Racing driver Juha Miettinen died and six others were injured on Saturday after an accident at the ADAC 24h Nuerburgring qualifiers that four-time Formula One champion Max Verstappen was due to compete in.
Miettinen, 66, died after a crash that stopped the race after about half an hour of the scheduled four hours, organizers said.
All the other drivers were taken to hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening.
Photo: Reuters
Red Bull F1 driver Verstappen, sharing a Mercedes AMG GT3 sportscar with Austrian Lucas Auer, was not on the 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 race did not resume on Saturday, and a minute’s silence would be held during the grid formation yesterday, organizers said.
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 said. “Sending my heartfelt condolences to Juha’s family and loved ones.”
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.
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