Senna's Death Trial - 29 October 1997

29 October 1997 David Coulthard testified for the defence and Alboreto for the prosecution. The prosecution was not allowed to call Tarquini and Lavaggi as witnesses. Coulthard had said that the movements of the steering wheel in Senna's car were normal. The Scot was examined by lawyer Gandossi (defense). The driver said that at the time it was normal that a steering wheel would move like that. He added that nowadays, with the new regulations, the steering wheel is more rigid. The flexibility, in the order of 20 mm, was due to the use of carbon fiber. It was normal that the hands would touch the chassis, in fact the drivers used special reinforced gloves to protect the hands.

Gandossi asked Coulthard whether he ever sat in Senna's car. Coulthard said he had and that the movement of the steering wheel was the same as in other Williams cars. The flexibility of the steering wheel can depend on the speed, particularly on the lateral acceleration, and on the conditions of the track, or on the pressure applied by the driver according to his driving position. Coultahrd was then asked his opinion on the Tamburello bend. He said the bend was "terrifying" to whoever tackled it for the first time, then you got used to it. Coulthard said he slowed down there in the first laps.

Coulthard was then examined by the prosecution. Passarini asked Coulthard whether the steering column moved as well as the steering wheel. Coulthard replied that he thought it did, but he was unable to say for sure. He never carried out a test of this type because he never drove without a steering wheel. The magistrate then asked why the Tamburello was "terrifying" and the Scot replied that any driver who takes a bend at 300 km/h must control his fear to avoid making mistakes. Passarini asked what problems there were there and Coultahrd said that it was very fast and there were bumps.

A Williams video was presented, showing Coulthard in a FW16 in a Williams lab which shows the movement of the steering wheel. The video contains the spoken comment of Coulthard, who can be heard saying that he finds nothing unusual in the movement of the steering wheel and that he has a great respect for Williams' quality. Alboreto was called to comment on the video. The Italian driver said that to him the movements look abnormal and that he never drove a car with a steering wheel like that. It might be normal for Williams, he added, but not for him. The defense then tried to discredite Alboreto's reputation by quoting some statement Alboreto had made about the F1 world and which were printed in the Gazzetta dello Sport. Alboreto confirmed he had made those statement.

Today the key session will take place, with the examination of Williams, Head and Newey.

29 October 1997 Head and Newey have taken advantage of the right of not answering any questions asked them by the judge and either of the parties. The announcement that Head and Newey would not answer was given by their two lawyers.

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