• Haas team principal Guenther Steiner and Romain Grosjean in the paddock before final practice ahead of the Sakhir Grand Prix at the Bahrain International Circuit on Saturday. Getty
    Haas team principal Guenther Steiner and Romain Grosjean in the paddock before final practice ahead of the Sakhir Grand Prix at the Bahrain International Circuit on Saturday. Getty
  • Haas F1 team principal Guenther Steiner and Romain Grosjean at the Bahrain International Circuit. Getty
    Haas F1 team principal Guenther Steiner and Romain Grosjean at the Bahrain International Circuit. Getty
  • Romain Grosjean with wife Marion at the Bahrain International Circuit. Getty
    Romain Grosjean with wife Marion at the Bahrain International Circuit. Getty
  • Romain Grosjean with his wife Marion, Alain Prost, special advisor to Renault, and Renault Sport CEO Jerome Stoll. Getty
    Romain Grosjean with his wife Marion, Alain Prost, special advisor to Renault, and Renault Sport CEO Jerome Stoll. Getty
  • Romain Grosjean with Red Bull Racing team consultant Dr Helmut Marko and Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner. Getty
    Romain Grosjean with Red Bull Racing team consultant Dr Helmut Marko and Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner. Getty
  • Romain Grosjean said his hands are still full healed yet. Getty
    Romain Grosjean said his hands are still full healed yet. Getty
  • Romain Grosjean seems unlikely for the Abu Dhabi GP. Getty
    Romain Grosjean seems unlikely for the Abu Dhabi GP. Getty

F1

Romain Grosjean withdraws from Abu Dhabi Grand Prix after crash injuries fail to heal in time

French driver, who will retire from F1 at the end of the season, escaped from a fireball crash at the Bahrain Grand Prix

The National

December 06, 2020

  • English
  • Arabic

Haas F1 driver Romain Grosjean has confirmed he will not recover from his Bahrain Grand Prix crash injuries in time to compete in the season-ending race in Abu Dhabi.

Grosjean, 34, miraculously escaped from his burning car during last week's grand prix when his car penetrated a steel barrier at 137mph, split in two, and burst into flames during the most dramatic accident of recent F1 memory.

The Frenchman managed to sustain only minor burns to his hands and was released from the Bahrain Defence Force Hospital on Wednesday.

Grosjean, who was already due to retire from the sport at the end of the season after being dropped by Haas, was hopeful he would bow out with one final appearance at the Etihad Airways Formula One Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

But in a video on Twitter, he said: “I have left a lot of time for the doctor to discuss, but for my health and safety it is better I don’t take the risk to race in Abu Dhabi. It is a very difficult decision but it is the best one for my future.

“Hopefully I will now work on what is coming next, where am I going to go racing, where am I going to go winning races!

“I would like to thank everyone for the messages, the support and the love. It has been incredible to see in such a difficult time.”

A crash investigation has been launched by the FIA, with the governing body confirming earlier this week that it will take as long as two months before the findings are made public.

F1 has remained in Bahrain for the penultimate round of the campaign. A different configuration, already scheduled before Grosjean’s accident, is being used for the Sakhir Grand Prix with a number of safety changes made to the circuit.

Two rows of tyres have been put in place at Turn 3, the scene of Grosjean’s crash, while the damaged barrier has also been fully replaced. The tyre barrier at Turn 9 has increased in depth to four rows.

The kerb between Turns 8 and 9 has also been removed after Lance Stroll was launched airborne by Daniil Kvyat in last Sunday’s dramatic race.

Haas confirmed back in October Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen would leave at the end of the season. The two drivers have since been replaced by Nikita Mazepin and Mick Schumacher, the son of F1 legend Michael Schumacher. Both Mazepin and Schumacher are stepping up from Formula Two.

________________

Romain Grosjean escapes crash

  • Haas driver Romain Grosjean survived a major crash at the Bahrain GP after his car split in half and burst into flames on Sunday. Getty
    Haas driver Romain Grosjean survived a major crash at the Bahrain GP after his car split in half and burst into flames on Sunday. Getty
  • Stewards attempt to extinguish flames at the crash scene after Haas' Romain Grosjean crashed out at the start of the Bahrain GP on Sunday. Reuters
    Stewards attempt to extinguish flames at the crash scene after Haas' Romain Grosjean crashed out at the start of the Bahrain GP on Sunday. Reuters
  • The crash site of Haas driver Romain Grosjean at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir. EPA
    The crash site of Haas driver Romain Grosjean at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir. EPA
  • Debris following the crash of Romain Grosjean's Haas car at the Bahrain International Circuit on Sunday. Getty
    Debris following the crash of Romain Grosjean's Haas car at the Bahrain International Circuit on Sunday. Getty
  • Haas driver Romain Grosjean's car split in half following a crash in Bahrain on Sunday. Reuters
    Haas driver Romain Grosjean's car split in half following a crash in Bahrain on Sunday. Reuters
  • Flames at the crash site of Romain Grosjean's Haas car in Sakhir. EPA
    Flames at the crash site of Romain Grosjean's Haas car in Sakhir. EPA
  • Stewards attempt to clear the car of Haas' Romain Grosjean from the track. Reuters
    Stewards attempt to clear the car of Haas' Romain Grosjean from the track. Reuters
  • Haas' Romain Grosjean is taken away by medical officers after his crash in Bahrain on Sunday. Reuters
    Haas' Romain Grosjean is taken away by medical officers after his crash in Bahrain on Sunday. Reuters
  • Haas' Romain Grosjean is taken in an ambulance. Reuters
    Haas' Romain Grosjean is taken in an ambulance. Reuters
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Defence review at a glance

• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”

• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems

• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.

• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%

• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade

• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels

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UAE v United States, T20 International Series

Both matches at ICC Academy, Dubai. Admission is free.

1st match: Friday, 2pm

2nd match: Saturday, 2pm

UAE squad: Mohammed Naveed (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Shaiman Anwar, Rameez Shahzad, Amjad Gul, CP Rizwan, Mohammed Boota, Abdul Shakoor, Ahmed Raza, Imran Haider, Sultan Ahmed, Zahoor Khan, Amir Hayat

USA squad: Saurabh Netravalkar (captain), Jaskaran Malhotra, Elmore Hutchinson, Aaron Jones, Nosthush Kenjige, Ali Khan, Jannisar Khan, Xavier Marshall, Monank Patel, Timil Patel, Roy Silva, Jessy Singh, Steven Taylor, Hayden Walsh

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Green ambitions
  • Trees: 1,500 to be planted, replacing 300 felled ones, with veteran oaks protected
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BIOSAFETY LABS SECURITY LEVELS

Biosafety Level 1

The lowest safety level. These labs work with viruses that are minimal risk to humans.

Hand washing is required on entry and exit and potentially infectious material decontaminated with bleach before thrown away.

Must have a lock. Access limited. Lab does not need to be isolated from other buildings.

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Biosafety Level 2

These labs deal with pathogens that can be harmful to people and the environment such as Hepatitis, HIV and salmonella.

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Extra safety and security precautions are taken in addition to those at Level 1

Biosafety Level 3

These labs contain material that can be lethal if inhaled. This includes SARS coronavirus, MERS, and yellow fever.

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Windows must be sealed. Air from must be filtered before it can be recirculated.

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Entry is severely restricted to trained and authorised personnel. All entries are recorded.

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Tonight's Chat on The National

Tonight's Chat is a series of online conversations on The National. The series features a diverse range of celebrities, politicians and business leaders from around the Arab world.

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Intellectually curious and thought-provoking, Tonight’s Chat moves the conversation forward.

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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

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The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

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Dos

  • Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion 
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French business

France has organised a delegation of leading businesses to travel to Syria. The group was led by French shipping giant CMA CGM, which struck a 30-year contract in May with the Syrian government to develop and run Latakia port. Also present were water and waste management company Suez, defence multinational Thales, and Ellipse Group, which is currently looking into rehabilitating Syrian hospitals.

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5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,600m
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7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 1,600m
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Winner: Trolius, Ryan Powell, Simon Crisford

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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe

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Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille

Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm

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Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners

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Starring: Lamar Faden, Khairiah Nathmy, Nawaf Al-Dhufairy

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F1