The FIA has opened an investigation into how Fernando Alonso’s steering wheel fell off in his hands during practice in Bahrain. “I’ve never seen anything like it,” Luca di Montezemolo, the former Ferrari president whose involvement in F1 dates back to the early 70s,

The steering wheel of Fernando Alonso's Aston Martin broke free of the steering column in FP2, prompting a visit from the FIA.

Spanish broadcaster Antonio Lobato called the incident emblematic of Aston Martin's struggles. "Brutal," he said on DAZN. "A skinny dog is all fleas." Due to the gravity of a steering wheel detaching at speed, the FIA has ordered Aston Martin engineers to submit a detailed explanation, per Sky Italia.