Henry Surtees dies from injuries in F2 race

John Surtees and his son Henry

Henry Surtees, the son of 1964 Formula 1 world champion John Surtees, has died following an accident in a Formula 2 race at Brands Hatch today.

During the second of the weekend's races, the 18-year-old was struck on the head by a wheel and tire from the car of Jack Clarke, who had spun into the wall exiting Westfield Bend.

Surtees was knocked unconscious in the accident and his car failed to negotiate the following Sheene Corner, running straight off the track and into the barrier.

Medical crews were swiftly on the scene to extract Surtees from the car, before he was taken to the track's medical centre. He was stabilized at the circuit's facility before being airlifted to the Royal London hospital where he was pronounced dead that evening.

Surtees joined the newly formed Formula Two series after racing in the Formula Renault 2.0 series. Yesterday, he became the first Briton to score a podium finish in the series. He finished third in Saturday's race one.

"It's a bit of a relief really to pick up the podium! I only have two points so far this season even though we've had a pole in Brno and been fast in the other rounds. It's nice to actually finish a race – I haven't quite been so lucky in the last four races, so it's good to finally get a solid points finish," Surtees commented.

Our thoughts and prayers are with the Surtees family in this difficult time.