Sam Bird sent to hospital after left hand fracture

Immediately after an excellent recovery drive at the second race of the London E-Prix, British driver Sam Bird was sent to hospital for precautionary checks following an injury sustained on the first lap.

The Jaguar TCS Racing driver didn’t go to the media pen after the race, and instead went straight to hospital. An X-ray on his left hand showed that the Brit had a displaced midshaft fracture. The Brit somehow persevered the entire race, and managed to rescue eighth-place despite having started towards the bottom end of the grid.

With the season finale in South Korea just under two weeks away, his participation has been thrown into doubt. The first lap saw carnage on the exit of Turn Six and at Turn Sixteen, where drivers piled into each other. Bird’s injury sums up what was a dire home weekend for him, where in Race One he retired on the opening lap following a collision with Edoardo Mortara and Jean-Éric Vergne.

Bird’s team released the following statement Sunday afternoon, to clarify what had happened and what the plan is going forward.

It read: “Shortly after the race, Sam Bird was taken to hospital for precautionary checks on an injury sustained during the first lap in Round Fourteen in London. Following an X-ray he has sustained a displaced midshaft fracture on his left hand. Sam will see a specialist as quickly as possible to determine the best treatment. Sam’s participation in the upcoming Seoul E-Prix on August 13-14 will be assessed in the coming days.”