The Qatar Grand Prix proved a huge physical challenge for the F1 drivers, and a leading expert has explained how the heat and dehydration would have affected the field...
With the Qatar GP one of the most difficult races ever physically for the F1 drivers, a renowned expert has evaluated the impact on them…
Dr. Chris Tyler: “What was obviously unfolding in the Qatar race was that it was a whole other level of danger. Not only were the drivers expected to control the cars as they would normally, but they were also fighting the added stressor of the heat and the humidity. CT: “Let’s assume they were hydrated beforehand. That’s one thing we assume, obviously, what we often forget is that the race starts for the drivers on Thursday. So, hopefully, they were preparing well, Thursday was actually even hotter than Sunday.
“If they drank that, despite being hugely unpalatable, it would have a rehydrating benefit. So they could replace, for argument’s sake, they could replace 50% of what they lost if they drank all of it.“They’re already sitting on an engine, sitting close to a hot track in fire retardant uniforms, in encapsulated clothing wearing a helmet.
CT: “As soon as body temperature is elevated, they’re going to start sweating. Now, it’s going to depend entirely on how frequently or how rapidly they’re refuelling . Now, we know they don’t all drink, but say they drank a little bit. PF1: At what point does that dehydration start having a significant impact on the mental faculties of the driver, and a physical effect in terms of mind-to-muscle connection?
“But the more complex a task becomes, so dealing with strategy, dealing with race command, dealing with your engineers telling you one thing, track limits… all these factors will then start to separate those that are either more dehydrated or at least more susceptible to the heat stress and the dehydration, which then you’ll see that in poor decision making.
“So, if you go to elevation, some will be affected by the hypoxia to a much greater effect than others. But it’s certainly another environmental stressor that moves the body away from where it wants to be and can therefore have a knock-on effect in a highly demanding situation such as F1.” “The teams can try their best by pumping in liquid nitrogen and stuff, but it’s not doing a great deal. I’m purely speculating on Esteban, but it’s unlikely to have anything to do with being dehydrated, it is a combination of all those other stressors, and maybe a large redistribution of blood from the core to the skin, which is what we try to do to get rid of heat.
“But everybody has a limit. We’ve seen that in marathon running, the Olympics, and things like that. Even prime Olympians sometimes get beaten by the elements. There comes a point where it doesn’t matter how determined you are to continue, that is not the logical decision. If you’re driving at high speed in a car versus running in a marathon, the consequences of not stopping are potentially far graver.
“Hydration is just one piece of the jigsaw. But it’s more likely to be linked to increases in body temperature, increases in heart rate, and redistribution of blood, which therefore means that you could get a lowering in blood pressure. “But it’s very difficult to really go to complete physiological collapse or exhaustion. There could have been signs of that. A few of them talked about sort of losing consciousness a little bit. They’re the warning signs that you can’t do this for much longer, or those sorts of things and you’ve got to stop or slow down which, ultimately, did happen.
CT: “It’s certainly possible. It’s largely linked to changes in blood pressure. If you get a momentary change in blood pressure, you don’t get quite enough blood flowing to the brain from the heart, you get a momentary lapse. We’ve all probably seen videos of people on rollercoasters and things who pass out and regain consciousness. That’s just a G-force response, just as you would if you’re a racing driver.
CT: “Very . It was a perfect storm, a perfect cocktail. Because there have been hotter races, in other disciplines. But it’s a perfect storm. PF1: The FIA has come forward to say an analysis of the situation will be carried out to reduce the risks of this happening again, but the significance of what the drivers went through has been downplayed by some, including Sky F1’s Martin Brundle. Are these conditions something the drivers could train for to reduce the risks if they were to happen again?
“I can see where they’re coming from. Because the idea is you’re always trying to push the limits. If you’re Christian Horner, it’s probably easier if you’ve got the driver who has the best car and no traffic. He didn’t find it as stressful as the rest. “You can still have the race, they don’t have to be under huge physiological danger. If there was a sudden Heatwave, you could make an executive decision on the Sunday to reduce the number of laps or something. You could do something which maintains the sport, and maintains the challenge, but does it with a little bit of common sense before something more severe happens.
“It’s accumulation as well. So if you’re pushing every single lap, there is no downtime. If you have parts of the track or parts of the race where you can ease off a bit, you’re cumulatively reducing the loads that you have over the whole race.
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