‘Once I stopped I didn’t know where I was because I was upside down.’
Zhou Guanyu has revealed that he isn’t sure how he survived the horror crash he was involved in at last Sunday’s British Grand Prix.
The 23-year-old Alfa Romeo driver, who is in his first season in Formula One, ended up sliding upside down after his car was hit by George Russell and flipped upside down. When he made contact with the tyre barrier, his car flipped over, becoming lodged between the barrier and the front of the spectator stand.
Shortly after the incident, Alfa Romeo confirmed that ZhouZhou was conscious and not seriously injured. However, he has since admitted that he feared his car would catch fire as he lay trapped amid the wreckage.
“I don’t know how I survived,” he said, speaking before this weekend’s Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring.
“But then looking back obviously I saw the halo saved me.”
The moment Zhou's Alfa Romeo rolled over in horror crash.
Zhou is 'ok' and stretchered to medical centre; Russell and Albon are also out of the race. pic.twitter.com/YXifaPQ3mL
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) July 3, 2022
Given that his car was stuck in the narrow space between the barriers and the fence, Zhou was concerned that his vehicle would catch fire.
“Once I stopped I didn’t know where I was because I was upside down and the next thing I felt was some leaking,” he added.
“I was not sure if it was from my body or from the car, so I just tried to switch the engine off. I knew if a fire started it would be difficult to get out.
“It wasn’t hurting but it was very cold on the left hand side, so I didn’t know if it was blood and I wasn’t feeling any more or something. I was just making sure, I was more worried about if the engine caught on fire because in that position you are really stuck.”
Finished the final medical check, all good to go! Thanks to all of the people who supported me during this time, means the world. ❤️ #AustrianGP LET’S GO! 💪🏼 pic.twitter.com/VdArFWcRoB
— 周冠宇 | Zhou Guanyu 🇨🇳 (@ZhouGuanyu24) July 7, 2022
The Chinese driver was trapped in his car until marshals were able to get him out, before he was taken to the medical centre for examination. Although he said that had some minor bruising, he remarkably felt fine by the next day.
