Halo saved my life - Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton believes the Halo saved his life after he was hit in the head by the tire of Max Verstappen’s Red Bull after their collision in the Italian Grand Prix.

Verstappen had tried to overtake Hamilton around the outside of Turn 1 and attempted to make the second part of the chicane but was launched over the apex curb and on top of the Mercedes. The right rear of Verstappen’s car hit Hamilton’s helmet but the Halo kept the majority of the weight of the car off him and he says he feels lucky to escape unscathed.

“I am in a little bit of pain,” Hamilton said. “It’s getting worse as the adrenaline wears off but I will work with Angela (Cullen, his trainer) to fix it. Honestly, I feel very very fortunate today. Thank God for the Halo. That ultimately saved me. And saved my neck.

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“I think in the actual moment it was a big hit but all I could think was could I get going again.

“I don’t think I have every been hit on the head by a car before and it is quite a shock for me. If you see the image, my head is quite far forward. I have been racing for a long long time and I am so, so grateful I am still here and feel incredibly blessed that someone was watching over me today.

"It all happened incredibly quick and being in the car at the time, the only thing I could think of was getting going and how many positions I would lose. I was still just in race mode, so it was just like, 'How can I get going again?’ So, I was sitting there in a little bit of pain, but was thinking, ‘Come on let's go.’ But unfortunately the car wouldn’t move.

“I did see Max get out and just walk by and I felt that was a little bit surprising, because ultimately when we do have incidents, the first thing we want to make sure is that the guy that we collide with or crash into is OK. But the good thing is that I was able to get out. It was a long walk back and we live to fight another day.”

Verstappen himself said he was sure Hamilton was OK because his title rival was trying to get back on track.

“Lewis was fine, he was still trying to reverse,” Verstappen said. “I was already out of the car; when you’re not fine, you’re not doing that.”