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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Top Gear host has another crash | Top Gear host has another crash |
| (about 4 hours later) | |
| Top Gear presenter Richard Hammond was involved in another car accident at the weekend - less than a year after nearly losing his life in a 288mph crash. | Top Gear presenter Richard Hammond was involved in another car accident at the weekend - less than a year after nearly losing his life in a 288mph crash. |
| The 37-year-old skidded off the track during a 24-hour Le Mans-style race at Silverstone on Saturday, the BBC said. | The 37-year-old skidded off the track during a 24-hour Le Mans-style race at Silverstone on Saturday, the BBC said. |
| The host was not injured and continued the race once his vehicle - a BMW 330 DTi Sport - was repaired. | The host was not injured and continued the race once his vehicle - a BMW 330 DTi Sport - was repaired. |
| Hammond has downplayed the incident, dismissing his second crash in 12 months as "a bit of a collision". | |
| "Reports of my shunt this weekend have been greatly exaggerated," he continued. | |
| Jeremy and I did not enjoy a 'comforting' hug. I would rather be hugged by a threshing machine Richard Hammond "During one of my driving stints, a much faster car tried to overtake and there was a bit of a collision. It was nobody's fault. | |
| "I managed to limp the car to the side of the track and wait for a truck to take me back to the pits, where it was quickly fixed." | |
| Hammond and fellow presenters James May, Jeremy Clarkson and masked driver "The Stig" had been taking turns at racing the £100,000 car. | |
| "During the race, at night, Richard was driving and another car shunted him off the track," said the BBC's spokesman. | |
| "Richard wasn't hurt at all but the car was damaged. It was taken back to the pits and repaired before Richard carried on with the race." | "Richard wasn't hurt at all but the car was damaged. It was taken back to the pits and repaired before Richard carried on with the race." |
| Complete recovery | Complete recovery |
| Hammond also denied reports that Clarkson had given him "a 'comforting' hug". | |
| "I would rather be hugged by a threshing machine and he would rather hug a chainsaw," he joked. | |
| "He called me a twat for crashing and I told him his race suit made him look like a hot air balloon. It's as simple as that." | |
| He was sharing the driving with his co-hosts Clarkson and MayLast September Hammond crashed while driving a jet-powered car at speeds up to 300mph at Elvington airfield, near York. | |
| He was airlifted to hospital where he was treated for swelling to the brain and bruising, but eventually made a complete recovery. | He was airlifted to hospital where he was treated for swelling to the brain and bruising, but eventually made a complete recovery. |
| The Health and Safety Executive identified failings by the BBC over the crash but found no grounds for prosecution. | The Health and Safety Executive identified failings by the BBC over the crash but found no grounds for prosecution. |
| Hammond has since taken part in another high-speed stunt for the BBC show, driving a Bugatti Veyron as it raced a Typhoon fighter jet at RAF Coningsby, Lincolnshire. | Hammond has since taken part in another high-speed stunt for the BBC show, driving a Bugatti Veyron as it raced a Typhoon fighter jet at RAF Coningsby, Lincolnshire. |
| A BBC spokesman said this weekend's incident was not comparable to last year's accident. | A BBC spokesman said this weekend's incident was not comparable to last year's accident. |
| The race, he said, was "a public event any amateur could enter". | The race, he said, was "a public event any amateur could enter". |
| "Normal safety procedures were in place," he added. | "Normal safety procedures were in place," he added. |