RIP Justin Wilson

[popeyespappy]

Racing lost another good man today. British open wheel driver Justin Wilson died of injuries received when he was hit in the head by debris from another car during the IRL race at Pocono yesterday.

[vorlon13]

That was so sad and shocking.

[c172]

I'm trying to look up the rules over the years for bodywork and chassis and such. I remember Dan Wheldon's death a few years ago ushered in a brand new car. I suspect there have been a few mods since. Maybe a bit of a backtrack somewhere in the process? Shame.

[SteelCurtain]

Very sad. Reminder of no matter how technology advances safety, it is still an extremely dangerous sport.

[Mudhammam]

Very sad. Reminder of no matter how technology advances safety, it is still an extremely stupid sport.

Fixed.

[SteelCurtain]

Haters gonna hate.

[popeyespappy]

I'm trying to look up the rules over the years for bodywork and chassis and such. I remember Dan Wheldon's death a few years ago ushered in a brand new car. I suspect there have been a few mods since. Maybe a bit of a backtrack somewhere in the process? Shame.

Wheldon's car got into the catch fence top first, and his head hit a pole. Wilson got hit in the head with debris from another car. About the only thing they could do in either case in enclose the cockpit, and that comes with its own set of problems. You are correct though in that it usually takes a death to motivate them to make any major safety related changes. I doubt we'll see closed cockpits in Indy cars any time soon though.

[c172]

I'm on a couple of motorsports message boards (I'm a big rally fan, as well as IMSA Sports Cars, and also watch some NASCAR and IndyCar), and the closed cockpit thing is a big debate on them now. Designs I've seen are just plain ugly. Maybe it's just that IndyCar and F1 have never before had closed cockpits. Maybe if some other governing body ran them, I'd be OK with it, and it wouldn't look like a messed up IndyCar concept (similarly, in Sports Cars, I hate that Delta Wing, but it would have been fine as a concept car at an auto show).

[TheRealJoeFish]

I normally don't pay much attention to motorsports but this was at Pocono, which is quite close to where I live; a bunch of people from around town were there. It's extremely sad that this happened. Every sport comes with risks, IndyCar driving more than many, I would think, and, as Wilson had said in the wake of Wheldon's death, that's something you have to weigh and consider when you make the choice to go out there. I think Wilson knew that every time he got into that car, there was a small but real chance he wouldn't get out; that's part of what he was being paid for, sure, but more importantly that was a small price to pay for doing what he loved.

In terms of this particular accident, the way it transpired was terribly, tremendously unlucky. The sport should be looking to make improvements to safety when and where they can, but I believe they're already doing that. It's simply a matter of weight + speed = a tangible mortality rate, which is admittedly little consolation when the world loses a husband and father and racer and decent human being.

[popeyespappy]

I'm on a couple of motorsports message boards (I'm a big rally fan, as well as IMSA Sports Cars, and also watch some NASCAR and IndyCar), and the closed cockpit thing is a big debate on them now. Designs I've seen are just plain ugly. Maybe it's just that IndyCar and F1 have never before had closed cockpits. Maybe if some other governing body ran them, I'd be OK with it, and it wouldn't look like a messed up IndyCar concept (similarly, in Sports Cars, I hate that Delta Wing, but it would have been fine as a concept car at an auto show).

Closed cockpits were part of the discussion after the Wheldon accident too. I actually like the look of some of the concepts better than the current IRL spec.