Damon Hill expects an investigation of the Spa circuit following Dilano Van’t Hoff’s death
After the terrible accident in FRECA where Dilano van't Hoff lost his life, Damon Hill believes that the FIA must examine the circumstances of the accident that occurred at Spa-Francorchamps. A circuit where many serious crashes have taken place.
The motorsport world was struck this weekend by the death of a young 18-year-old driver, Dilano van’t Hoff. While driving on the Belgian circuit of Spa-Francorchamps, the FRECA (Formula Regional European Championship) driver experienced an off-track incident at Raidillon before being hit by another car, as the track offered very little visibility.
A new deadly accident that also brings to mind the one experienced in 2019 by the Frenchman Anthoine Hubert. After his death, the Belgian circuit made numerous modifications and renovations to ensure that this type of accident, where the car returns to the track, can no longer occur.
For Damon Hill, the 1996 world champion, rain and weather conditions were the factors that created this tragedy. “I think every time you have a long straight line and wet conditions, it can happen,” the driver said to Sky Sport F1. “Wet conditions are really the worst contributors to this, not being able to see where you’re going. From the sound of it, it sounds like he was hit in the same way Anthoine was hit while he was stationary on the track, so a very significant impact,” explained the former Williams driver.
For the British, the FIA must examine all factors of the accident. The 1996 world champion proposes some solutions: « The FIA must focus on the survival cell. It is necessary for it to be able to withstand when a car violently hits this survival cell, so the driver can survive this kind of impact », affirms the former Formula 1 driver on the RTBF. The real problems are the weather conditions, pointed out the 62-year-old man: « What can we do about it? Stop racing on wet tracks, only race when you can see or make the cars indestructible in this way and allow the drivers to survive. »
« “I am just as guilty as anyone else, commenting on the F3 race saying ‘we want to see a wet race.’ We want to see races on a wet track because it is exciting and there is action, but unfortunately, this hides the terrible risk that something like this could happen,” the driver concluded on Sky Sport F1.
Formula 1 will go to the Belgian track on July 30th for the 13th round of the championship.
