A 17-year-old German race car driver was seriously injured in a crash during the Macau Grand Prix Formula 3 race in China that sent her car flying through the air. You can watch video of Sophia Floersch’s horrific crash above. Floersch suffered a spinal fracture but was conscious when admitted to a local hospital, according to her team, Van Amersfoort Racing.
Floersch tweeted a few hours after the crash, “Just wanted to let everybody know that I am fine but will be going into Surgery tomorow morning. Thanks to the @fia and @hwaag_official @MercedesAMGF1 who are taking great care of me. Thanks to everybody for the Supporting messages. Update soon.”
The crash happened, which happened in the Lisboa Bend turn of the Macau track, sent Floersch’s car flying over her fellow racers and into a track fence, where a media area was located. According to the FIA, the governing body overseeing the race, the driver of a car struck by Floersch before she went airborne was also taken to the hospital.
The FIA said in a Facebook post that the other driver, Sho Tsuboi, of Japan, was hospitalized for “further evaluation” after suffering back pain. Two members of the media and a race marshal were also hospitalized. Photographer Minami Hiroyuki suffered a concussion and photographer Chan Weng Wang had a lacerated liver, The Washington Post reports. Chan Cha, the race marshal, suffered cuts and a broken bone in his face, the newspaper reports.
The crash delayed the race for an hour. It was eventually won by Dan Ticktum.
Another video shows the crash in slow-motion:
According to ESPN, data fro the race track shows Floersch was traveling at 276.2 km/h (171 mph) in the braking zone of that corner before the crash. It was Floersch’s first race on the Macau track. Floersch was in 16th place at the time of the crash, which occurred during the fourth lap of the race.
Fellow driver Guan Yu Zhou, who was behind Floersch, told News.au.com, “First of all it was such a scary moment. Sophia was really close to Jehan (Daruvala), so when Jehan braked early she had no time to react. She hit Jehan’s right-rear, and that spun her around straight into Lisboa, and she flew into the other car. I just hope she’s OK.”
You can watch other videos of the crash below:
Floersch is in her first season in Formula 3. She told Macau News Agency prior to the race that she was excited about making her debut at the track as the only woman in the field. “I’m used to it. I’m usually the only woman among men. But I think that when we are inside the cars we are all pilots, we are all the same. For me it’s normal and I have fun. I’m really happy to be here. being in Macau represents a highlight of this era for me. Today was free practice day. The track is crazy, but really good. Let’s see how the weekend goes. I have to do my best and gain confidence with every lap I do. Then we’ll see how the final will run, but I think everything is possible here.”
She also told the newspaper she was aware of the dangers of the track, saying, “It’s a difficult circuit, fun and but a dangerous track. As a racing driver we’re used to race on the edge. When I’m in the car I have my limits and driving is usually at the limit. This is racing.”
According to Jalopnik, the Macau track is the tightest street course in the world. “The speed and severity of Flörsch’s crash is, I don’t want to keep saying terrifying, but it really is so much faster and more violent and more abrupt than wrecks you see at racetracks with plenty of safe run-off areas,” Jalopnik’s Raphael Orlove wrote about the crash.
Sophia Floersch.
Floersch has been racing since 2005, when she was 5. She first competed in Kart Sport events across Europe and was often the youngest driver in the field. In 2015, she raced in the Ginetta Junior Championship and signed with Motopark later that same year to compete in Formula 4. In March 2018, Floersch made her debut in Fomrula 3, driving a Van Amersfoort Racing car. In July, the team announced she would become a full-time driver on the circuit.
Floersch’s team boss, Fritz van Amersfoort, told Motorsport.com that Floersch was accompanied to the hospital by her father, Alexander Floersch. “We have to thank the angels she had with her today, and for the fantastic strength of the Dallara car,” van Amersfoort said.
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