Ollie Millroy and Loek Hartog call for safety improvements after Shanghai rescue

Ollie Millroy and Loek Hartog have set out a shared ambition to improve motorsport safety following the Shanghai crash in which Hartog pulled the British driver from a burning Ferrari. In an interview published by the Guardian on Thursday, the pair described concerns about the emergency response and their desire to bring the racing community together to prevent similar incidents.

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Millroy, 36, said the accident had exposed areas where further safety improvements were possible despite the progress made over recent decades. He wants organisers and circuits to act on those shortcomings. Hartog, the 24-year-old Dutch racer who stopped to help him, said a driver should not have to interrupt his own race to provide that kind of assistance.

The crash happened during a China GT race on 5 September. According to the Guardian’s account, Millroy’s Ferrari caught fire after being struck by a car involved in another collision. Hartog stopped, worked to reach the cockpit and used an extinguisher brought by a marshal before pulling Millroy clear after two attempts. The rescue took just over a minute.

The Guardian reported that a marshal appeared after 47 seconds and medical assistance took more than four minutes to arrive. Hartog said the marshal who brought the extinguisher was not wearing flame-resistant clothing. He also recalled difficulties communicating with people around the injured driver as he tried to stop them moving Millroy, who was confused and feared he had hurt his back.

Millroy’s injuries included six broken ribs, lung damage, a broken hand and fractures affecting his collarbone and neck. He told the newspaper that his recovery was proving more difficult than he had anticipated. After stopping strong pain medication, he said he was struggling with severe pain and could no longer envisage taking part in a team test at Sebring that he had previously hoped might be possible.

Despite those difficulties, Millroy said his desire to drive competitively had not diminished, although he was also enjoying time at home with his family. Hartog expressed hope that they could race against each other next year. For now, their stated joint objective is to press for better safety, while Millroy continues a recovery he acknowledged he cannot force or accelerate.