Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez, who is on loan at Como, escaped without injury after his £300,000 Ferrari 488 Challenge Evo hit a barrier at Germany’s Nurburgring during a driving event. The crash reportedly happened at around 70mph on Monday afternoon, and the circuit was closed while workers cleared the damage. According to Footballtoday.com.
Sanchez walks away from Nurburgring crash as track day is disrupted
The Sun reports that the Spanish goalkeeper lost control of the car at around 70mph. Eyewitness accounts place the crash at about 2:30pm, as he approached the Caracciola-Karussell corner. That heavily banked bend is among the most challenging parts of the 12.9-mile circuit, and the front of the Ferrari was badly damaged.
A 58-year-old British holidaymaker who saw the incident said Sanchez was travelling too quickly before he hit the barrier. According to the witness, the circuit was closed at once. Drivers were later led around in a convoy while workers removed the wreckage and repaired the barriers, and the disruption lasted around an hour.
Despite the severity of the impact, Sanchez reportedly got out of the car almost immediately and helped to gather the broken pieces. Photographs from the scene showed a recovery truck taking the car away, with bags used to collect parts of the destroyed bonnet. The witness said he kept his racing helmet on for some time.
The day was organised by Circuit Days, a company that runs track days for enthusiasts at the Nurburgring. Participants pay to drive their own vehicles around the circuit in designated sessions. Sanchez attended with six friends, who were watching the day’s activities, and hundreds of spectators and drivers discussed the crash afterwards.
The Nurburgring was nicknamed the ‘Green Hell’ by former Formula One champion Jackie Stewart and has a long record of dangerous accidents. It was also where Niki Lauda crashed in 1976, suffering severe burns. Earlier this year Sanchez was fined £1,520 and given three penalty points for speeding in his Mercedes in Crawley.
