Burti calls for stronger helmet visors

Burti's F1 career was ended in the 2001 Belgian Grand Prix. He crashed heavily at Spa's Blanchimont corner in a head-on collision with a tyre wall, sustaining a similar brain concussion to that of Massa in Hungary two weeks ago.

In an email sent to FIA technical delegate Charlie Whiting and the Grand Prix Drivers' Association, as well as AUTOSPORT, Burti praised advances in helmet technology which he said could have led to his own injuries being less severe.

But he also contended that more must be done to stop visors becoming detached in accidents.

"After Felipe's accident at the Hungaroring, I can see the helmet's evolution since my accident in the Belgium GP 2001," said Burti, who now commentates on F1 for Brazilian TV.

"Looking at the pictures of my helmet, we can see that if it was made of carbon fibre, like they are today, the damage would have been be less significant.

"This shows the merit of the FIA and helmet constructors on improving drivers' safety.

"But at the same time, I would like to point something out. You can see on my helmet, even with the strong front impact against the tyre barriers, the visor remained attached because it was fixed by four screws, different than most helmets which have two screws only for visor fixing (to reduce weight).

"But on Felipe's accident, we could see the visor became loose because the screw didn't resist the strong impact, and with the face exposed, he could have suffered worse consequences, especially on the face and eyes."

Burti added that he was not criticising the Schuberth helmet's manufacture and praised the job it did in saving his Massa's life, but said that more could be done to protect drivers in the future.

"I would like to make clear that I trust the FIA and the helmet constructors, I already said they are doing a fantastic job regarding drivers' safety," he said. "But looking at those facts, in two different accidents, we can see the visor's fixing, for all helmets brands, needs to be improved to make sure it doesn't open or get detached when the helmet suffers strong impacts.

"It is still a clear improvement when compared with a helmet of eight years ago. As I had my own experience in 2001, I felt responsible to make the point about it."

Burti's injuries, sustained after the Prost he was driving became buried in the tyre wall which his helmet made full contact with, meant that he was unable to drive for the rest of the year.

Ferrari tested the Brazilian in early 2002, but it was clear that the then-26-year-old was still suffering from his accident.

"I had brain concussion - Dr. Gary Harstein said Felipe's one was very similar to mine - and I stayed unconscious for 48 hours," Burti told AUTOSPORT. "After I woke up, my short-term memory was very low.

"I was very weak and had to stay in the hospital for one week. Than four months after the accident, I drove a racing car for the first time when I tested for Ferrari in Barcelona, on January 7, 2002."

While the crash effectively brought Burti's F1 career to an end, he says it made him a stronger person. He also added that while Massa's injury was similar in nature, the circumstances were different and that each person's recovery was unique.

"Was I fully recovered [at the time of the test]? No, not really, it took me some time to find that out," explained Burti, who now races Brazilian stock cars. "Physically it was a long time to recover and emotionally I was very weak, with no self confidence. But the good thing was that after I fully recovered, I became a lot stronger and more mature.

"I wish I was like that before, in the beginning of my F1 career... But I'm sure most people who suffered something similar can tell you exactly the same thing.

"I also learned that each case is a different case, so Felipe can recover much quicker than I did, as we can see that already."