Verstappen dreading introduction of "very ugly halo"
- Published on 15 Feb 2018 16:08
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- By: Fergal Walsh
Max Verstappen has admitted that he is not looking forward to driving his new F1 car which comes with the halo, F1's mandatory cockpit protection device. The device will be used this year to the dismay of many, including Verstappen, who brandish it visually unappealing.
With motorsport moving towards protecting the driver's head, the halo was deemed as the device that was ready for the upcoming season. Red Bull will launch their new car, the RB14, next Monday - but Verstappen says he is not looking forward to seeing the Halo on the car: "The halo - that will be very ugly," he said. "I am not looking forward to that! "
However, the Dutchman is eager to see what his car can do on the track. After a rough start to 2017, Verstappen ended the season with two victories in Malaysia and Mexico, and is hoping his team can hit the ground running in Australia next month.
"In general, I hope the car will look great and hopefully it is fast. Hopefully it is a good step forward and we have got straight away a good car for the beginning of the year, so we are not really chasing, like we did last year. That is the most important for us."
After a couple of months away from the action, the Dutchman is ready to get back into it. Pre-season testing will commence in under two weeks in Barcelona where Red Bull will be able to make an assessment on its 2018 challenger.
"The mood is good, I guess," Verstappen said. "Everybody is happy, everybody is motivated for the new season after a strong end to last season, and I think we can't wait to get going again. Of course, holidays are nice and it is good to charge the batteries, but at one point you want to get going again."
Fergal Walsh
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Replies (16)
Login to replycalle.itw
Posts: 8,527
So ugly, so horrible, so monstrous that it was barely noticeable on the Haas... Oh, the pain!
KyalamiKid
Posts: 146
Partly because of clever imagery - black halo, black background. You ll notice it when it s on the track. I m not a fan either, but we'll get used it. (and will have to anyway)
Rindtchamp
Posts: 304
Barely noticeable because of the lighting, wait until you see the car naturallly lit or at the track, it'll stand out like a sore thumb.
calle.itw
Posts: 8,527
I dont mind tricks and such to hide or reduce the visuals of the halo. But even on track, I doubt we will really see it that much. And its not like it hides the curves of the car, and IMO those are the more important bits of an F1 car. Its certainly not as ugly as the sharkfin, IMO. And yeah, we'll likely get used to it, and I wont mind it at all if it turns out it does what its supposed to do.
reg
Posts: 162
Some of the drivers aren't exactly pretty either!
Kean
Posts: 692
HAHA! So in other words, you welcome the halo because the helmet is not enough to cover them up ;-)
ENDR
Posts: 43
I was about to say Max isn't exactly a second Ryan Gosling, but no one objected him coming to F1. MAYBE what you can do is more important?
calle.itw
Posts: 8,527
Well yes, but thats not the point. Unless you are also referring to the halo as being function over form (because then your statement would work)?
Kean
Posts: 692
Looking forward, not looking forward. The thing is already mounted on the car, it's happening. Everybody just needs to get over it, and it's just the first step, the halo will develop just like everything else in F1. If it saves lives, it's fine by me. And to a driver who's about to get to drive one of the most advanced machines in the world to complain... I mean, dude... SMH
ajpennypacker
Posts: 2,475
I blame the drivers for the implementation of the halo. This was all an over-reaction to the tragic death of Jules Bianchi, which no device would have prevented. That was a combination of recklessness by both Bianchi for not slowing down enough, and bad regulation/protocols for bringing a monstrous tractor on track.
calle.itw
Posts: 8,527
Its sadly not uncommon. Suzuka addressed this issue now, but its a far too late reaction IMO, and certainly one of the less good things about that venue. Trackside vehicles has been dangerously close to causing similar incidents before around there. They just shouldnt be present on track during a race, period.
Rindtchamp
Posts: 304
Agreed, knee jerk reactions are never a good thing.
Pauli
Posts: 140
Suzuka has had and still has pretty dangerous looking safety areas. Most of races except street races look to have much safer run off areas. I like Suzuka because it is one of hardest tracks technically.
ajpennypacker
Posts: 2,475
I think the VSC took care of the problem and the organizers are much more proactive about double-yellow flags, and the double of double yellow flags was clarified thanks to Rosberg's abuse of it in 2016. So I think we can be confident that an accident like Jules won't happen again.
boudy
Posts: 1,168
The issue is that no-one has done a race distance with the halo yet so we don't really know how its going to affect drivers. This could backfire dramatically. However if it saves lives it's hard to argue against.
Barron
Posts: 625
The halo was neither an over nor a knee-jerk reaction. The FIA felt compelled to act following several high profile deaths in motorsport, not just F1. The threat of Liability was sufficient to promote the idea of cockpit protection and the FIA spent thousands of hours researching various methods. If you want to blame anything for this, you can direct your wrath at today’s ridiculous litigious atmosphere at every turn. It’s not just about safety but money too. A successful ‘wrongful death’ suit could actually finish off motorsport (as we know it) period so there are high stakes at play here.