Tragedy averted in MOTO GP practice session at Mugello

Michele Pirro survived a horrendous 350km/h crash during a practice session for his home Italian GP on Friday. The MotoGP test rider, 31, took off on a straight before skidding across the track and into the gravel just 20 minutes into the second practice at Mugello.

Pirro was knocked unconscious when he hit the ground, but by the time he was taken to the circuit medical centre for checks, he had regained consciousness, according to motorsport.com. The Ducati tester braked at the end of a 1.1km straight before Turn 1 when his rear tyre lifted up.

This launched the rider spectacularly into the air and the session was immediately red-flagged. Pirro eventually came to a stop on the gravel and was quickly attended to by medical staff before being taken to a Florence hospital by helicopter for further examinations.