Auer Taken to Hospital After Accident in Opening Practice

Photo: Jake Galstad/IMSA

Lucas Auer has been taken to hospital following an accident in opening IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship practice for the Rolex 24 at Daytona.

Auer lost control of the GTD class pole-sitting No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo after drifting off line into the grass in Turn 1, slamming heavily into the pit exit wall to bring out the fifth red flag of the session.

An IMSA spokesperson confirmed that the 28-year-old Mercedes-AMG factory driver has been transported to a local hospital for further evaluation, with no other details available at this time.

Auer’s Mercedes was qualified on GTD pole on Sunday by co-driver Philip Ellis, with Russell Ward and Indy Dontje slated to complete the lineup for this weekend’s WeatherTech Championship season opener.

The car sustained extensive front-end damage in the crash, while it’s currently unclear if safety crews cut the roof off to extricate the Austrian driver.

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John