CLOSING THE KNOWLEDGE GAP
WHEN FERNANDO ALONSO CRASHED his McLaren MP4-30 into the Circuit de Catalunya’s Turn 3 wall during pre-season testing in 2015, it sent certain media circles into a frenzy of speculation over the possible cause.
McLaren stringently denied that the impact – which registered 30g at its peak – was the result of a car failure as its new star signing Alonso, lured from Ferrari by the prospect of McLaren-Honda domination, was transported to hospital with concussion-like symptoms after briefly losing consciousness.
As the rumour mill continued unabated, then-boss of McLaren Ron Dennis gave a press briefing elaborating further on the cause of the crash, but unintentionally added fuel to the fire. Contradicting the team’s previous communications, Dennis affirmed that Alonso was“not even concussed”, but was later forced to admit his mistake when Alonso was advised to miss the Melbourne season opener.
Dennis was lambasted at the time for being out of touch, but according to leading motorsport safety expert and former CART medical director Dr Stephen Olvey, a lack of understanding concerning the
