FIA confirm ‘thorough review’ following scary recovery truck incident in 2022 Japanese GP. FIA launches investigation into F1 Japanese GP tractor incident.

The Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile FIA has officially confirmed that it will be making a “thorough review” of the way in which the Ferrari F1-75 car of Carlos Sainz was removed from the Suzuka track in the 2022 Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix, following justified complaints from the teams and the media.

The Spaniard tried to get out of the water spray in front of him but aquaplaned and hit the barrier on the exit of Turn 10 in the opening lap of the Japanese Grand Prix at the Suzuka circuit, which led to the Safety Car being deployed.

The rest of the cars went past the scene of the incident, before the race was red flagged given the circumstances, as race control took into consideration a series of factors such as the multiple first-lap crashes and heavy rain in Japan which made track conditions extremely difficult.

Many drivers including Scuderia Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, McLaren’s Lando Norris and Red Bull’s Sergio Perez took to the team radio to express their concerns after noticing a recovery vehicle on the edge of the track in conditions with very difficult visibility for the drivers, while Pierre Gasly was the most vocal of all at the time, with good reason.

The French driver was at the back of the grid due to a pit stop needed to remove a chunk of loose advertising hoarding that came on track after Carlos Sainz’s incident and was trying to recover the gap to the field in front of him, but as he went around the corner unsighted he encountered the recovery vehicle on track. Inevitably there was an angry message over the team radio, as the Frenchman pointed out that had he been two metres to the left of the track, he would have died from the crash.

The moment was particularly emotional also due to the tragic memories from the 2014 race at the Suzuka circuit, when Ferrari junior Jules Bianchi hit a recovery vehicle under Safety Car conditions on the wet surface of the Japanese racing track. Drivers of course immediately recalled that incident and compared it to what was seen today, as marshals recovered Carlos Sainz’s F1-75 car while the other drivers were still running on track.

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Given the unfortunate images, the FIA has decided to further investigate the incidents and decide on possible changes to the procedures for such moments.

The statement from the FIA informs: “While it is normal practice to recover cars under Safety Car and Red Flag conditions, due to the particular circumstances and also taking into account feedback from of a number of drivers, the FIA has launched a thorough review of the events involving the deployment of recovery vehicles during the Japanese Grand Prix. This is part of the common practice of debrief & analysis of all race incidents to ensure continual improvements of processes and procedures.”