To call the accident life-changing would be an understatement. A return to F1 was the goal that helped to fuel his rehab, and while he had a brief symbolic run in a Jordan in 1993, his career at the top level was over.
“After all that pushing and shoving, in the end I had to accept I was never going to get back to F1,” he said.
“One big problem was that the muscle down the front of my left thigh was fused to the bone and I couldn’t bend my leg. The cockpits were much smaller then, and you had to be able to get out of the car, from being fully belted in, in five seconds.”
He would continue to have operations over the next two decades, and he was able to race in other categories – and even gave a Lotus 102 a run at Goodwood in 2011.
Unfortunately a moped accident in 2019 and another leg injury was a huge setback that he had to overcome.
“I don’t feel bitter at all now about what happened,” he said in 2010. “At first I did feel bitter, big time. When you’re in F1 you’re treated like a king, free cars, free clothes, free everything. You don’t have to go to work. Racing cars isn’t work, you’re just being paid a pile of money to enjoy yourself.
“I had my three-year deal with Lotus, everything was moving well, and then somebody switched off the light. One moment the light is on, illuminating the room, and the next moment it’s off. Everything you want to achieve is taken from you.
“It’s hard to deal with. I wouldn’t say I got depressed, because I’m not that sort of person, but there were times, through all the operations, when I did get low.
“I caught MRSA during one of my spells in hospital – that took a long time to kick. But motor racing is dangerous. It’s down to you. No one puts a gun to your head and says, ‘You’ve got to drive that car today.’”
It’s a remarkable story of resilience and fortitude. Perhaps one day it would make a good movie…