10 Of The Biggest Pit Fails in Formula 1 History

This one proved to be costly for Felipe Massa’s 2008 title fight. At the Singapore Grand Prix Ferrari was using a traffic light system in the pits, but there were a few issues with it, as shown when Massa was told to go while the fuel hose was still attached.

A few mechanics went flying but were okay, but it cost the Brazilian driver a potential win and points in the championship battle, which he eventually lost by one point.

Undoubtedly the most spectacular, amazingly no one was seriously injured when fuel sprayed out of the nozzle as the hose was disconnected and ignited during the 1994 German Grand Prix, engulfing Jos Verstappen’s Benetton in flames. The driver suffered only minor burns to his nose, as he opened his visor slightly during the stop.

You don’t often see drivers colliding in the pits, but Robert Kubica and Adrian Sutil managed to hit each other at the 2010 Hungarian Grand Prix. It was chaotic, with Kubica being released into the path of the Force India driver as he pulled into his box, which was directly after the Renault pits. Sutil retired on the spot but Kubica continued for a few more laps before exiting the race.

Heikki Kovalainen’s car was released with the fuel hose still attached during the 2009 Brazilian Grand Prix, spraying fuel across the pit lane. As Kimi Raikkonen drove over it, it caught fire, but fortunately no one was hurt and both drivers continued.

During pre-season testing in 1999, Michael Schumacher braked a little too late for his pit box and ran into a mechanic, who – despite hitting his head on the nose of the car – was uninjured.

We have seen a few drivers stop in the wrong box in recent seasons, but Jenson Button’s error at the 2012 Chinese Grand Prix is probably the funniest. He accidentally pulled into the Red Bull pits, before realising his mistake and awkwardly pulling forward into the McLaren box.

Spins in F1 are no rare thing, but when they are in the pit lane, that is another matter. Jerome d’Ambrosio was driving for Marussia in Hungary in 2012 when he lost control in the damp conditions while approaching his box. Fortunately he didn’t hit anything.

The 2002 Spanish Grand Prix saw Juan Pablo Montoya run over his front lollipop man’s foot after he was told to go too early. Montoya’s Williams had to be lifted off the mechanic but after fortunately nothing was broken.

It’s your debut F1 race and you want to make an impression, but then it all goes badly wrong in the pit stop. That’s what happened to Kazuki Nakajima at the 2007 Brazilian Grand Prix. He overshot the Williams box at his first ever pit stop, hitting two of his mechanics. They were taken to hospital for checks but were not seriously hurt.

Technically, this didn’t take place in the pits, but it was still rather awkward. David Coulthard was tackling the tricky Adelaide pit lane entry during the 1995 Australian Grand Prix when he locked up and went straight into the wall. He was leading at the time too. Ouch!

You can check out more Formula 1 fails here.