‘On the Verge of a Catastrophe’ – Sebastian Vettel Names His F1 Moment of the Year

It was an intense 2020 season, with drivers forced into testing conditions, new circuits, dynamic weather, and many more. There were some scary and some cherishable moments throughout the year. Out of the long list, Sebastian Vettel chose his moment of the year.

He opined that Romain Grosjean’s life-threatening crash at Bahrain Grand Prix was the biggest moment of the 2020 season.

“If you look at what happened and are halfway sensible, you can see that Romain has been extremely lucky. That could have turned out very differently,” the German said.

“The cars are safer than in the past. Just a few years ago, this accident would have had a worse outcome.

“The accident analysis will hopefully lead to further improvements. After just a few days, the first signs of how a fire can be avoided.”

The Grosjean’s crash had to be one of the scariest in the history of Formula 1. For a moment, the entire world thought that the Frenchman might not survive the massive crash. However, thankfully, he managed to keep himself conscious and jumped out of the car on time.

Grosjean’s crash still a mystery to me: Sebastian Vettel

The four-time world champion is still trying to figure out how the Haas driver managed to escape the crash almost unharmed. Vettel opened up on the positives of the horrific crash Grosjean had to go through.

“There were a lot of positive aspects, he made it. How he survived this crash almost unharmed is still a mystery to me,” he said.

“He was on the verge of catastrophe. That he is still with us, that he is alive, is, therefore, the moment of the year for me.”

It was definitely one of the most disturbing scenes in recent years, after Jules Bianchi’s crash in Suzuka. The Haas car fell apart entirely, and one of the tires landed meters away from the crash site, way off the circuit due to the force of impact.

The car pierced through the steel barrier and flew off the track, as it dismantled into more than two pieces. Consequently, the impact opened up the car’s fuel pod, which instantly started the fire.

Luckily, help arrived on time, as the medical team and marshals managed to save Grosjean before it could all go haywire. Overall, despite the numerous safety features, Formula 1 still remains to be one of the dangerous sports in the world and the crash was just a wake-up call.