Photo: Sebastian Rozendaal / DPPA
Trident’s Formula Regional European Championship driver Roman Bilinski has revealed that he has broken his back, and therefore will be out of the cockpit for the forseeable future.
The 20-year-old Pole missed last weekend’s FREC round at Zandvoort due to being involved in a road accident earlier in the week. He offered no further information at the time, beyond a photo he posted to Intagram showing him in hospital.
Bilinski fell from ninth to 11th in the standings by missing two races, but his season start is still impressive as he is one of three drivers to have started on pole this year and one of six to claim a top-two finish so far.
“Hey everyone I can finally come out with the truth… last week I have broken two vertebrae in my back,” said Bilinski in an Instagram post this Tuesday.
“I’ve had an operation and now I have six screws holding everything in place. I’m now undergoing recovery and soon rehab. Unfortunately I will not be able to get back in the car and do what I love for some time! Thank you for all the messages and support. I hope to see you all soon.”
The next FREC round is on June 21-23 and takes place at the Hungaroring, then three weeks on from that the paddock heads to Mugello. Paul Ricard hosts round six the week after that, then there is a big gap in the schedule before an intense September when FREC races at Imola, the Red Bull Ring and Barcelona. There is then a month-long break before the season finale at Monza.