A teenage racing driver who has both of his legs amputated at the QMC has driven a racing car for the first time since his crash.
Billy Monger, from Surrey, crashed into another car, which had broken down on the track at racing speed at Donington Park during a British Formula 4 race on April 16.
He was then airlifted to the QMC, which is home to a regional trauma centre, and was kept in an induced coma for days.
After thanking medics for saving his life, Billy went home on May 6 to mark his birthday weekend after he turned 18 on Friday.
Now 11 weeks on from his crash, he took to the track again driving an adapted racing car around the Brands Hatch circuit.
First time back in a car, it’s been to long💪🏼 #billywhizz #imback pic.twitter.com/JZbiSxRYkH
— billywhizz (@BillyMonger) July 4, 2017
Billy posted a Tweet on Wednesday (July 4) of him getting back into a racing car for the first time with the caption: “First time back in a car, it’s been to [sic] long.”
The Tweet received a number of messages of support including a Tweet from Mercedes F1 driver Valterri Bottas who said: “This is great! Enjoy and keep going Billy.”
Team BRIT, a racing team which helps disabled drivers and injured servicemen compete in motorsport, helped Billy back into a car and sent a Tweet to him which said: “Very pleased to be able to make it happen for you. Welcome back!”
The car was designed to look like a VW Beetle and had steering wheel mounted controls.
Welcome back to Brands Hatch @BillyMonger #BillyWhizz pic.twitter.com/z3XiuvNGTu
— Brands Hatch (@Brands_Hatch) July 4, 2017
Speaking shortly before being allowed home, Billy said: “When I found out the extent of my injuries, I still didn’t think I’d get the support I’ve got.
“When a tragic event like this happens, people pull together – I definitely want to take the positives out of this and make sure that I use it in a positive way for the rest of my life now.
“Still got a few years left in me for sure so I want to prove how much you can do even with something like this.”
