Formula 1 fan claims he was left bleeding without ANY help from officials after being hit by debris
A Formula 1 fan hit by flying debris during the Australian Grand Prix claims he was left bleeding with NO help from race officials after being hit by a piece of metal that came off Kevin Magnussen’s car: “No one came and I look”
- Formula 1 fan hit in the arm by debris during the Australian GP
- No race officials reportedly came to his rescue as he was bleeding.
- Australian GP boss said incident was a ‘strange’ event
A spectator at the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix suffered a cut arm when he was struck by a piece of debris from Kevin Magnussen’s car, highlighting the organizers’ safety protocols.
Will Sweet told 3AW that he was standing with his fiancee on a crowded hill just off turn two at Albert Park during Sunday’s race when the Danish Haas driver’s car hit the track side barrier and his tire and debris flew through the air.
“He slapped my arm and I was standing there bleeding,” he said.
‘My arm was covering where my neck would have been, but if it had hit my fiancée, it would have hit her right on the head.
I realized how big it was and how heavy it was. Some of it was crushed and very sharp, if she hit me at a different angle it could have been horrible,” he added.
Will Sweet was hit by flying debris from Kevin Magnussen’s car on Sunday
The viewer suffered a cut on his right arm, but claims that the incident could have been much worse.
Australian media published an image of Sweet holding a large piece of debris with blood dripping down his forearm and another showing him receiving treatment from a doctor on the track.
Sweet said the area he was standing in was packed, with small children around, and no race officials came to help him.
“No one even came and looked,” he said.
“My fiancee was pretty scared and on the verge of shock.”
Sweet added that debris from Magnussen’s car had flown “up, way over the fence” and into the crowd.
Australian Grand Prix Corporation (AGPC) boss Andrew Westacott said it seemed like a one-off incident but organizers would investigate.
‘Rubble fences are consistent around the world. We comply with our FIA regulations,” he told reporters on Monday.
At the 2001 Australian Grand Prix, a track marshal was killed when he was struck by the steering wheel of Jacques Villeneuve’s car after colliding with Williams’ Ralf Schumacher.
The AGPC is already under scrutiny after some fans invaded the track near the end of the race.
Late on Sunday, Formula One stewards ordered the AGPC to urgently produce a “remediation plan” in response to safety and security failures.
Magnussen crashed at turn two during Sunday’s Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne
The AGPC allows fans onto the track after the race is over for podium celebrations.
Westacott said the AGPC had already launched an investigation.
“This was clearly a violation of what is a very robust protocol, a protocol that has been developed and improved every year,” he added.
Organizers said a crowd of 131,124 attended Albert Park on Sunday and a record total of 444,631 spectators during race week.