Watch an F1 Suspension Break In Slow Motion

Carlos Sainz Jr. has had an interesting Friday of practice for Sunday's Monaco Grand Prix. The Ferrari driver brushed up against the inside of a barrier in the day's first session, creating a highlight but keeping his car intact. In the second session, he went one step further and actually hit the inside barrier at speed. The car wasn't so lucky after that collision.

A clip shared by Formula 1 shows both incidents in slow motion. In the first, a banner on the barrier moves while the car stays composed and the suspension hardly moves at all. Sainz successfully navigates the corner and continues his lap. In the second, Sainz hits the barrier with the outside of his right-front tire, instantly snapping a suspension arm. We see just that one piece buckle, but the failure immediately leaves the same right-front wheel wobbling at speed as the arm shakes back and forth at the point where it is snapped.

With the suspension compromised and turning suddenly a much larger challenge, Sainz then crashes into the outside wall in the next corner. That leaves the car more significantly damaged. While the hit was not insignificant, the resulting damage is more likely to mean a long day for the crew than a missed practice or qualifying session tomorrow.

Sainz has finished second in this race the past two seasons and hopes to turn that success into his first win of the year on Sunday. To do so, he will have to contend with the pace of a Red Bull team that has been quicker than Ferrari, and the entire rest of the grid, throughout the opening rounds of the 2023 season.

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