Former Champ Car star Michel Jourdain has retired from Rally Germany after his Mitsubishi Lancer caught fire in the last of the morning's stages.
The Mexican racer is in his first season in the World Rally Championship and the Trier-based event is his first ever asphalt rally, but has gone out in dramatic style. A statement from the rally organisers said of Jourdain: "The car caught fire. [The] driver and co-driver are all right. Due to the high risk of a forest fire, several fire engines were required on site."
Jourdain's wasn't the only Mitsubishi to suffer a fire, with Dutch crew Jasper Van den Heuvel and Martine Kolman being hospitalized after their Lancer went off the road at the end of the 29-mile Panzerplatte test.
Another statement on Van den Heuvel said: "Due to a technical failure, the car skidded after the finish line and before the stage stop, and caught fire. Driver and co-driver suffered burn injuries. They may be taken to a special hospital in Ludwigshafen or Homburg."
This afternoon's re-run of the Panzerplatte test is expected to go ahead as normal.