Palmerston North, Feb 10 NZPA - Speedway administrators should consider whether a specialist head restraint developed for Formula One racing and now widespread in circuit competition is appropriate in stockcar racing, a coroner says.

Coroner Tim Scott made the suggestion at an inquest held in Palmerston North today to consider the fatal head injury suffered by a Hawke's Bay stockcar driver Peter Barry at a major event in the city a year ago.

Barry, 44, a farmer, was fatally hurt at Palmerston North Speedway on February 6 2008, the first night of the New Zealand teams' stockcar championships.

He died in Wellington Hospital six days later, without regaining consciousness.

A post mortem found he had suffered a significant brain injury.

Mr Scott said he could not determine exactly how the injury occurred, or at what time.

Nor was it possible to determine the exact circumstances; while Barry had a head injury, there were no marks on his crash helmet to suggest his head had struck anything.

Barry was driving a block car for the Kihikihi Kings against the Hawke's Bay Hawkeyes.

It is thought he was knocked unconscious when it struck a concrete wall with some force, though that became apparent only after video was scrutinised.

The race was stopped because of another crash and attention was drawn to Barry's car only when it kept moving slowly along the track, scraping the outside wall for three-quarters of a lap, before a flag marshall jumped in and shut it down.

Mr Scott accepted fatalities were relatively rare in stockcar racing, though the likelihood of injury was not. It was inherently high risk and violent, especially in teams' racing, where drivers crashed into each other on purpose.

The court was told that New Zealand was the only country where such high-contact motorsport was run.

"It is a high contact activity with a high degree of risk...there is no way to easily lessen the level of danger short of banning it, which would not be popular," said Mr Scott, joking he would likely be run out of town if he tried.

He admitted he had been at the meeting last year and was also at the 2010 championships, staged last weekend.

"Drivers are aware of the risk - it is totally self-evident that this is a high-risk activity...they (competitors) take that onboard when they embark on it.

"It's well known that even relatively minor impact injuries can cause a brain bleed. There have been many reported scenarios to confirm this."

While he was satisfied stockcar racing was tightly-controlled and well-run, perhaps it was opportune for Speedway New Zealand, the controlling authority, to consider some safety equipment.

Mr Scott raised concern about the HANS (for head and neck restraint system) device, a safety item compulsory in many car-racing sports.

Primarily made of carbon fibre, it attaches to a driver's helmet by tethers and covers the neck and shoulders.

Proven to reduce head and/or neck injuries, it is not compulsory in stockcar racing, but has become increasingly used.

After hearing expert reports, Mr Scott asked if the device was entirely suitable for stockcars, noting it was designed primarily to protect in head-on crashes, not the side and rear impacts more common in speedway.

He also questioned the integrity of driver's racing harnesses made from nylon, having been advised belts made from polypropolene were less likely to stretch, which might have occurred on this occasion, causing a whiplash effect.

Mr Barry had contested two races that night, and though his injury became apparent in the second Mr Scott concluded there was a strong possibility it might have occurred during the first heat, in which Mr Barry's car had sustained heavy damage.

Mr Scott also said he could not draw any particular conclusion as to whether or not the safety equipment used by Mr Barry had contributed to his injury.

He noted that the HANS device manufacturers recommended its use in conjunction with certain helmet designs. Mr Barry was wearing a motorcycle helmet that was not certified by the HANS maker, but had been professionally modified to accept the device.

Andrea Barry, the racer's wife, said her husband had started racing three years ago and had never had any serious accidents or injuries, save for a broken rib and occasional black eyes.

In a race six weeks before the Palmerston North event, he had complained of feeling dizzy, but was fine afterwards. She had not seen his car hit the wall, but became aware something was not right when she saw his helmet visor was up as it went across the infield.

Mr Barry farmed in Central Hawke's Bay and won the Young Farmer of the Year competition in 1993.

Competitors at last weekend's race had a moment's silence in his memory.

The coroner reserved his finding.