Renault Suspended Over Safety Violation

Contributing to concerns over the safety of motorsport, Renault has been suspended from the next race in Valencia after a wheel from Fernando Alonso’s car came loose at this weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix.

Before the wheel came loose, the former world champion was leading the race. The pit crew allegedly failed to attach Alonso’s right front wheel correctly and it bounced across the track. It has been ruled that the crew knew the wheel was not secure and then failed to tell the driver.

Though Renault has told governing body FIA that it will appeal the decision, the ban, as of now, would apply to the whole team, and forbid Alonso to race in front of a home crowd at the European Grand Prix next month.

Loose parts rolling across the track are not uncommon, and this incident raised concern once again about the overall safety of the sport. Ferrari driver Felipe Massa suffered a serious head injury when he was hit by a part that flew off a Brawn GP car of Rubens during qualifying at the Hungaroring.

This comes on the heels of the tragic death of an 18-year-old F2 driver, who was recently hit by a loose wheel during a race.