Romain Grosjean speaks from his hospital bed for the first time since 140mph fireball crash that split his car in HALF at Bahrain GP and admits the halo saved his life: ‘It’s the greatest thing we’ve ever brought into Formula One’
- Romain Grosjean was in a horrific car crash in Sunday’s Bahrain Grand Prix
- The Haas driver’s car burst into flames after hitting a barrier on Sunday
- Grosjean posted a video of him on his hospital bed outlining his condition
- The Frenchman claims he is now grateful for the Halo protection system in cars
- Grosjean had opposed the the extra cockpit head protection introduced in 2018
Romain Grosjean admits he is now grateful for the Halo crash-protection system he opposed in Formula One cars a few years ago after his horrific crash on Sunday.
In the opening moments of the Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday, the Frenchman’s car hit and pierced through a crash barrier before bursting into flames, with Grosjean was trapped in the burning car for several seconds.
The Haas F1 racer posted a video message of him from his hospital bed on Sunday night where he discussed how lucky he is to have had the additional cockpit head protection system that was controversially introduced in 2018.
Romain Grosjean shared a video saying he was fine after his horrific Bahrain Grand Prix crash
The Haas driver’s car exploded during the Bahrain Grand Prix with the Frenchman stuck inside
Grosjean claimed he is grateful for the Halo crash-protection system he used to oppose
The 34-year-old said: ‘Hello everyone, just wanted to say I am ok. Well sort of ok. Thank you very much for all the messages.
‘I wasn’t for the Halo some years ago but I think it’s the greatest thing that we’ve ever brought into Formula One and without it I wouldn’t be able to speak to you today.
‘Thanks to all the medical staff at the circuit, at the hospital and hopefully I can write to you quite soon some messages and tell you how it’s going.’
The Frenchman was trapped in the flaming wreck of his vehicle for nearly 10 seconds before somehow finding a way out.
Shocking images show the moment Grosjean manages to pull himself from the flames
Grosjean was mercifully able to clamber out of the car and was helped into an ambulance
Grosjean is believed to have suffered burns on his hands and ankles and a suspected broken rib, with all of the Frenchman’s fingers bandaged up in the video he posted.
Formula One have since offered Grosjean ‘Driver of the Day’ after a vote amongst the discipline’s supporters.
A F1 Twitter statement on Friday afternoon read: ‘We are so thankful that Romain Grosjean was able to walk away from this.
The Frenchman’s car hit the wall at 53G and promptly burst into flames in sickening fashion
‘We did not need a reminder of the bravery and brilliance of our drivers, marshals, and medical teams, nor of the advances in safety in our sport, but we truly got one today.’
Ross Brawn, Formula One’s managing director, has already said the cause of the crash and fire need to be looked into, while praising the halo crash-protection system for effectively ‘saving’ Grosjean’s life.
‘We need to do a deep analysis of what occurred. The fire is worrying. The split barrier is worrying. There’s no doubt the halo is the factor that saved the day… saved Romain. The team behind it need credit for forcing it through,’ said Brawn.
