GTE-Pro winner Sebastien Bourdais involved in serious accident during Indy Qualifying


dbk

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Dirk and Joey's teammate in the 68 car had a bad one at Indy. They took him straight to the hospital, never lost consciousness, was awake and alert, but it was a massive accident.

Thank God they installed the safer barriers. Was pushing over 231 mph average the 2 laps before the accident. It would be a real miracle if he was completely unscathed. Hopefully he is uninjured.

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STORMCAT

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Sad news! They said they're evaluating him for l lower extremity injuries.:frown it would be sad to break up that Trio for LeMans with the success that they've had ...
 
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dbk

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Sebastien Bourdais was awake and alert and never lost consciousness after recording one of the hardest crashes seen in quite some time at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The Frenchman was on pace to set the fastest speed in the field by a considerable margin when his No. 18 Dale Coyne Racing Honda began to spin entering Turn 2.

The four-time Champ Car champion attempted to catch the slide and had initial luck, but the worst case scenario happened when the car regained rear grip while pointing toward the Turn 2 exit wall. Frighteningly close to a head-on impact, Bourdais flattened the nose of the Dallara DW12 before the right side of the car followed into the wall, and next, a slow barrel with the nose against the wall saw Bourdais sliding sideways and upside down along the back straight.

The rotation continued until he rested on all four wheels and coasted to a stop.

Considerable time was taken to attend to Bourdais in the car before he was extricated and taken to Methodist Hospital. No updates on Bourdais' physical condition have yet been provided.

Prior to his crash, laps of 231.4 and 231.5mph cleared Scott Dixon's average of 230.3mph, and the No. 18 DCR Honda was the only car to eclipse the 231mph barrier.

RACER will provide updates as soon as they are received.
 

GKW05GT

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Very scary watching and a miracle to not be a worse outcome. Everything was smooth and one little slip and correction and immediately into a the wall
 

FENZO

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Had to go look at it. That is impossibly fast. Crazy how the car stayed largely intact. Hope he's ok.

[video=youtube;YeXWqXz0ltw]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YeXWqXz0ltw#action=share[/video]
 

Special K

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We will keep him in our prayers.


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dbk

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Apparently he was complaining of leg pain, but if he's just got a banged up leg, that says a lot about the safety of the cars and the barriers. That was an incredibly hard hit at a really nasty angle.
 

bonehead

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Yikes. "Pelvis" and "Hip Fracture" are pretty vague terms. The fact that he needs surgery on the pelvic injury is not good.

MEDICAL UPDATE: Verizon IndyCar Series driver Sebastien Bourdais was diagnosed with multiple fractures to his pelvis and a fracture to his right hip following an incident today while attempting to qualify for the 101st Running of the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race.
According to INDYCAR Medical Director Dr. Geoffrey Billows, Bourdais will undergo surgery on his pelvis this evening at IU Health Methodist Hospital. Bourdais was on the third lap of his qualification run at Indianapolis Motor Speedway when his Dale Coyne Racing No. 18 GEICO Honda made hard contact with the Turn 2 SAFER Barrier.
Statement from team owner Dale Coyne: “Sebastien is in good hands here at IU Methodist Hospital with the staff and now we just wait for him to recover.”
Additional updates on Bourdais’ condition will be released when available.
 

dbk

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Yikes. "Pelvis" and "Hip Fracture" are pretty vague terms. The fact that he needs surgery on the pelvic injury is not good.

Ugh.

What makes the pelvic injury in particular worrisome?
 

bonehead

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Ugh.

What makes the pelvic injury in particular worrisome?

Depends on location and severity. Fractures of the pelvic ring are a result of HIGH energy trauma. Lots of bad stuff in the pelvis that can get injured along with the bone (i.e. viscera, big blood vessels) which can lead to significant morbidity (and mortality). If the 'hip' and 'pelvis' fracture are actually one and the same, he may have an acetabular fracture (hip socket), which could have devastating effects on his racing career if not treated and/or heal correctly.
 

Cobrar

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He is in some of the most capable hands at Methodist in Indianapolis. Dr. Terry Trammel, has proven to be quite the magician for lower extremity injuries for Indy Drivers. Say a prayer.

And it was a wicked crash. I was nearby, lots of energy absorbed by both the wall and the chassis/tub. Hopefully it helped to mitigate injury to Sebastian.
 
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Triheart7

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That stinks, hope it has no long term disability for him.
 

bonehead

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He is in some of the most capable hands at Methodist in Indianapolis. Dr. Terry Trammel, has proven to be quite the magician for lower extremity injuries for Indy Drivers. Say a prayer.

And it was a wicked crash. I was nearby, lots of energy absorbed by both the wall and the chassis/tub. Hopefully it helped to mitigate injury to Sebastian.

Looks like Trammell retired 4 years ago. Looked up who is heading traumatology at IU. Dr. Virkus did his training at Baltimore Shock Trauma. Best of the best.
 
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ByeEnzo

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He's in good hands with the IndyOrtho guys. Man what a hit.
 

STORMCAT

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So sad.. Praying for the best outcome SB.. we're going to miss the home town boy at Le Mans.. :frown
 

Cobrar

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Looks like Trammell retired 14 years ago. Looked up who is heading traumatology at IU. Dr. Virkus did his training at Baltimore Shock Trauma. Best of the best.

Nope, active as consulting physician. His successor,as you mentioned is quite qualified. The Methodist team is top notch with regard to Speedway injuries.

Edit: Trammel's many contributions (active & post retirement) are really founded in building Indy's on-track responder, transport and off-track (Methodist Hospital/surgical) expertise in trauma and injury areas. If I had to have a high speed accident, Indy is the place to do it.
 
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Apollo

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Wow, how terrible. Amazing the impact that the car and barriers can absorb for these days. Praying for SB to heal quickly and completely.
 

Brombear

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Best wishes to him that it's not too serious.

It's amazing how security has been improved for racing during the past 40 years. I still remember the times when cars vanished into pieces when an accident occured and how many talented guys lost their lives during those times.
 

07XL0027

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I get knots in my stomach watching that. Poor guy.


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Vince H

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That was frightening to witness. Really hoping for a full recovery. He will be missed in LM but I can't blame him for wanting to race Indy.
Still in disbelief at how he lost the back and then it hooked up heading right towards the wall. The car held up incredibly well considering.


Vince H