It's been 12 years since Sebastien Buemi's incredible front suspension failure at the Chinese GP weekend

Formula 1 is a spectacular sport and, at high speed, sometimes things can go dramatically wrong but few incidents before and after have ever been quite as unique as Sebastien Buemi’s front suspension failure at the Chinese Grand Prix.

Hammering along, minding his own business in his Toro Rosso during a practice session, Buemi was coming towards the end of the long back-straight at the Shanghai circuit before suffering an incident that was as rare as it was, in fairness, almost farcical in nature.

Of course, the key thing was that Buemi was completely fine as he entered the braking zone at the Chinese circuit and we can look back at this accident which has become meme-worthy in the years since.

The wheels coming off is a phrase that gets used in many sporting contexts when a player or team’s campaign or tournament is suddenly wobbling but, in the Toro Rosso driver’s case, the literal sense of the remark truly hit home twelve years ago.

An upright in the suspension gave way and, under stress, both front wheels flew off at the same time, leaving Buemi utterly powerless in terms of trying to direct his car away from the wall.

The clip F1 has shared on social media serves as a reminder just how frankly bonkers the incident was and, in truth, you can’t help but make a smile at the way Buemi still tries to steer his car out of pure instinct despite it proving, obviously, utterly futile:

#OnThisDay in 2010…