The last round of the 2013 International GT Open at Barcelona ended before even starting for Joel Camathias: the Swiss driver has been victim of a big crash during the private test held on Thursday ahead of the official opening of the event. The Ferrari F458 of Joel went off-track at the end of the straight, maybe because of a stuck throttle. The car spun and hit backwards at high speed the tire barriers.

Very damaged, the car of Ombra Racing shared with Mario Cordoni, couldn’t be repaired on time. A little bit dizzy, and feeling neck pain, Joel was brought to the medial center at the track and then to hospital for further checks. He was found OK and cleared wearing a collar protection, with the recommendation to rest for the next few days.

Joel Camathias: “That’s clearly not the way I wanted to finish the season, but these things happen. It was a big shunt but I don’t remember anything of what happened. We will have to see the data to understand if something got really wrong with the throttle. It’s a pity because on top of everything, we were doing well and were second-fastest in the first testing session. I am very sorry for the team and for Mario, as we really wanted to finish on a high. Now I only can go back home and rest for a few days as advised by the doctors, then it will be time to think about 2014.”