5 times animals disrupted F1 races

The presence of an animal on an F1 track, where cars can reach speeds of over 300 km/h, can result in a number of chaotic moments. The sight of even the smallest thing near the racetrack is frightening for the drivers, but the unpredictable movement of an animal can strike fear into their hearts and minds, and no one wants an accident on the racetrack caused by such intrusions.

However, these lapses do occur, so here are 5 occasions when animals have disrupted the F1 weekend.

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#1 When there was no stopping a stray dog at the 2011 Indian GP

In 2011, a stray dog disrupted the first practice session of the F1 Indian GP at the newly constructed Buddh International Circuit. The first practice session was cut short after only a few minutes due to the nervous dog strutting around the race track, but it was resumed once the dog was rescued.

The presence of stray dogs on Indian streets is not uncommon, but an incident like this harmed India's reputation on the global F1 stage.

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#4 When the 2020 Bahrain GP was “paw-sed”

Everything was going smoothly at the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix until a dog was spotted running around the track during the second practice session. To her credit, she sped up her approach to the barriers. The dog was eventually led to safety and handed to the Bahrain Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (BSPCA).

However, the dog definitely brought the very best of Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton too, who respectively sang:

"who let the dogs out? Who who who who!"

"I hope it's not Roscoe!"

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#3 When seagulls danced with death at the F1 2016 Canadian GP

It's not every day that a pair of seagulls sit perfectly still while a red car speeds towards them. During the 2016 Canadian Grand Prix, Sebastian Vettel locked up on turn one and went wide to stop them from being pulverised.

Race winner Lewis Hamilton, on the other hand, saw the seagulls fly away just before his car hit the apex. This appeared to irritate Vettel, who later interrupted Hamilton's interview to express his displeasure with the birds. It was amusing to watch Vettel and Hamilton talk about the amusing seagull incident.

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#2 When Max Verstappen came face to face with Godzilla in F1

The Dutchman reported seeing a lizard on the track during the third practise session of the 2016 Singapore Grand Prix. Surprisingly, the visitor was not a small animal, but a monitor lizard, a terrifying species of reptilian native to the country.

No wonder, it prompted Max Verstappen, who was coming out of turn 3 to say:

"Woah, there's a giant lizard on the track!"

Contact between the massive lizard and Verstappen could have been fatal for both of them. However, the reptilian ran away, and Verstappen remained largely unbothered later on, clocking in the second best time of the evening after Nico Rosberg, while Lewis Hamilton struggled.

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#1 When George Russell wanted the pigeons to go

The entire Dutch GP weekend was nothing short of entertaining.However, Q2 was red flagged after a fan threw a flare on the track, and pigeons were also reportedly a hazard. A bothered George Russell even complained:

“Those pigeons are back at the apex of Turn 7.”

Following that, an F1 marshal was sent to the track to chase the pigeons away. According to reports, one of the pigeons was also killed hours later after continuing to sit around the track in the midst of fast racing cars. Russell, on the other hand, had an eventful day and finished sixth in the race the next day.

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However, the presence of any animal on the racetrack is clearly dangerous and can result in disastrous situations. Though most drivers take great care not to hit these helpless creatures, it is always preferable if there are no animals on the tracks.