F1 cars only need to 'look' dangerous - FIA's Charlie Whiting

Formula 1 only needs to "look dangerous" rather than be dangerous, according to FIA race director Charlie Whiting

He was responding to comments from Lewis Hamilton who praised safety advances but added he believes an element of risk is key to F1's appeal.

Whiting believes F1 can still have that image and continue to improve safety, such as introducing a cockpit protection device like the halo or aeroscreen.

"I take his point, there will always be risks if you start driving a car that quickly," said Whiting.

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"When you look at the cars on track, it's not until they go off the track that you realise how fast they are going and just what damage can be done.

"Cars will still look dangerous. Our job is to try and make them look dangerous without being dangerous.

"There is nothing better than to see a driver get out of an incredibly damaged car like we saw with Fernando [Alonso in Australia].

"When you saw [Robert] Kubica's accident in Canada a few years ago [2007], somehow you just thought he was going to get out of it, and we want to improve the chances of that happening while the spectacle is still there."

The FIA is continuing to evaluate the halo and aeroscreen devices with a deadline for a decision in place for July 1.

One of the key factors in the analysis of the two devices is ensuring a driver can extract himself from the car quickly after an accident.

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Whiting said if the FIA had to slightly increase the amount of time permitted for a driver to be able to get out of the car, it would be a small price to make for greater safety.

"That will be quite an important factor," he said.

"Looking at the actual opening, I can't see any difference between the two.

"We did a jump out test on Daniel [Ricciardo] on Thursday to make sure.

"He was only doing one lap but you never know what might happen.

"We wanted the comfort of knowing that he was able to get out of the car in the required time and he was and that will only get better.

"Teams will develop systems to make it easier for it to get out and if we eventually needed to add a couple of seconds to the time required to get out, that would be a small price to pay for the added protection for the driver's head."