Spanish Formula One driver Carlos Sainz is hopeful of returning to action for Sunday's Russian Grand Prix after surviving a harrowing 200mph shunt in final practice.
Sainz, who is contesting his debut season in the sport, was airlifted to a nearby hospital in Sochi after the crash on Saturday morning.
The 21-year-old lost control of his Toro Rosso as he approached turn 13 - the fastest section of the circuit which runs through Sochi's Olympic Park. He then slammed into the nearside wall, destroying the front left of his car, before careering head-on into the tyre barrier still at high speed.
The session was immediately red-flagged, and subsequently abandoned, as medical crew took 20 minutes to extract Sainz from his cockpit.
There were worrying expressions on the faces of his team, and throughout the paddock - the incident coming only days after the one-year anniversary of Jules Bianchi's ultimately fatal crash in Japan - but as Sainz was put into the ambulance on the back of a stretcher he gave the thumbs-up.
His Toro Rosso team later confirmed he was conscious and talking to the medical team as he was removed from his car.
A team statement read: "Following Carlos Sainz's accident during FP3 today in Sochi, the driver is perfectly conscious and was able to talk to the extrication team.
"Once out of the car he was taken to the circuit Medical Centre, where he underwent an initial assessment of his condition.
"He has now been taken by air ambulance to the Sochi Hospital 4. Investigations on the reasons for the accident will take place once the car is back in the team's garage. Further information will be released by the team and the FIA to the media when it is available."
Toro Rosso decided not to replace Sainz, who will be kept in hospital overnight, for qualifying and the Spaniard has not given up hope of taking his place on the grid for Sunday's race.
He tweeted a picture from his hospital bed accompanied by the words: "All ok! Nothing to worry about! Already thinking how to convince the doctors to (let me) be on the grid for tomorrow."
The GP3 race scheduled to take part after Formula One's final practice session was cancelled as significant repairs were made to the impact-absorbing barriers at turn 13. Saturday's Formula One qualifying session started as usual albeit with only 19 runners.
Nico Rosberg seized pole position with world champion Lewis Hamilton joining his team mate on the front row in a perfect qualifying for Mercedes.
The pole was Rosberg's third of the season with championship leader Hamilton, who is 48 points clear of the German with five races remaining, denied his 50th for the third race in succession.
Hamilton, who had hoped for his 12th pole in 15 races, aborted his second and final lap of the final phase after making a mistake on a clear afternoon in the Olympic Park.
The front row lockout was still just what Mercedes had ordered, with the team needing to score three points more than Ferrari to clinch their second successive constructors' title this weekend.
Finland's Valtteri Bottas qualified third for Mercedes-powered Williams with Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen fourth and fifth.
Hamilton won last year's inaugural race in Russia from pole, with Rosberg runner-up after also starting on the front row, but he could not get close to Rosberg's time of one minute 37.113 seconds.
"We didn't get much practice but qualifying worked out really well and a good balance on the car," said the German after his second pole in a row. "We had to guess a little bit...it all worked out well, I felt comfortable.
"Of course the constructors' championship is a really important target for us this weekend, it would be amazing to clinch it for a second time so early on in the season, and so we are out to do that.
"At the same time of course I'm out here to reduce the gap to Lewis in terms of points."
