Photo: Twitter / Carlos Sainz Sr
Rally driver Carlos Sainz Sr. has just crashed his car during a Dakar Rally and was airlifted to the hospital. But plot twist: he turned the helicopter around because he wanted to keep racing.
Two-time World Rally Championship winner Carlos Sainz Sr. is still racing at 60 years old, and he loves doing it. So much that he sometimes puts his health in danger to return to finish a race.
During the Dakar Rally, the Spanish rally driver, who is also the father of Ferrari F1 Team's driver Carlos Sainz Jr., was involved in a horror crash on Tuesday, January 10.
There are a lot of bad things that can happen in a race, no matter the type of competition. But this one was very dangerous, sending his huge Audi RS Q e-tron buggy flying over a sand dune. The buggy ended up flying further than it should have and landed face-down on the sand. It all happened just 6 km (3.7 mi) into the ninth stage of the rally, which was quite unfortunate for him.
Sainz Sr.'s co-driver, Lucas Cruz, reportedly escaped the crash unhurt, but the 60-year-old needed medical attention. He claimed he suffered severe chest pain, so a helicopter came and airlifted him to the hospital for precautionary checks.
The official Dakar Rally Twitter account wrote after the incident: “@CSainz_oficial, who lost control of his @audisport after 6 km, has thrown in the towel, still suffering from pain in the right side of his torso." It concluded that, “He has been airlifted to the hospital in Riyadh to undergo further medical check-ups.”
While that should’ve normally been the end of it after such a crash, here comes the plot twist: Carlos Sainz Sr. returned to the race. Just a few minutes after it happened, Sainz Sr. reportedly demanded that the helicopter turn around mid-flight, and decided not to go to the hospital to get checked out, because he was in a hurry to come back to the rally. Minutes later, he was at the crash scene.
Although he had no more hopes of winning this one, he could still be classified as finishing the event.
The same Twitter account for the Dakar Rally added later, “New episode in the @CSainz_oficial saga on stage 9: the Spaniard asked the medical helicopter on its way to the hospital to turn back and take him to his car. He is now back with Lucas Cruz waiting for their assistance vehicle.”
Sadly though, they had to abandon the rally, because their vehicle had suffered serious structural damage. Sainz Sr. wrote online, "Unfortunately, in today's accident, the car was seriously damaged and cannot be repaired. It is with great regret that we have to abandon the @dakar, but the important thing is that nothing serious has happened. Thanks, Lucas Cruz and Audi Sport for all the work and dedication."
The crash came just a few days after Sainz Sr. was involved in yet another accident last Friday after a collision on the dunes with French driver Stephane Peterhansel. He also received an official warning the same day after his son, Ferrari F1 driver Carlos Sainz Jr. helped him close the door of the buggy, which was illegal since he is not part of the Audi team. An FIA investigation is currently underway.
While he didn’t get the chance to win this one, luckily, Carlos Sainz Sr. was not severely injured. "I am in a little bit of pain at the moment," Sainz Sr. said after the crash.
During the Dakar Rally, the Spanish rally driver, who is also the father of Ferrari F1 Team's driver Carlos Sainz Jr., was involved in a horror crash on Tuesday, January 10.
There are a lot of bad things that can happen in a race, no matter the type of competition. But this one was very dangerous, sending his huge Audi RS Q e-tron buggy flying over a sand dune. The buggy ended up flying further than it should have and landed face-down on the sand. It all happened just 6 km (3.7 mi) into the ninth stage of the rally, which was quite unfortunate for him.
Sainz Sr.'s co-driver, Lucas Cruz, reportedly escaped the crash unhurt, but the 60-year-old needed medical attention. He claimed he suffered severe chest pain, so a helicopter came and airlifted him to the hospital for precautionary checks.
The official Dakar Rally Twitter account wrote after the incident: “@CSainz_oficial, who lost control of his @audisport after 6 km, has thrown in the towel, still suffering from pain in the right side of his torso." It concluded that, “He has been airlifted to the hospital in Riyadh to undergo further medical check-ups.”
While that should’ve normally been the end of it after such a crash, here comes the plot twist: Carlos Sainz Sr. returned to the race. Just a few minutes after it happened, Sainz Sr. reportedly demanded that the helicopter turn around mid-flight, and decided not to go to the hospital to get checked out, because he was in a hurry to come back to the rally. Minutes later, he was at the crash scene.
Although he had no more hopes of winning this one, he could still be classified as finishing the event.
The same Twitter account for the Dakar Rally added later, “New episode in the @CSainz_oficial saga on stage 9: the Spaniard asked the medical helicopter on its way to the hospital to turn back and take him to his car. He is now back with Lucas Cruz waiting for their assistance vehicle.”
Sadly though, they had to abandon the rally, because their vehicle had suffered serious structural damage. Sainz Sr. wrote online, "Unfortunately, in today's accident, the car was seriously damaged and cannot be repaired. It is with great regret that we have to abandon the @dakar, but the important thing is that nothing serious has happened. Thanks, Lucas Cruz and Audi Sport for all the work and dedication."
The crash came just a few days after Sainz Sr. was involved in yet another accident last Friday after a collision on the dunes with French driver Stephane Peterhansel. He also received an official warning the same day after his son, Ferrari F1 driver Carlos Sainz Jr. helped him close the door of the buggy, which was illegal since he is not part of the Audi team. An FIA investigation is currently underway.
While he didn’t get the chance to win this one, luckily, Carlos Sainz Sr. was not severely injured. "I am in a little bit of pain at the moment," Sainz Sr. said after the crash.
???? First footage of @CSainz_oficial and @LucasCruz74's crash, after only 6km in the special. ????#Dakar2023 pic.twitter.com/se7SKV27YD
— DAKAR RALLY (@dakar) January 10, 2023
Lamentablemente, en el accidente de hoy, el coche ha sufrido daños serios y no podrá ser reparado. Con gran pesar tenemos que abandonar el @dakar, pero lo importante es que no ha pasado nada grave. Gracias @LucasCruz74 y @audisport por todo el trabajo y dedicación. #Dakar2023 pic.twitter.com/AfTfnBZlus
— Carlos Sainz (@CSainz_oficial) January 10, 2023
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