1. Roland Ratzenberger San Marino 1994
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXHxGBQIJh0 I raise this, as Ratzenberger is the forgotten casualty of Formula 1s Black Weekend. The worst weekend in memory for the sport contained three casualties, though most only remember the loss of the great Ayrton Senna. Racing for MTV-sponsored Simtek, Ratzenberger was in his debut season in Formula 1 and attempting to qualify on Saturday when he missed a corner and then smashed head on into a concrete safety barrier at 196mph, fracturing his skull. He was flown to hospital but died from his injuries, a basilar skull fracture, a common injury in Motorsport that has killed numerous drivers. On the previous lap he missed a corner and hit a kerb, which damaged his front wing, which then failed on the following lap, causing him to go off into the wall as he lost downforce. He was the first driver to die since Elio de Angelis in testing at Paul Ricard in 1987, and the first at a race weekend since Riccardo Paletti at Canada in 1982. This, combined with the incident that killed Senna and following incidents like aforementioned accident for Robert Kubica, demonstrate why solid concrete walls should not be lining high-speed corners of Formula 1 tracks. This is something that still exists, in places such as Canada, and I find unacceptable as it guarantees maximum force will be applied to car and driver in an accident. Implications Black Weekend cast a shadow over Formula 1 and raised many questions about safety. Ratzenbergers tragic death followed an accident on Friday that nearly killed rookie Rubens Barrichello, when he flew into the air and over the top of a barrier, knocking him unconscious, where he nearly choked as his airway was blocked. He was unable to compete with a broken nose and arm, and this was already enough to highlight safety issues with the track. Following Rolands death, the race weekend should have been cancelled despite drivers willingness to race, which would have prevented the death of Ayrton Senna in the race less than 24 hours later. The implications of this horrific weekend are long reaching, as it pushed the focus on safety in Formula 1 to new levels. The old Imola circuit was never used again, being drastically changed for future appearances on the calendar, and car strength and driver protection improved massively. The Grand Prix Drivers Association was reformed, regulations to slow cars, technology in helmet design and features such as the HANS device to protect the head and neck of drivers have been introduced. Formula 1 is the safest it has ever been, and rightly focus still remains on it despite the pursuit of speed and sport. Fundamentally, it took the tragic loss of the too-often forgotten Roland Ratzenberger and great Ayrton Senna to bring about such a drive for the sport, serving as a wake up call that has transformed the sport for car, driver and circuit. Black Weekend had an impact akin to that of the 1973 Dutch Grand Prix, another incident when Formula 1 and its safety was utterly shamed by the tragic death of Roger Williamson, asphyxiating in his overturned car as marshals failed to act while a heroic David Purley battled valiantly to save him alone from his burning wreck. That heart-wrenching footage can be found on Youtube.