Speedway champion Tai Woffinden "on the mend" after crash
A motorcycle speedway world champion who was involved in a serious crash in Poland last month has said he is "on the mend".Tai Woffinden, from Scunthorpe, had been racing for his club Rzeszow on 30 March when he was involved in a collision with a team-mate.Woffinden suffered multiple fractures and an injury to his chest and was put into a medically induced coma.In a post on social media he said: "Turns out my injuries and an induced coma ain't no joke. I just need a little more time to rest."
Woffinden had only recently made a comeback to the sport after he suffered a broken elbow in June which ended his 2024 season."Please know how much I appreciate all the love and support from all over the world," he added, and promised further updates on his condition later in the week.The sportsman is one of the country's most decorated racers after winning three Grand Prix world titles in 2013, 2015 and 2018. He also finished runner-up in 2016 and 2020.The 34-year-old was born in Scunthorpe, the son of speedway rider Rob Woffinden, but grew up partly in Australia before returning to the town to race for the Scunthorpe Scorpions.Listen to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mirror
12 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Former F1 steward makes 'clear as day' Max Verstappen disqualification demand
Max Verstappen left plenty of people, including one former FIA Formula 1 steward, unimpressed with his seemingly deliberate collision with George Russell in Barcelona Former Formula 1 race steward Johnny Herbert insists Max Verstappen should have been disqualified after "overstepping the mark" at the Spanish Grand Prix. The Dutchman has been widely criticised for appeared to deliberately bang wheels with George Russell during the Barcelona race. Angry already with his car's lack of performance, he was infuriated by contact with Charles Leclerc and Russell after a late safety car restart. And, when told to give up a place to the latter, he lost his temper and initiated the contact out of frustration. He was handed a 10-second penalty which dropped him from fifth place to 10th and dealt a blow to his title hopes. But Nico Rosberg said he should have been disqualified on the live Sky Sports coverage, and Herbert is on the same wavelength as the German. "Yes, I totally agree with Nico Rosberg, Max Verstappen deserved a black flag and should have been disqualified," the ex-F1 steward told RoobetAlternatives. "There's a point where you have to be hard on the driver when there have been many of these types of incidents. "Verstappen is the best driver on the track, with the best racecraft and judgement, but there is always a story with him. It's usually some kind of racing incident we all end up talking about with Verstappen, unfortunately. "It was clear as day that Verstappen's move on George Russell was on purpose. He backed out at the right corner, where he could then attack and retake the place by driving into Russell. To me, that's overstepping the mark." Speaking after the race, Russell also felt his rival should have been black-flagged for his actions. And the Brit also said it was "a shame" that a four-time F1 champion with the undeniable talent Verstappen has would lose control in the way he did. Herbert feels the same way and pointed to the Dutchman's glorious race-winning overtake in Imola just two weeks earlier as an example of how Verstappen can go from the sublime to the ridiculous. He added: "The move he made in Imola made me go 'wow', then the move he made in Spain takes away that 'wow', it totally disappears and it's frustrating. "I've said it before and I'll say it again until I'm blue in the face, Verstappen doesn't need to make these moves. He has the skill to make clear overtakes, and the wheel banging is probably to make a point because of what happened at turn one on the restart with Russell. He felt aggrieved at having to give the place back. "A black flag is something that could have been thought of by the stewards and the race director, you have to stop this wheel-banging type of racing. Anyone can go and crash into another car, it's totally wrong to purposely bang into a fellow driver. It's happened historically, with Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost, with Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill, and with Jacques Villeneuve too. In the 1997 incident, Schumacher was banned for the season."
Daily Mirror
14 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Red Bull chief vows to confront Schumacher over 'nonsense' Verstappen comment
Ralf Schumacher produced a theory for Max Verstappen's moment of madness at the Spanish Grand Prix appears to have angered Helmut Marko, who slammed the German's 'nonsense' Helmut Marko has dismissed a 'nonsense' theory about Max Verstappen after the Dutchman's moment of madness during the Spanish Grand Prix. Angry about two collisions he felt other drivers had caused with him late in the Barcelona race, he appeared to deliberately bang wheels with George Russell. Fortunately, it didn't cause a crash or any significant damage, but Verstappen was handed a penalty which dropped him from fifth place to 10th. And it sparked widespread condemnation of his actions, which also led to three more penalty points on his licence which puts him just one away from a race ban. The general consensus has been that Verstappen suffered a fit of road rage which led to his petulant act. But, analysing the situation for Sky Germany, former Formula 1 driver Ralf Schumacher offered a different theory. He mentioned a paddock rumour which claims Verstappen might be able to retire at the end of this season if he does not finish in the top three in the championship. Schumacher's theory was that he might throw away points on purpose to give himself that option. But it is not a theory to which Red Bull adviser Marko will be subscribing to. "I don't know where he said that nonsense," was his retort when Schumacher's comments were presented to him by Austrian outlet OE24. Marko admitted that Verstappen "could have handled the situation much more elegantly", but insisted that any rumoured release clauses in the Dutchman's Red Bull contract are "not relevant at the moment" and dismissed the details of them as little more than speculation. He also made it clear that he plans to have words with Schumacher, obviously unimpressed by the rumours that the six-time F1 race winner has been spreading. Asked if he plans to confront the German, Marko replied: "The next time I meet him, I'll tell him straight away." Verstappen's penalty saw him take just one point away from the Barcelona race. To make matter worse, his main title rivals scored maximum points with championship leader Oscar Piastri securing his fifth victory of the season and Lando Norris finishing second behind his McLaren team-mate. Verstappen is now 49 points off the lead, but with plenty of time to address that situation with 15 rounds remaining in the 2025 season. However, he offered only a glum outlook on his title chances after the race when he said: "We are way too slow anyway to fight for the title, that was clear again today." Marko knows he will have to play something of a cheerleader role to lift Verstappen's spirits after a damaging weekend. He said: "I'm trying to cheer him up: We're not giving up, but something has to finally change with the car."
Daily Mirror
15 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Lewis Hamilton apologises to Sky Sports F1 pundit over behaviour at Spanish GP
Lewis Hamilton was in a prickly mood during his post-race interview with Sky Sports' Rachel Brookes after finishing sixth at the Spanish Grand Prix on Sunday afternoon Lewis Hamilton gave an off-camera apology to Sky Sports F1's Rachel Brookes for his terse responses during a post-race interview after the Spanish Grand Prix. The seven-time Formula 1 champion had endured another discouraging day while racing for Ferrari. That led to some tension when speaking to Brookes in the media pen following his sixth-placed finish. Hamilton, after being passed by Nico Hulkenberg in the Sauber and later gaining a position due to Max Verstappen's penalty, is still chasing his first podium with his new team. His emotions were obvious when talking to Brookes. To her question about his immediate thoughts on the race, Hamilton tersely said: "Not particularly, it was not a great day. The strategy was good, the team did a great job. Just, that's it." Sensing his downhearted demeanour, Brookes remarked: "I hate seeing you in this mood," which prompted a sharp retort from Hamilton who replied: "Well, what do you want me to say! ? I had a really bad day and I've got nothing to say." Sign up to our free weekly F1 newsletter, Pit Lane Chronicle, by entering your email address below so that every new edition lands straight in your inbox! He continued with exasperation, "It was a difficult day, I've got nothing else to add to it. There's no point explaining it. It's not your fault I've just not got anything to say." Brookes offered some consolation, expressing hope that Ferrari would provide some solutions, to which Hamilton responded bleakly: "I'm sure they won't, the answer is probably just me." Hamilton's subsequent interviews with international media were similarly succinct, with few words spoken and a lack of hope for the future given. His tense Sky interview attracted a lot of attention on social media, leading the Brit to apologise to Brookes privately, as revealed by her colleague David Croft. "He was really down on himself and no-one likes to see that," the commentator shared on The Fast and the Curious podcast. "Because at the end of the day, whether you're a fan or not, Lewis Hamilton is the greatest racing driver we've ever seen. "Statistically he is the greatest, I think he's the greatest even without the stats. He wears his heart on his sleeve and should be applauded for that, because he does a lot of good when he wears his heart on his sleeve. "He did apologise to Rachel Brookes for being so down in the dumps. Off camera he said, 'I'm really sorry about that, I'm just so down'. And that just shows you the extent that he really was down, he's not putting it on for the cameras, trust me." Hamilton had just completed a triple-header of races in Imola, Monaco and Barcelona and now has a week's break before heading to Montreal for the Canadian Grand Prix.
