Mansell 'fine' following Le Mans crash

Nigel Mansell escaped serious injury after crashing out just 17 minutes into his debut at the Le Mans 24 Hours race today.

The 1992 Formula One world champion, racing a Ginetta Zytek in the premier LMP1 category, appeared to suffer a puncture that pitched him into the barriers on both sides of the track on the run down to Indianapolis from Mulsanne Corner.

The 56-year-old remained in the car for several minutes after the impact and was eventually helped into a waiting ambulance and taken to the circuit’s medical centre.

Fears over the extent of Mansell’s injuries were calmed when an update on the race’s official website, www.lemans.org, revealed that Mansell was “fine” after receiving “a bump on the head”.