Henry Surtees died after a F2 accident

Henry Surtees, a Formula 2 driver, died Sunday evening at a London hospital from his injuries, an official statement confirms. The 18-year-old had a serious accident in the afternoon while racing at Brands Hatch for the second race of the weekend.

During the second race of the F2 weekend, Jim Clarck was unable to control his car. He veered off the track violently midway through the race and hit the tire wall three-quarters on. In the impact’s violence, one of his F2’s tires ricocheted off the wall and continued its course on the track.

The tire bounced on the track and unfortunately struck Henry Surtees’ helmet. The young man, likely unconscious by then, did not manage the next turn and crashed into the tires.

Jim Clark came out alone and unscathed from his single-seater, unlike Surtees. The medical team stabilized the unconscious driver according to the statement, for his transfer to the nearest hospital by helicopter.

Surtees died Sunday evening, shortly after 7:00 pm, according to the official account, from injuries sustained.

Henry Surtees was a driver in F2 since this year and had achieved a podium finish on Saturday during the first race of the weekend. He had previously participated in two Formula Renault championships.

He was the son of John Surtees, a Formula 1 driver in the 1960s and winner of the 1964 championship driving a Ferrari. John Surtees is also known for being the only driver to win a championship in both Moto and single-seater racing. He indeed won the 500cc Moto championship four times just before joining F1.