One dead, six injured in Nuerburgring race that F1 champ Max Verstappen had entered
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Formula One champion Max Verstappen had been due to compete in the race in which racing driver Juha Miettinen died.
PHOTO, SCREENSHOT: REUTERS, X
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- Juha Miettinen, 66, died in a crash at the ADAC 24h Nuerburgring qualifiers; six other drivers sustained non-life-threatening injuries.
- Max Verstappen, scheduled to race, was not on the track at the time of the accident; he expressed his condolences on Instagram.
- The race was stopped, and organisers cancelled the restart on April 18, holding a minute's silence on April 19; the Nordschleife circuit is known as the "Green Hell".
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BERLIN – Max Verstappen has expressed his shock after racing driver Juha Miettinen died and six others were injured on April 18 following an accident at the ADAC 24h Nuerburgring qualifiers that he was due to compete in.
Organisers said that Miettinen, who was 66 years old, died after a crash that stopped the race after about half an hour of the scheduled four hours.
All the other drivers were taken to hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening.
Red Bull’s four-time Formula One world champion Verstappen, sharing a Mercedes AMG GT3 sportscar with Austrian Lucas Auer, was not on track at the time.
“During the first race of the ADAC 24h Nurburgring Qualifiers, a serious accident involving seven competitors occurred in the early stages of the race,” Nuerburgring officials said in a statement.
“Despite the immediate arrival of emergency services, the emergency medics were unable to save the driver involved, Juha Miettinen (BMW 325i, #121), after he had been extracted from the vehicle.
“The driver died at the Medical Centre after all attempts at resuscitation proved unsuccessful.”
The accident early on in the race involved seven competitors.
SCREENSHOT: X
The race did not resume on April 18 and a minute’s silence was held during the grid formation on April 19.
Verstappen said on Instagram that he was shocked by what had happened.
“Motorsport is something we all love but in times like this it is a reminder of how dangerous it can be,” he posted. “Sending my heartfelt condolences to Juha’s family and loved ones.”
Red Bull F1 driver Max Verstappen’s message on Instagram.
SCREENSHOT: INSTAGRAM/MAX VERSTAPPEN
The Nuerburgring’s historic and fearsome Nordschleife, known as the “Green Hell” when it hosted Formula One in the 1960s and 70s, is a 20.8km loop in the Eifel region of Germany.
It was first opened in 1927.
In other motor racing news, french driver Doriane Pin, winner of last year’s all-female F1 Academy series, has become the first woman to drive a Mercedes Formula One car.
The 22-year-old development driver completed 76 laps of Silverstone’s National Circuit on Friday, a total of 200km, in the W12 car that Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas drove to the 2021 constructors’ title.
Pin is also the first Frenchwoman to drive a modern F1 car and one of few women to do so in a series that has not had a female driver start a grand prix in nearly 50 years.
“It was a unique opportunity and I made sure to enjoy my day to the fullest, along with doing the best job I could,” she said. “Whilst being a female driver doesn’t define me, it was great to show what we can do.”
Mercedes’s driver development advisor Gwen Lagrue, a Frenchman, said the team were proud of the milestone.
“I am sure we will see a woman driving in F1 in the coming years and as a team we would be incredibly proud if we were to achieve that goal with someone in our team,” he added.
“Doriane can certainly act as an inspiration for those following in her wheel tracks as she continues her career and role as development driver with our team.” REUTERS
