ZHOU GUANYU credited the F1 halo with saving his life after a frightening first-lap crash Sunday that brought the British Grand Prix to an immediate halt as safety crews attended to the only Chinese driver in Formula One.

Zhou’s car slid upside down across the gravel and his Alfa Romeo seemed to be wedged between fencing and a tire barrier at the first corner. The race was red-flagged and George Russell, one of the drivers involved in the crash, sprinted from his car to the tire barrier to check on Zhou.

Zhou tweeted after the race that he was OK because of the halo.

“I’m ok, all clear. Halo saved me today. Thanks everyone for your kind messages!” he tweeted.

Alex Albon of Williams, who also was taken to the medical center and then to Coventry Hospital for a precautionary check, had been discharged and “given the all-clear,” according to his team.

Albon had spun into the pit wall after being struck by Sebastian Vettel from behind as drivers tried to avoid the incident involving Zhou.

Russell appeared to be hit from behind at the start and was knocked into Zhou, whose car went flying across a gravel trap and over a tire wall into the retaining fence.

The car was skidding on the “halo” which protects the driver’s head, then went airborne. It was stuck between the tire wall and the fence, delaying efforts to extricate Zhou.

Russell, who ran from his car to help Zhou, called it “one of the scariest crashes I’ve ever seen.”

(SD-Agencies)