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F3 Driver Sophia Floersch Suffers Spinal Fracture After Crash over the Wall
November 18, 2018
Formula Three driver Sophie Floersch suffered a spinal fracture during Sunday's race in Macau in a crash that saw the race red-flagged. Four others were taken to hospital.
Per Nate Saunders of ESPN.com, the 17-year-old lost control of her damaged vehicle after contact with another driver and was sent over the kerbs and into the barriers. A speed trap recorded her speed at an incredible 276.2 km/h.
Yahoo Sports shared footage of the horror crash (warning: graphic footage):
The teenager later took to Twitter to let the world know she is doing fine and will have surgery on Monday:
As explained by Saunders, video did not show what led to the high-speed crash, with later reports indicating there had been a "tangle" in a flat-out section leading up to the corner.
The car ended up in a bunker containing photographers and race marshals, causing more injuries, with marshal Chan Cha In suffering a facial laceration and fractured jaw, and photographers Chan Weng Wang and Hiroyuki Minami suffering a liver laceration and a concussion, respectively. Sho Tsuboi, who was in the car Floersch flew over, also went to the hospital with lumbar pain, according to Saunders.
The damage to the barriers saw the red flag come out, with the race later restarting. Red Bull junior Dan Ticktum took the win, successfully defending his title.
