Photo: Formula Motorsport Limited
Enzo Fittipaldi sustained a broken heel in his frightening accident at the start of the Formula 2 feature race in Jeddah with Theo Pourchaire, who avoided serious injury.
Pourchaire’s ART Grand Prix car failed to get away from third on the grid when the lights went out at the start of the race and was hit from behind by the Charouz Racing System entry of Fittipaldi, who had picked up significant speed from the ninth row.
The race was immediately red-flagged so that both drivers could be attended by medical crews, and 50 minutes later an FIA statement said both had been conscious and taken to hospital. Later on Sunday, Pourchaire left hospital following checks and took to social media to report he was “globally fine”.
Late on Sunday night, Fittipaldi’s brother Pietro – who was at the track in Jeddah in his role as reserve driver for the Haas Formula 1 team – revealed the nature of his injury: “Enzo is awake/alert and resting at the hospital. He has a fracture in his right heel but thankfully things are much better than what we all expected.”
While there has not yet been an official statement confirming the status of either driver, on Monday the younger Fittipaldi published his own post on social media.
“I am very grateful that I only broke my heel and have some cuts and bruises,” he said. “Thank you all for the messages, as well as the FIA and medical staff for taking great care of me. I am very happy that Theo is OK. I will be back on track soon and faster than ever.”
Hey guys, I am very grateful that I only broke my heel and have some cuts and bruises. Thank you all for the messages, as well as the FIA and medical staff for taking great care of me. I am very happy that Theo is ok. I will be back on track soon and faster than ever.
pic.twitter.com/3aLqaEQtgn
— Enzo Fittipaldi (@enzofitti) December 6, 2021
In his own post on Sunday, Pourchaire said that “for the moment I don’t know if it’s already the end of the season for me”. The final round of the F2 season takes place in Abu Dhabi this weekend with Pourchaire currently fifth in the standings. He had previously suffered a fractured arm in a collision in Baku, but recovered enough to take part in the following round at Silverstone.
Jeddah was Fittipaldi’s third round in F2 since making the step up from F3 with Charouz, and he scored his first points in Saturday’s second sprint race when he finished in seventh place.