Michael Schumacher says Sergio Perez's accident in Monaco "shows the quality of the safety improvements" that have been introduced in recent years.
Perez crashed heavily in qualifying in Monte Carlo in an accident that was very similar to Karl Wendlinger in 1994 when he too hit the divide after the chicane.
But while Wendlinger was comatose for several weeks, Perez was conscious and talking to the medical staff.
"First of all, I am happy to hear that Sergio seems to be well, which is obviously the most important news," said Schumacher.
"The incident reminded me a lot of what happened to Karl Wendlinger in 1994 and it shows the quality of the safety improvements the FIA have implemented since then, especially the side impact tests.
"As for my starting position, I benefited a little from the circumstances and probably P7 on the grid would have been more realistic. Having said that, our car looks better in race trim this weekend, so with another good start, I will try to make the most out of it."
Perez's accident was also similar to that suffered by Schumacher's team-mate Nico Rosberg in Saturday's final practice.
The German's crash started in much the same fashion as he too lost control coming out of the tunnel and went across the chicane. But, instead of hitting the divide, Rosberg narrowly missed it and continued skidding down the track.
His Mercedes GP mechanics worked furiously to repair his W02 in time for qualifying with Rosberg claiming eighth place, three behind Schumacher.
"I have to say a special thank you to the team and the attitude everybody had today after my accident," he said.
"This morning, I made a little mistake and lost control of the car but nobody was angry about that when I came back to the garage: the guys simply came up to me and said, let's go for it in qualifying!
"The circumstances in Q3 were a bit tricky because the red flag came at the worst moment for me. When we went back out, it was not possible to do a fast lap because the tyres weren't working properly, but I am still happy to have made it to Q3 after such a tough day.
"I also want to send my best wishes to Sergio and we are all pleased to hear that he is ok after such a big accident."
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