Jordan's Ralph Firman was flown to hospital after a 240 kilometre per hour crash in practice for this weekend's Hungarian Grand Prix in Budapest.
Firman lost control of his Jordan machine when its rear wing flew off as he headed towards turn five at the Hungaroring circuit and he was left as a passenger as the car careered off the track. The car flew over the gravel trap and failed to decelerate significantly before slamming sideways into a tyre wall, showering debris over photographers stationed behind the barrier.
The session was stopped immediately and Firman remained in the car for a few minutes before climbing out and being helped to a stretcher. He was able to sit up and talk to the marshals around him before being taken to the circuit medical centre and was then taken to a nearby hospital for further inspection.
Team chief Eddie Jordan said: "We just had very good news form the professor that Ralph is just going for a scan as a precautionary measure. "He has a slight pain in his foot but other than that he is in good condition and is very much aware of what is happening. "They are just taking precautionary measures to make sure that he is completely checked out in the hospital."
The team said they would be investigating the reasons why the rear wing collapsed and did not send their other driver, Italian Giancarlo Fisichella, out when the session was restarted after a break of around half an hour.
Filed by James Boylan
