Scuderia Ferrari has confirmed that the mechanic involved in the pit stop that ended Kimi Raikkonen’s Bahrain Grand Prix suffered two fractured bones in his leg in the incident.
The incident during Raikkonen’s second stop of the race saw the green light above his car illuminate, indicating the car was free to go, but the left-rear tyre had yet to be changed, meaning the mechanic was in the way when the car got underway.
The problem with the left-rear was that the soft compound tyre was still attached to the car, whereas the other three had already been switched to Supersofts, but because of the delay, the mechanic was caught by Raikkonen and thrown to the ground.
Paramedics immediately attended to the mechanic while Raikkonen was forced to retire from the race, the third time in two years the Finn has seen his day ruined by an issue with a pit stop, while he also suffered with a tyre fitting issue during practice in Bahrain, the issue costing Ferrari a fine on Friday. The incident also cost Raikkonen a near-certain podium.
The Checkered Flag wishes the mechanic a speedy recovery.
Apparently a shinbone and fibula fracture, our thoughts are with Francesco, stay strong #BahrainGP
— Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) April 8, 2018
Ferrari has also been handed a significant fine of 50,000 Euros for the unsafe release, with the FIA saying the team released the car in a dangerous manner that put personnel into peril.
“The Stewards determined that the car was released unsafely in breach of Art. 28.13 a). The team released the car in a manner endangering team personnel and causing injury,” read the FIA statement.
