Jos Verstappen was involved in a major crash during the Rallye de Valonne in Belgium, ending his weekend early. The incident happened during the Loyers special stage on Sunday morning, where the 54-year-old lost control of his car in a high-speed section.
Jos Verstappen’s rally crash: What happened?
Driving a Skoda Fabia RS Rally2, Verstappen was caught in a sharp right-left sequence, before the car hit a tree on the left and flipped. The impact was described as severe, with photos taken from the scene showing extensive damage to the car. Despite the severity of the crash, both Verstappen and his co-driver, Jasper Vermeulen, escaped uninjured.
The crash ended what had been a strong comeback campaign for Verstappen. He started the rally on the back foot after receiving a 40-second penalty for speeding on a contact section, dropping him to 17th. However, he fought his way back into the field with a series of strong stage performances, including a stage win, and by the end of the week had risen to third overall.This year’s Rallye d’Vallon also presented an additional challenge for Verstappen, as he was competing without his regular co-driver Renaud Jamol, who was out with an ankle injury. Vermeulen stepped in for the event and was adapting to read the peace note in English for the first time.Verstappen entered the event as the Belgian rally champion, but a heavy crash forced him to retire from the fourth round of the championship.
