GPDA vows to ‘never relent’ in safety efforts

The Grand Prix Drivers Association vows ‘never to relent in improving safety’, as it pays homage to Jules Bianchi who died overnight from the severe head injuries he suffered at the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix.

The 25-year-old had been in a coma since hitting a tractor crane at Suzuka last October. Bianchi was quickly diagnosed with a “diffuse axonal injury” and stayed at Mie Prefectural General Medical Center until he could be repatriated to Nice in November.

The Frenchman has become the first F1 driver to succumb to wounds sustained during a race weekend since the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix claimed the lives of Ayrton Senna and Roland Ratzenberger.

The GPDA statement reads:

“Formula 1 has lost a great talent, a great man and a great friend today. Twenty-one years after the deaths of Ayrton Senna and Roland Ratzenberger, we have now lost Jules, who has died as a direct consequence of an on track accident.

“It is at times like this that we are brutally reminded of how dangerous racing still remains. Despite considerable improvements, we, the Grand Prix drivers, owe it to the racing community, to the lost ones and to Jules, his family and friends, to never relent in improving safety.

“Our sincerest condolences go out to Jules’ family and friends.”

Jules Bianchi: 1989 - 2015

F1 drivers pay tribute to Bianchi after death at 25

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