Motorsport’s incredible safety standards were once again put to the highest level when a massive pileup left carbon scattered across the road at the Rome E-Prix.
Jaguar driver Sam Bird was running fourth on lap 9 at the Circuito Cittadino dell’EUR when his car was disrupted by a collision.
He lost his grip and spun and hit the wall before hitting the wall and coming to rest in the middle of the narrow street.
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Out of sight, former Formula 1 driver Sebastien Buemi cut into the back of Bird’s car and several others piled in, including Antonio Felix Da Costa.
The red flag was brought out immediately but not before Edoardo Mortara hit the Bird side.
Some cars managed to dodge and jump over the obstacles but others did not fare so well.
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Lucas di Grassi and Robin Frijns were also caught in the melee.
“For f— reason! When will this opportunity f—–? For f— reason! What the f— is that?” said Buemi on his radio to his team.
“Guys, I’m so sorry but there’s nothing I can do.”
Buemi was among those who criticized the area, and called for change.
“It was a matter of time in my mind, and I raised the issue last year,” said Buemi, who added that there were no radio messages or yellow flags to warn him of the accident.
“The only problem with driving up there like Sam did, if you’re in the wrong place at the wrong time you’re out of luck.
“Those cars are a lot more powerful now and a lot less efficient and when something like this happens it’s hard to avoid.”
Di Grassi, another former Formula 1 driver, was also critical in his assessment.
“Thanks to the safety of the FIA and Formula E, also, not only on the car but also on the track – although the corner is probably the most dangerous on this track,” said di Grassi.
“It is very fast, a blind corner and we are running and there is no place to escape. In the straight you can see a lot, in a corner like this, it is very difficult to judge whether the track is closed or not.”
Bird, who started the chain reaction accident, explained, “There are a lot of bumps on this corner and a lot of raised ditches.
“I hit a culvert that was raised the wrong way and it sent me into the wall. Terrible wreck. I’m glad everyone involved was OK.
“They have to change the spots and improve the smoothness of the part, it’s too fast to have spills and bumps like that, which can send you to the wall in no time. For me it’s too much.
“You can go around that, and a lot of people do go around that, but it only takes one little mistake – it’s not really a mistake.
“I don’t think they can change it tomorrow, but next year they should really think about renovating the area, and putting a nice smooth surface on the top of the hill because it’s so hit and miss right now.”
The race eventually resumed with New Zealand’s Mitch Evans taking the lead over Nick Cassidy.
With second place, Cassidy moved ahead of Jake Dennis of the United Kingdom.
The FIA Formula E World Championship continues with the second Rome E-Prix on Stan Sport from 10:30pm on Sunday.
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