The sight of Heikki Kovalainen waving as he was being stretchered away from the scene of last weekend's accident was a relief to everyone watching at home and at the track. If he gets the all-clear from the FIA medical team in Istanbul next Thursday, the Finn will be allowed to participate in the Turkish Grand Prix.
Of course there is always an element of good fortune in such matters, but equally there is also a lot of science. The fact that the McLaren driver emerged from such a major accident without harm says a lot for the steady progress the FIA has made on safety matters over the past few decades, and especially since Imola 1994 provided an extra impetus.
Kovalainen's crash has inevitably attracted a lot of attention, and put a renewed focus on safety matters, which is never a bad thing. But according to the man ultimately responsible for implementing many of the improvements, it was not as serious as it may have first looked.