Fernando Alonso has shown a great degree of maturity by following doctors orders to sit out the opening race of the 2015 Formula 1 season. You wouldn’t expect anything else from a driver of his calibre.
Every driver is itching to jump back in the car for the first competitive event after a long winter of training and what they would describe as ‘boring’ pre-season testing.
That makes Alonso’s decision a very difficult one. But at the same time it’s the only sensible decision and one fans must respect.
The various conspiracy theories doing the rounds – some from people who should know better – do nothing to help the situation.
McLaren and Honda have nothing to gain by spreading falsities. The truth always comes out eventually and they know that. Lying will only get them in deeper trouble.
The fact is, Alonso was involved in a crash. He hit a wall at medium to high speed, depending on who you believe. That’s irrelevant. An impact is an impact and no matter how harsh, it can still cause injury.
We know Alonso suffered concussion and there’s talk of retrograde amnesia, which means he suffered a minor loss of memory. That is more often than not the result of an impact to the head.
If the impact was caused by an electric shock, you can choose to believe that. We’ll continue to believe the official explanation which is entirely plausible going by the evidence we’ve seen.
Some have however suggested that his decision to sit out the first race as evidence that he’s suffered a more serious injury. That could indeed be the case, but it could just as easily not be the case.
McLaren have cited SIS (second-impact syndrome) as the reason for his extended leave. This is an entirely logical explanation and it is not uncommon in sportsmen and women who have suffered minor concussion to take four to six weeks off in order to recover.
Why? Because a second impact could prove to be fatal, no matter how gentle it is. Formula 1 is known for crashes. They happen at least once during a race weekend and the cause can vary from driver error to mechanical problems. They simply cannot be forseen and the impact cannot be estimated.
A second impact – if it leads to concussion – before symptoms of an earlier concussion have passed, almost always leads to a degree of brain damage, disability or in most cases, death.
McLaren, Honda and Alonso simply cannot take the risk, no matter who it might upset. They may not even have a choice. Most insurance companies will not cover an athlete following concussion, until a mandatory period of rest and recovery has taken place. Only then will they agree to resume cover for competitive injury.
