15 Spectacular Crashes At The Canadian GP’s Infamous Wall Of Champions

Formula 1 is back at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve for the Canadian GP, testing the drivers and punishing even the smallest of errors.

Carlos Sainz Jr. became the latest driver to properly whack the ‘Wall of Champions’, the nickname for the infamously tricky final chicane. Here’s a look at some of the great drivers to have also done the same:

1. Alexander Wurz, 1997

Score:
Style – 4/5
Impact – 3/5
Champion – NO

The Benetton racer gave the wall quite a hit and the spectacular attempt to save the car gave him an extra style point too. Sadly he’s never scored a championship, missing out on the extra bonus point, but he did win Le Mans twice so that’s not too bad.

Score:
Style – 2/5
Impact – 2/5
Champion – YES (bonus point)

The Canadian driver didn’t have much luck on home soil in his championship year. The crash was clumsy and low-speed, meaning the impact wasn’t particularly big. But it was certainly embarrassing.

Score:
Style – 3/5
Impact: 3/5
Champion – NO

This crash during 1999 Canadian GP qualifying was made better by the lovely half spin, which catapulted the younger Schumacher brother into the wall. A good effort but he misses out on a bonus point due to the lack of a world title.

4. Damon Hill, 1999

Score:
Style – 1/5
Impact – 1/5
Champion – YES (bonus point)

Hill’s 1999 race crash was all a bit awkward and clumsy. The hit was pretty light after the rear end stepped out but he does get a bonus point for actually being a champion and crashing at the ‘Wall of Champions’.

Score:
Style – 3/5
Impact – 3/5
Champion – YES (bonus point)

The seven-time world champion gets a bonus point and a pretty healthy score for his awesome slide and speed carried through the corner, before he of course hits the wall. Schumacher wasn’t known for making mistakes like this, which made the crash all the more surprising.

6. Ricardo Zonta, 1999

Score:
Style – 1/5
Impact – 1/5
Champion – YES (FIA GT champion – bonus point)

The style and impact of this crash was fairly weak but we’ve given Zonta a bonus point as he has scored a world championship, winning the 1998 FIA GT title in the season before this crash in Montreal.

7. Jacques Villeneuve, 1999

Score:
Style – 4/5
Impact – 4/5
Champion – YES (bonus point)

This is more like it, Jacques. His 1999 crash was much more dramatic and had much more style to it. Unusually he lost it earlier than most other drivers and this meant his car was at a rather awkward angle hitting the wall.

Score:
Style – 3/5
Impact – 3/5
Champion – NO

The Ferrari driver carried so much speed through the exit of the corner but just lost it at the end, hitting the wall pretty hard after getting too much kerb. Despite winning titles in national series, he hasn’t claimed a world championship and so misses out on a bonus point.

Score:
Style – 4/5
Impact – 3/5
Champion – YES (International F3000 – bonus point)

Heidfeld’s Sauber scrubbed off some speed with its locked brakes but the impact was still pretty spectacular. He pushed too hard on his qualifying lap but went a bit too far over the edge. He gets a bonus point for his International F3000 win prior to F1.

Score:
Style – 2/5
Impact – 1/5
Champion – YES (bonus point)

Button wasn’t world champion at the time but he is now, so I’m counting the bonus point. The BAR Honda racer’s crash was pretty clumsy and took him out of a potential podium spot.

11. Juan Pablo Montoya, 2006

Score:
Style – 3/5
Impact – 1/5
Champion – YES (International F3000, CART – bonus point)

Montoya’s brush with the barrier may have looked light but it did cause him to retire from the race. It all happened pretty quickly and the bouncing along the wall gets him an extra style mark. Bonus points for his pre-F1 titles in F3000 and CART.

Score:
Style – 1/5
Impact – 1/5
Champion – NO

This crash was just clumsy and silly - he got too caught up scrapping for position, went over the kerb and it was all over.

Score:
Style – 4/5
Impact – 3/5
Champion – YES (bonus point)

Four-time F1 champion Vettel surprised many with his 2011 Wall of Champions smash, which is definitely one of the most dramatic on the list. Losing it at the first part of the corner completely mucked up the rest and he hit the wall with some force!

Score:
Style – 3/5
Impact – 3/5
Champion – YES (FIA WEC LMP2 – bonus point)

Prior to Senna’s success in the FIA WEC, he suffered a couple of difficult seasons in F1. 2012 was final year in the series and it included this rather interesting smash at the Wall of Champions.

Score:
Style – 1/5
Impact – 1/5
Champion – YES (Formula Renault 3.5 – bonus point)

Sainz is the latest F1 driver to hit the wall of champions. Many have brushed it, but this crash took him out of qualifying for the 2016 Canadian GP. He gets a bonus point for his pre-F1 FR3.5 title.

What do you make of our scores and the Wall of Champions crashes? Which is your favourite? Let us know in the comments!