- Carlos Sainz was leading the Final of the Island X Prix I when he was hit by another car, which caused him to roll over several times.
- The Spanish driver was able to get out of the car on his own and then was taken to the hospital conscious for further medical checks. He was discharged a few hours later without any injuries, albeit quite sore.
Very tough Thursday for the ACCIONA | SAINZ XE Team, which was in the lead of the Final of the Island X Prix until its car was heavily hit by a rival.
Carlos took the lead with a blistering start, but the RXR car hit him from behind at an intersection. Due to the collision, the Odyssey 21 of ASXE Team was thrown into the air, rolling over several times and landing upside down outside of the track.
The medical assistances arrived quickly to help the driver, but Carlos was able to get out of the car on his own and remained conscious throughout. He was taken to Cagliari’s Ospedale della Misericordia due to the pain he was experiencing in the lower part of his body, but the medical checks he underwent confirmed that he didn’t have any injuries.
The incident occurred at the intersection between the main racing line –which Carlos was following running in the lead– and an alternative route.
Although the rival car was considered to be the only responsible for the accident, he only received a 30-second penalty that still allowed it to finish third in the Final.
This morning, Laia Sanz and Carlos Sainz finished second in the Semi-Final 2 and therefore qualified for the Final. The key of that race was the driver switch, where ASXE Team overtook a rival car.
The Extreme E Championship will continue this weekend with the second round of the Island X Prix, which will take place on Saturday and Sunday at the very same track that hosted this first event. ACCIONA | SAINZ XE Team will issue an update in the upcoming hours regarding its participation in this event.
Quotes:
Carlos Sainz, driver:
"Luckily all the medical checks were fine and I have just been released from the hospital, although I feel quite a lot of pain. I am really disappointed nevertheless with what happened on the track and even more so with the fact that there was only a 30-second penalty for who caused this big accident. In over 40 years in motorsports, this is one of the most serious actions that I have ever seen without an exemplary penalty. Thanks a lot to everyone for your messages of support".
Laia Sanz, driver:
"Today the most important thing is that Carlos is fine because it was a really big crash. It really bothers me, because we had no fault in the crash and the chance to fight for our first victory was taken away from us. We hope that we are able to take part in the next X Prix here in Sardinia".
Joan Orús, team principal:
"The most important thing is that Carlos is quite well. He had many bruises and was taken to hospital for a medical check-up. The tests went well and the doctors didn’t find anything beyond the pain he was experiencing from the crash, so they discharged him. We are disappointed by what happened in the race. We were leading into the first corner when we were clearly hit from behind, throwing us into three spins in the air. We hope that Carlos recovers quickly to get back behind the wheel again. We will have to repair the car, which now is completely destroyed. We are surprised to say the least because the car that caused all this damage only received a 30-second penalty".
