“Conor Daly hits a pot of luck at Monaco”

Conor Daly encountered a rather large pot of luck earlier today following a huge accident with Dmitry Suranovich during the GP3 “Sprint Race” in Monaco.

The American was preparing to overtake Marussia Manor racer Suranovich on lap 11 of the race, when the Russian – minus a rear wing – weaved repeatedly into the path of the Lotus GP driver throughout the tour.

On the approach to the chicane, Daly ducked to the inside line, with Suranovich again responding reactively to the move.
The pair connected, sending Daly skyward and into a violent collision with the top of the catch fencing, which thankfully rebounded the car away from the heavily occupied marshal post.

Daly’s Lotus, shorn of one of his front wheels, wings and sidepod’s, fell back toward the circuit and eventually the run off area, as torn debris rained down on the circuit, peppering a number of other drivers with loose carbon fibre.
Thankfully, no injuries were reported, especially amongst the marshal’s, some of whom came perilously close to being involved in a tragic incident.

Suranovich has already been excluded from the race results – not that it matters – however he may face further punishment from the series organisers.

The incident saw a great deal of criticism pointed in Suranovich’s direction, after he had reportedly ignored the black and orange flag*, continuing to race on, despite his lack of a rear section.
It once again raises questions regarding the quality of some of the competitors in the field. At 16-years-old, Suranovich is one of the youngest driver’s competing at this level, yet incredibly young drivers is becoming a more common feature.

While mandating an age limit is certainly not being suggested, it must be realised that 16-year-old drivers have precious little racing experience, especially considering many have only recently picked up their first racing licenses at that point.
Considering GP3 is a mere two-steps away from Formula 1, perhaps it is time real racing experience is taken into consideration when a driver signs up for this series**.

It follows on from scary incidents earlier in the day. On the opening lap of the GP3 race Will Buller, Alice Powell and Alex Brundle collided at St Devote, leaving Buller upside down in the cul-de-sac.
The GP2 featured two first lap crashes, including one multi-car pile-up in the run up to Casino Square, which saw ten cars eliminated.

* {note 1}
Although the wording varies from series-to-series, the black and orange flag generally means “your car is damaged, pit immediately.”

** {note 2}
This may not be a popular suggestion.