F1 drivers call on FIA for major rule change after horror Doohan crash

F1 drivers have called on the FIA to introduce a system that can automatically close the DRS after Jack Doohan's 185mph accident in Japan. 

Doohan destroyed his Alpine in the opening minutes of Free Practice 2 at Suzuka after attempting to drive through Turn 1 flat-out with the DRS open - a trick he had tried in the simulator. 

Normally, the DRS flap is closed automatically when a driver presses the brake pedal but as Turn 1 at Suzuka can be taken without pressing the brake, this system did not come into play. 

When a driver lifts off the throttle, if this is done by a certain amount, the flap can close automatically, or a driver - such as Lewis Hamilton does - can elect to close the flap manually.

It is important in this scenario that the flap is closed in time to allow the air-flow to re-attach itself to the rear-wing to prevent a high-speed spin. 

Whilst Doohan's accident was driver error, there have been pure DRS failures leading to big crashes in the past, including Marcus Ericsson's barrel-rolling incident in practice for the 2018 Italian GP when the flap stuck open after he hit the brakes for Turn 1. 

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GPDA call for major F1 rule change

Doohan escaped serious injury from the accident and was passed fit to continue his participation in the weekend after concussion checks from the FIA's medical staff. 

The incident was a topic of discussion in the usual drivers' briefing on Friday evening, with newly-appointed GPDA director Carlos Sainz speaking at length about the need for an automatic cut-off system to be in place for corners such as Suzuka's Turn 1 where a DRS zone leads into a non-braking zone. 

"Safety is still the main priority with these cars, especially with the speed we're doing," Williams driver Sainz told media including RacingNews365. 

"In any other era of Formula 1, Jack is not walking today, so we need to keep making progress, and if we are going to make the cars as fast as they are nowadays, we need to keep making progress with safety. 

"I felt I was quite vocal yesterday, saying: 'I am surprised this hasn't happened more often', because I've had moments where I've mispressed the DRS button and it has stayed open - it gives you a massive snap and a massive fright going into a corner like Turn 1 here, Shanghai Turn 1 or Australia Turn 9.

"We have too many of these corners where it is down to the driver to close it, down to the DRS to do a good job on the re-attaching, and I'm afriad there hasn't been enough of these crashes in order to prove that maybe we need to work on this area of safety. 

"But I hope the crash shows that we need to do something automatically, 50m, 100m before the braking zone so you don't get a chance for the driver to make a mistake or the DRS to fail if it doesn't close.

"It then gives you a bit of warning that if it hasn't closed, you still need to close it.

"Us going into next year with the [active aerodynamics], it is important for us that they need to come up with something automatic."