late for van’t Hoff. After the British Grand Prix, for example, new mudguards are being tested that are to be used in future wet races. The test had been planned for a long time.
“We have to change something because it is clear that in bad weather you can’t see anything when you drive over a crest,” says Hamilton.
Other drivers have also commented on what happened in Spa. While world champion Max Verstappen criticizes the restart in heavy rain, Lance Stroll calls for a complete reconstruction of the Eau Rouge/Raidillon passage. Of course, this contradicts the fascination that the world-famous uphill chicane has always had.
Ocon urges trade
Esteban Ocon also urges action, but expresses himself diplomatically: “Everything that happened has to be dealt with. It’s a tragedy.”
“Clearly, visibility is the key factor in this race. Most of us are driving blind at the moment. I’m sure the FIA will investigate and try to improve the situation. The problem is that we’re not on the hard Tour should learn. This is a very sad moment for motorsport.”