WestCoast Racing has determined the cause of Richard Göranssons accident at Jyllandsringen in Denmark. Investigation of the car and the data shows that a rear brake pad fell off the car causing Göransson to lose brake pressure and rear brakes. Team manager Dick Jönsson Wigroth explains.
“This is a mistake by the team that we take full responsibility for and deeply regret. WestCoast Racing works with control systems and check lists to prevent things like this to happen. We always put safety for our drivers and our crew first and we have never experienced anything like this before. It’s the human factor that has struck us this time and as a team we deeply regret this. All safety systems in the car and for the driver has worked as they are supposed to which has been a contributing factor to limit the consequences of this accident. We are going to look at our routines once again and make sure this is not something that will happen again. Our thoughts are now with Richard and his family and we are supporting them in Richards recovery.”

Summary of the accident

The accident occurred on the penultimate lap of the first STCC-race of the season at Jyllandsringen in Denmark. Richard Göransson was leading by 8,1 seconds and drove safely to keep the lead constant. He approached the first corner with a speed of 184 kph as he started braking. At this time the rear brake pad fell off causing Richard to lose brake pressure and locking up the front wheels making it impossible to stear. The car went off the track at 107 kph. According to the findings of the team an asphalt edge at the end of the track contributed to him getting slightly airborne and not touching the first part of the gravel trap. He hit the tyre barrier and the concrete wall behind it with a speed of 86 kph. Richard Göransson has done everything in his power to prevent the accident to happen. No suppliers are to be blamed for the accident and all safety devices in the car and for the driver has worked as they are supposed to work. The G-force systems in the car measure a maximum G-force of 5G and that is the G-forces measure for both the first impact and the return impact back from the concrete wall. The team findings estimate the G-forces for the first hit with the concrete barriers to be at least 10-20G.