Whiting only wants F1 cars to look dangerous

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FIA race director Charlie Whiting only wants F1 cars to look dangerous as he backs plans to introduce cockpit protection next season.

Lewis Hamilton was outspoken about the Red Bull Aeroscreen concept which was tested in Russia, criticising the aesthetics and saying he accepts the risks of driving an F1 car every time he gets behind the wheel. Martin Brundle agrees with Hamilton's comments, but Whiting says the aim is to ensure a driver can climb out of a car unscathed after spectacular incidents, much in the same way Fernando Alonso did in Australia this season.

"I take [Hamilton's] point, there will always be risks if you start driving a car that quickly," Whiting is quoted as saying by Autosport. "When you look at the cars on track, it's not until they go off the track that you realise how fast they are going and just what damage can be done.

"Cars will still look dangerous. Our job is to try and make them look dangerous without being dangerous.

"There is nothing better than to see a driver get out of an incredibly damaged car like we saw with Fernando. When you saw [Robert] Kubica's accident in Canada a few years ago, somehow you just thought he was going to get out of it, and we want to improve the chances of that happening while the spectacle is still there."

While Hamilton remains against the idea, Nico Rosberg said after the Russian Grand Prix that "hopefully the haters will get over it" when cockpit protection is introduced.

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.