Alex Albon ‘lucky to be walking’ after horror shunt

Alex Albon was in a strong points scoring position at the Australian Grand Prix before his car spun into the barrier on lap seven.

The Australian Grand Prix proved to be a chaotic event, with the most red flags in a single Formula 1 race and only 12 cars finishing the race.

The first red flag was caused by Williams driver Alex Albon, who spun out of the race and into the barrier at turn six, spraying gravel across the track.

The lap seven incident initially resulted in a safety car being deployed before the red flag was waved, sending all the cars to pit lane while the vehicle and gravel was cleared.

Sky Sports presenter and former world champion Damon Hill claimed that Albon was fortunate to escape the incident without severe injuries.

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“He’s lucky to be walking, because if he’s a little bit more into the track it would have been a side-on T-bone with Nico Hulkenberg,” Hill said on the F1 Nation podcast.

Hulkenberg had to react swiftly during the incident to avoid colliding with the Williams when it rebounded off the barrier.

The Haas driver will have been glad to have cleared the scene without damage, eventually finishing the race in seventh place.

Hulkenberg’s teammate Kevin Magnussen had a less fortunate weekend, causing the second flag towards the end of the race when his car made contact with the barrier. 

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The impact sent a tyre and debris flying across turn two, with one fan even being hit by a huge piece of metal.

Spectator Will Sweet claimed to feel “pretty lucky” after the race, as it nearly hit his fiancée’s head.

Heading home with a piece of the Haas car, Sweet lifted his arm up, protecting himself and his finance from being seriously harmed.