It's difficult to imagine the terror that must have surged through Romain Grosjean's soul as the flames raged around his cockpit in Bahrain.
Two races from retirement, the 34-year-old Frenchman felt the rising heat and saw only blinding orange flame through his visor and knew he was trapped.
He thought of his parents, his two young sons, aged seven and five, and his daughter just two and then he admitted: “I saw death coming.” Twice he tried to get out and twice he failed.
Thoughts of his children spurred him to put his hands on the red hot cockpit sides and then the halo to fight for life.
He had left the track at 221kph (137mph) and the impact was measured at 53G; surely the biggest of modern times. He came to a halt in less than seven feet, his car broken in two and buried in an inferno.
Fans later voted the Haas racer as Driver of the Day. They weren’t only voting for his racing skill. It was a vote of compassion, a vote for all of humanity; it was a vote for and from everyone who fights this battle called life and wins a day at a time.
Unfortunately, most of us do not have a multi-million dollar safety industry behind us, nor the remarkable FIA safety machine, or courageous, highly-skilled doctors nine seconds away when the crucial moment comes.
People talk of the miracle but there was more than one on that day.
The halo that saved Grosjean’s life had only been introduced a couple of years ago and without it his helmet and head would have taken much of the impact of the upper rail. Could he have survived that? I doubt it.
Had many in F1 got their way at the time, including Grosjean, it would never have been introduced.
That it did was down to FIA president Jean Todt, a curiously cold fish who is difficult to warm up to but, easy to admire. This week he must be applauded for helping to save a life.
It’s a miracle, too, that only recently Alpinestars have again uprated their remarkable race overalls. Tested in a 1000 degree Celsius burner, race suits have to last a regulation 12 seconds, shoes and gloves 11 seconds and the palm of the gloves (where feeling is needed to drive) eight.
Does the four seconds explain the difference between burned hands and untouched body? And demonstrate just how close he came? Gripping red hot bodywork unquestionably had an effect too.
The miracle of the fire is manyfold. Max Verstappen’s dad, Jos, described a similar moment in his Benetton in 1994.
“All I could see was black,” he said. “The fire feeds on the air and I couldn’t breathe,” He was in the pitlane and it lasted just seconds but the next breath would have been fire.
Grosjean leapt free after 28 seconds – an age in such circumstances – but the flames had been held at bay by helmet and balaclava.
The flames are actually what makes it so shocking. That is not supposed to happen in F1.
And this is where the amazement, relief and gratitude must give way to cold hard science because there are difficult issues to be faced by the accident investigation.
Questions must be asked of the barrier. Having a strong steel support connected to weaker fencing is a recipe for disaster, surely. The remarkable survival cell saved him from the impact but the car’s back was broken.
And then there is the angle of the barrier to the track. Another question mark.
There is also the key issue of how and why the fuel escaped. F1 systems are designed with seals to prevent spills.
It was confirmation that, for all the advances, the risks in F1 are still enormous. That’s why drivers are paid as much as they are. “It’s never enough when you are risking your life,” Ayrton Senna told me once.
The miracle continues, though, because Grosjean was released from hospital just three days later and is determined to end his F1 career in Abu Dhabi in the cockpit, a week on Sunday.
Lewis Hamilton is also hoping to be cleared to race after contracting the coronavirus.
There was shock he had tested positive after the extreme isolation of a support bubble of just two other people.
It must have been a mirage then when I saw him leap into the arms of a dozen sweaty mechanics after winning his seventh world title in Turkey. I guess the virus didn’t get the memo that it was a special occasion.
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
The years Ramadan fell in May
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
The five pillars of Islam
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
What is blockchain?
Blockchain is a form of distributed ledger technology, a digital system in which data is recorded across multiple places at the same time. Unlike traditional databases, DLTs have no central administrator or centralised data storage. They are transparent because the data is visible and, because they are automatically replicated and impossible to be tampered with, they are secure.
The main difference between blockchain and other forms of DLT is the way data is stored as ‘blocks’ – new transactions are added to the existing ‘chain’ of past transactions, hence the name ‘blockchain’. It is impossible to delete or modify information on the chain due to the replication of blocks across various locations.
Blockchain is mostly associated with cryptocurrency Bitcoin. Due to the inability to tamper with transactions, advocates say this makes the currency more secure and safer than traditional systems. It is maintained by a network of people referred to as ‘miners’, who receive rewards for solving complex mathematical equations that enable transactions to go through.
However, one of the major problems that has come to light has been the presence of illicit material buried in the Bitcoin blockchain, linking it to the dark web.
Other blockchain platforms can offer things like smart contracts, which are automatically implemented when specific conditions from all interested parties are reached, cutting the time involved and the risk of mistakes. Another use could be storing medical records, as patients can be confident their information cannot be changed. The technology can also be used in supply chains, voting and has the potential to used for storing property records.
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The years Ramadan fell in May
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Chef Nobu's advice for eating sushi
“One mistake people always make is adding extra wasabi. There is no need for this, because it should already be there between the rice and the fish.
“When eating nigiri, you must dip the fish – not the rice – in soy sauce, otherwise the rice will collapse. Also, don’t use too much soy sauce or it will make you thirsty. For sushi rolls, dip a little of the rice-covered roll lightly in soy sauce and eat in one bite.
“Chopsticks are acceptable, but really, I recommend using your fingers for sushi. Do use chopsticks for sashimi, though.
“The ginger should be eaten separately as a palette cleanser and used to clear the mouth when switching between different pieces of fish.”
More from Neighbourhood Watch
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
The years Ramadan fell in May
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
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Primera Liga fixtures (all times UAE: 4 GMT)
Friday
Real Sociedad v Villarreal (10.15pm)
Real Betis v Celta Vigo (midnight)
Saturday
Alaves v Barcelona (8.15pm)
Levante v Deportivo La Coruna (10.15pm)
Girona v Malaga (10.15pm)
Las Palmas v Atletico Madrid (12.15am)
Sunday
Espanyol v Leganes (8.15pm)
Eibar v Athletic Bilbao (8.15pm)
Getafe v Sevilla (10.15pm)
Real Madrid v Valencia (10.15pm)
Profile Idealz
Company: Idealz
Founded: January 2018
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Size: (employees): 22
Investors: Co-founders and Venture Partners (9 per cent)
More coverage from the Future Forum
Specs
Engine: 3.0L twin-turbo V6
Gearbox: 10-speed automatic
Power: 405hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 562Nm at 3,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 11.2L/100km
Price: From Dh292,845 (Reserve); from Dh320,145 (Presidential)
On sale: Now
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BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES
SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities
Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails
Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies
Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
