IMAGO / PanoramiC
Zhou Guanyu spoke to the media for the first time since his heart-stopping crash at the British Grand Prix last weekend, revealing that he did not know where he was when his car came to a stop.
“I had a massive hit and flipped over, going at a very constant speed but quite fast into the gravel and I realize that I’m not getting stopped,” the rookie said Thursday. “So I tried to release myself from the steering wheel and into a very locked position, make sure I'm solid inside myself waiting for the final impact. That's what causes injury and is the big issue.
“Once I stopped, I didn’t know where I was because I was upside down.”
Pierre Gasly darted in-between Zhou and George Russell, but as the gap closed, the AlphaTauri driver backed out. Gasly tagged Russell’s left-rear wheel in the process, sending the Mercedes spinning into Zhou.
The Alfa Romeo car flipped upside down and went skidding across the track and the gravel before vaulting over the barriers. The catch fence in front of the grand stand is what stopped Zhou, the rookie’s car falling into the space between the fence and tire barrier.
Zhou said Thursday that while in the car, he felt something leaking, unsure of whether it “was my body or if it was the car.”
“So I just tried to switch the engine off. I knew if the fire started it would be difficult to get out.”
He added that he thought he “was next to the barriers. I don’t know how I survived. But looking back, obviously the halo saved me there.” But despite the horrifying moment that had Russell sprinting across the gravel to check on him during the red flag, Zhou is ready to race this weekend.
“Already on Sunday I watched the race back. I didn’t feel sick watching it or have that feeling,” he said, per ESPN. “I feel like I was able to digest a bit myself, so I was happy mentally just having one day off and then went back into checking my physical condition. For me it wasn’t a concern.
“Obviously there are times you do something and you need a bit of mental help, but this time I didn’t feel it was needed.”
By Sunday night, he was already texting his engineers and inquiring about the state of his driver’s seat. He tweeted on Thursday that he finished his last medical check and is “all good to go.”
In a separate interview with Sky Sports F1 on Thursday, Zhou discussed how he was able to exit the car, such as how he had to unstrap the helmet himself.
“I tried to move myself a little bit to make sure I twist my body to be on top of the car,” he said. “I was waiting for them to flip my car over, because I didn’t know I was stuck between the fence and the barriers.”
He did not know about Russell running to check on him until after the incident.
“One man made conversation with me, making sure I was OK,” Zhou said to Sky. “Looking at the pictures, seeing George jumping out of his car to make sure I was O.K., calling the marshals, it was very respectful and sportsmanlike. Very nice to see people like him trying to make sure everyone is safe.”
