Gerhard Berger: At that time, we didn't think much about the danger.

      Former Formula 1 driver Gerhard Berger recalls the last April day of 1994, when the crash in Imola took the life of his compatriot Roland Ratzenberger…

      Gerhard Berger: “In 1989, I myself had an unpleasant crash in Imola, but experiencing what happened in 1994 was much harder.

      Roland crashed during qualifying. The session was stopped, we all sat in our cars and watched the screen, where they replayed the footage of the crash. Everyone was still on adrenaline after qualifying… and everyone understood that such a crash could not end well. But we had to maintain our focus – then we went out again and continued the fight. It was harder than my own crash.

      You know, back then we didn’t think much about the danger. Nowadays, crashes from those years in Formula 1 are often shown, but it should not be forgotten that other series at that time were even more dangerous. Formula Ford, Formula 3 – they had aluminum chassis. All those cars would ignite instantly. Only now do I sometimes realize how many of my colleagues died back then.”