27/07/2025 09:45
The FIA has released a film showcasing the extensive investigation
into how to prevent Formula E drivers breaking wrists and hands,
something which had become a common occurrence. Robin Frijns and
Sam Bird both sustained serious hand injuries in recent seasons,
resulting in an investigation by motorsport's governing body. It
has since introduced a steering damper which has, thus far,
prevented further cases of drivers breaking bones in their hands or
wrists following a front-end shunt. Prior to its introduction, it
was discovered that a front-end crash resulted in the steering
wheel to rotate up to 10 times faster. Changes were made following
this discovery, including to the shape of the steering wheel and
increased foam inside the cockpit. However, the new steering damper
is the biggest step yet. The steering damper absorbs the energy of
the impact and also reduces the peak rotational speed in such
situations by as much as 40 per cent. For the damper to be
introduced and validated, a lengthy period of engineering and
simulations took place, with FIA safety director Nuno Costa, FIA
chief technical and safety officer Xavier Mestelan Pinon and FE
medical delegate Bruno Franceschini playing key roles. Discussing
the new steering damper, Frijns, who missed four rounds of Season 9
after fracturing his hand wrist, said: "Basically, I broke my hand
inside the cockpit because I wasn't expecting the steering wheel to
suddenly come out of my hands. "Unfortunately, I had quite some
damage because I broke the bone in three places. "My injury was
quite bad, but the FIA is pushing hard to make it safer for us and
they've made big steps from that moment onwards. "I think the
steering damper is a very good tool. If you have a crash, the
damper takes all the force away from the wheel so it doesn't really
move out of your hands anymore." f2mWXjw0YwA
