LANCE STROLL destroyed his Aston Martin after losing a wheel in a 150mph crash that was “beyond scary to watch” during qualifying for the Singapore Grand Prix.
Viewers were “amazed” the F1 ace could walk away without serious injury after slamming into a barrier on his final lap of Q1.
AFPLance Stroll’s spectacular crash horrified fans at the Marina Bay Street Circuit in Singapore as well as TV viewers[/caption]
AFPThe Canadian leapt clear following his barrier smash in Q1[/caption]
EPAViewers were amazed and relieved Stroll was able to walk free[/caption]
AFPTrack workers remove the debris of Stroll’s car, including a front wheel[/caption]
The Canadian saw his front left wheel ripped off and much of the chassis on the same side crushed in a smash that delayed a thrilling qualifying session by 34 minutes.
Stroll had lost control as he veered to the left, with his car spinning in the opposite direction and into the barrier.
The debris almost took out Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.
Replays revealed Stroll was sent rocking around his cockpit by the high-speed impact.
But the 24-year-old appeared unscathed as he got out – after being protected by recent extra safety features for his car.
He said afterwards: “It was really bad. We had a bad outlap with traffic and there was no temperature in the tyres. There was no grip.
“I thought we were going out and I tried to push to make up some time, but it didn’t work out.”
It came as Max Verstappen‘s chances of extending his and Red Bull’s winning run suffered a huge blow, with Carlos Sainz taking pole.
But relieved viewers were more focused on Stroll’s escape.
One fan posted, “Holy hell that was wild” and another wrote: “Crazy how those curbs can send a car spinning.”
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A third summed up the reaction of many observers: “Those cockpits are incredible how strong they are honestly, and to think people were against halos as well.”
Meanwhile, Verstappen is chasing an 11th straight victory – with his Red Bull team winning EVERY race so far this season.
But a shocker for the Dutchman and another poor performance from teammate Sergio Perez mean they start down in 11th and 13th place respectively.
Verstappen was livid and stomped from his car to the team’s garage in a huff after complaining about the car’s handling.
It was the first time no Red Bull car had reached the top 10 since the Russian Grand Prix in 2018.
He now has his work cut out if he is to maintain his winning record, especially with Sainz looking spectacularly quick.
The Spanish driver, who was third last out in Italy, was 0.072 seconds quicker than George Russell, who qualified in second place.
Charles Leclerc will line up in third place while Norris was fourth and Lewis Hamilton fifth.
Max Verstappen was gutted to miss out on poleGetty