During the China GT Championship race in Shanghai on September 5, 2026, British driver Ollie Millroy was involved in a multi-car crash that left his Ferrari engulfed in flames on the track [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]. Dutch driver Loek Hartog, aged 23, immediately abandoned his own car and rushed to Millroy’s aid, using a fire extinguisher to douse the flames before pulling Millroy out of the burning vehicle ahead of emergency crews arriving [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6].

Millroy suffered serious injuries, including five broken ribs, a broken collarbone, a broken hand and finger, and a bruised lung from the impact and fire [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]. The car burned for more than one minute after the crash before it was extinguished [1, 2, 5]. Millroy, aged 35 or 36, has three children and cannot remember details from 30 seconds before to one hour after the accident due to shock and injury [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].

“I am still alive tonight, entirely thanks to one man,” Millroy said. “Loek Hartog stopped instantly with no flag marshals or fire crews in sight, and risked his own life to get me out of the car” [1]. Millroy added, “One day I will tell our three kids this story and Loek will be the biggest superhero in history in their eyes too” [2].

Hartog described his rescue as an instinctive reaction. “When I saw a car turning into a huge fireball far ahead, there wasn't really a decision to make. I genuinely believed the driver might not be able to get out by himself,” he said. “There was never a moment of doubt. It was scary” [2, 3]. He called the experience terrifying but said many would have reacted the same way [2].

The race was immediately red-flagged and did not restart after the crash [4]. Millroy’s team, AAI Motorsport (also known as FIST Auto), announced it would no longer participate in China GT events due to concerns over safety standards and emergency response shortcomings. The team criticized the race organisers for negligence during the incident [1, 2, 3, 5, 6].

The China GT Championship organising committee apologized for the accident and promised a thorough review and improvements in competition organisation, emergency response, rescue, and medical services [1, 2, 3, 6].

Millroy remains hospitalized as of September 7. His team’s withdrawal from the China GT series was officially announced on the same day [1, 2, 3, 6].