“On this occasion the wheel came bouncing through the pit area and it was
pretty scary. I have to say he is going to be sore because the wheel came
past at a huge rate and I saw it hit him in the back.
“They are bloody heavy. At that speed you’d have known all about it.”
The incident could prompt motor sport’s governing body, the FIA, to look into
ensuring all prominent pitlane workers are protected in future.
Mercedes
team principal Ross Brawn said: “On the basis of what we have seen we
should be thinking that all people in the pitlane are properly dressed and
equipped. Everyone in the pitlane should have a helmet on. It is certainly
worth reviewing the whole thing.”
Red Bull boss Christian Horner, whose team were fined £26,800 for an unsafe
release, is of the same mind as Brawn.
“When you see something like that it’s a horrible feeling because your
immediate concern is for that individual,” said Horner. “It must
be shocking for his family as well to see something like that.
“From our side we need to understand fully what happened, why the wheel
wasn’t located, obviously detaching itself from the car with quite a bit of
energy. The most important thing is he is fundamentally okay, but it was a
timely reminder that life in the pit lane is still a pretty dangerous place
to be, that things can go wrong.
“Mechanics have to wear safety gear and helmets, and maybe it’s time some
of the other operational people in the pitlane have some safety equipment as
well.”
Although Webber was naturally aware he had lost a wheel, he was not informed
until after the race as to what had occurred to Allen.
“Once he knew he was obviously very concerned for the well being of the
camera guy, and pleased to hear he is okay,” added Horner.
(Edited by Ben Bloom)