Winward Racing’s Lucas Auer is currently hospitalized in Daytona Beach, Fla. after crashing his Mercedes-AMG GT3 in the opening practice session Thursday (Jan. 26) for the Rolex 24 at Daytona. According to a press release, Auer suffered “significant lumbar fractures” in the crash.
Auer had just finished the fastest GT lap in the session when he dove into the infield on another hot lap. Exiting turn 2, Auer dropped his right rear wheel off the track and into the dirt. That loosened the Mercedes and pitched him head-on into the concrete wall that separates the track from the warmup lane for those coming out of the pits.
Auer was in significant pain after the crash and a significant amount of time was spent extricating the Austrian racer from the Mercedes. Once that was done, he was taken to the hospital. At last check, Auer is awake and alert at the hospital and communicating with teammates in Daytona, in addition to his family back in Europe.
Winward Racing’s crew attempted to make some repairs on the stricken Mercedes-AMG GT3 in the garage after the wreck. However, they indicated in their press release that the car is beyond repair. That said, they will not be withdrawing from the race. A replacement car is en route to Daytona Beach from the team’s shop in Texas.
Given Auer’s back injuries, he will be out for the remainder of the weekend in Daytona and beyond. The team is currently seeking a replacement driver and will announce that replacement as soon as they can.
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