Fernando Alonso Car Crash: Injured Driver Could Miss Final F1 Testing

Racing driver Fernando Alonso could miss the third and final Formula 1 testing session due to his accident at the Circuit de Catalunya on Sunday as the Spaniard still needs to spend more time in the hospital, according to a report from The Guardian. 

Alonso suffered a concussion after hitting the wall on the exit of a right-hand turn at the race track, BBC Sport wrote. He was found unconscious by an ambulance crew, was given first aid treatment, and then air-lifted to the hospital to undergo CT and MRI scans. Alonso's McLaren-Honda team issued a statement saying that the results of the driver's scans "were completely normal."

McLaren also gave out reasons as to why Alonso's car crashed. According to the team's statement, the incident occured due to a "loss of traction" which caused it to become unstable. Data confirms that the racer's car "struck the inside concrete wall," which caused the damage on the front upright and axle.

"Our findings indicate that the accident was caused by the unpredictably gusty winds at that part of the circuit at that time, and which had affected other drivers similarly (e.g., Carlos Sainz Jnr)," the team explained.

McLaren also ruled out mechanical failure, saying that there is "absolutely no loss of aerodynamic pressure was recorded, which fact indicates that the car did not suffer any aerodynamic loss, despite the fact that it was subjected to a significant level of g-force. Finally, we can also disclose that no electrical discharge or irregularity of any kind occurred in the car's ERS system, either before, during or after the incident."

Luis García Abad, Alonso's manager, denied reports that the driver had been feeling dizzy before the accident.

"I deny that Fernando was feeling unwell prior to the incident," he said, as quoted by The Guardian. "The car had grip, there was tremendous wind and he went into the wall, the rest is speculation. The car telemetry has stated that he was correcting from left to right. Fernando was hitting the brake and changing gears until the moment of impact."

In a post on Twitter on February 23, Abad shared a photo of Alonso sitting upright on the hospital bed while showing a thumbs up sign. The snapshot's translated caption was: "Lunch time! Thank you for your support!"

Alonso, winner of 32 grand prix races, came back to McLaren this season after a disappointing fifth and final campaign with Ferrari, The Guardian wrote. His accident shed a negative light on the team's hope to emerge victorious in the new season, which starts in Australia on March 15.