German racing driver David Schumacher, son of former Formula One driver Ralf Schumacher, nephew of seven-time Formula 1 world champion Michael Schumacher, and cousin of current Ferrari junior Mick Schumacher, suffered a broken due to a horror crash in Germany, during the last round of the DTM season.
The 20-year-old has been competing in the 2022 Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters with Mercedes-AMG Team Winward and was racing at Hockenheimring when he collided with Thomas Preining, causing both cars to hit the barrier. Both cars were fighting for position after a safety car restart when they made contact braking into turn eight, sending them careering into the barriers before bouncing back onto the track.
As David Schumacher bounced back onto the circuit, Denis Olsen was forced to take evasive action as he attempted to avoid him, but crashed himself. His car burst into flames but he escaped unharmed.
David Schumacher’s Winward Mercedes and several other vehicles suffered heavy damage and the race was red-flagged. Schumacher’s father, Ralf, confirmed in an interview for Motorsport Magazine that his son was initially given the all-clear and therefore travelled back home following the first medical checks only to go to hospital where it was discovered part of his back was broken:
“When David came home, he still complained of back pain. We then decided to visit a hospital in Salzburg to have an MRI. It turned out that a lumbar vertebra is broken. According to the attending physicians, this means a break of about six weeks for David.” – Ralf Schumacher said.
The DTM series finished at the weekend, which means that David Schumacher will not have to miss any racing during his six-week rehabilitation and he doesn’t require surgery, as confirmed by German newspaper Bild.
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The 20-year-old finished 28th in the standings, finishing the season without any points.
Thomas Preining blamed David Schumacher for the incident at Hockenheimring, but Schumacher’s mum Cora hit back with a message posted on social media.
‘David Schumacher is doing well, that’s the most important thing. Nevertheless, I have to say that I absolutely don’t think it’s okay for Thomas Preining to make negative comments about our son every time without any self-reflection. He himself had oversteered and did not have his car under control. It’s always easier to look for faults in others.’
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