Formula 1: The worst pit lane dramas

• Formula 1 is typically associated with what happens on the track, there can also be drama in the pit lane
• While drivers will work hard on the track to achieve their individual goals, a crucial aspect of Formula 1 racing—pit stops—can so easily undo all of that hard work.
• We review the most dramatic incidents in the pit lane in Formula 1.

While the action in Formula 1 is typically associated with what happens on the track, there can also be drama in the pit lane—and, sadly, danger.

While drivers will work hard on the track to achieve their individual goals, a crucial aspect of Formula 1 racing—pit stops—can so easily undo all of that hard work.

We review the most dramatic incidents in the pit lane in Formula 1.

Esteban Ocon, Baku 2023

Esteban Ocon pit lane drama. |PHOTO: AutoWeek|

Of all the challenges Alpine’s Esteban Ocon could have anticipated, a gathered group of photographers in the fast lane was probably not on that card when he entered the pits for his required pit stop on the final lap of the 2023 Azerbaijan GP.

Word that Ocon had not yet stopped in the race apparently did not spread as media people prepared for the podium celebrations and only solid efforts on the brake pedal from Ocon and quick-thinking photographers prevented disaster. The race was on its penultimate lap.

Ocon obviously doesn’t want to experience that “scary” moment again, and the FIA, who oversees Formula 1, was of course in agreement. As a result, changes to the pit-lane protocol are on the agenda.

Adrian Sutil and Robert Kubica, Hungary 2010

When a driver’s lack of accuracy causes problems for their mechanics, it is already risky, but the possibility for a completely new degree of severity is increased when cars collide close to the workers.

When Adrian Sutil of Force India was coming in and Kubica was coming out of his pit box at the Hungaroring in 2010, a collision occurred.

Sutil’s race was over at that point, and Renault received a $50,000 fine for an unsafe release. The only thing that was hurt, thankfully, was Renault’s financial account.

Jerome D’Ambrosio, Hungary 2011

Even if the incident between Sutil and Kubica was concerning, the Marussia team wasn’t in for much of a scare until just one year later at the same track.

The Belgian racer would lose control of the vehicle and spin out as he attempted to drive across the slick surface to the Marussia pit box, directly into the waiting Marussia employees’ view.

When the car simply lost motion before getting to the mechanics, it was a tremendous relief.

Nigel Mansell, Portugal 1991

Wheels fall off Williams’s car. |PHOTO: Motorsport Magazine|

Now, another piece of related equipment is frequently a threat in the pit lane if the car itself is not.

Consider the tyres, as Nigel Mansell discovered at the 1991 Portuguese Grand Prix when his right-rear tyre made a hasty exit from the pit box.

The Williams team started down the pit lane to re-fit the tire at the location where Mansell was stuck in the middle of the pit lane, which later led to his disqualification from the race. Other technicians dove and ducked to avoid the tyre’s path as the Williams crew moves down the pit lane.

Lewis Hamilton, China 2007

Mansell’s title aspirations were virtually destroyed by the occurrence that year, while Lewis Hamilton suffered the same fate at the 2007 Chinese Grand Prix after going wide at the pit-lane entry.

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The McLaren was beached when Hamilton, driving on severely worn dry tires, failed to handle the left turn and skidded into the gravel trap. That resulted in his first Formula One retirement, which eventually cost him the World Championship in his first season.

Felipe Massa, Singapore 2008

Felipe Massa incident. |PHOTO: News24|

Those tires can be a genuine pain, and gasoline hoses were just as problematic in the bygone age of Formula 1.

Consider Felipe Massa’s now-famous pit stop at the inaugural Singapore Grand Prix. What should have been a regular pit stop for the race leader turned out to be everything but.

In addition to releasing him too soon while the fuel hose was still attached, which required the technicians to pursue after him and cut it off as he slid to the back of the field, Ferrari also threw Massa out into Adrian Sutil’s path, earning him a drive-through penalty.