Supercar Pile-Up: This GT Racing Crash Damages 12 Cars!

The tight confines of the Macau Grand Prix circuit collect most of the field in this race full of GT3-spec machinery.

The Macau Grand Prix might take the title of the most predictable race on the calendar. The race, which winds through some of the narrowest streets of any temporary road course, always brings out scads of huge wrecks. And few could have been bigger than this pile-up that involved 60 percent of this FIA GT World Cup race.

During the Qualification Race’s opening lap for the weekend, Daniel Juncadella hit the barrier in the super-tight middle section of the Guia Circuit. That is one of several pinch points, but Juncadella was unfortunately running fourth place of 20 cars at the time. Since all cars were bunched up so tightly, 11 more carbon-clad GT3 cars barreled into the corner.

This is utter chaos, but the silver lining is that no one was hurt. Of course, some wallets might have felt a lot lighter. The cars atop each other crunched a lot of body panels and left some drivers with sore feelings, if nothing else.

However, that’s how the GT cookies crumble at Macau. Several corners are so narrow that even small formula cars can’t fit two abreast through them. Passing is strictly forbidden into the Melco Hairpin because it guarantees a pile-up like this.

We’re still not sure why people come to race in Macau. The racing almost always results in banged-up cars. Riders in the motorcycle races face death with serious mistakes and this year, British rider Daniel Hegarty lost that gamble.

Maybe it’s that gamble or the narrow confines that make victory sweeter. Either way, the race eventually restarted with Mercedes driver Edoardo Mortara claiming the victory. He went on to win the Main Race in the FIA GT World Cup, as well.

Here are two alternative views of the pile-up at Macau, courtesy of Weber Niraschtoe.