McLaren plays down 'broken' seat reports

Mar.30 (GMM) McLaren has played down reports Fernando Alonso's carbon seat was 'broken' in his high-speed Melbourne crash.

We reported this week that amid claims the seat was broken amid the 46G forces, the FIA had launched an investigation so as to learn from the incident.

"Yes, it (the seat) was cracked but not broken, but we will replace it anyway," a McLaren spokesman told us on Wednesday.

He later added: "The fact that the seat cracked but was not broken means it did its job well -- specifically, it flexed helpfully, as it was designed to do, and it efficiently absorbed a lot of the energy of the accident."