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Moment Brit racing driver's Ferrari bursts into flames after smash... before 'superhero' rival rushes towards fireball and saves his life

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Cite

Hicks, G. (2026, September 7). Moment Brit racing driver's Ferrari bursts into flames after smash... before 'superhero' rival rushes towards fireball and saves his life. Daily Mail. https://www.dailymail.com/sport/formulaone/article-16110273/Moment-Brit-racing-drivers-Ferrari-bursts-flames.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Daily Mail · collected 2026-09-07 · by Gethin Hicks

Quick Summary

Ollie Millroy, a 36-year-old British racing driver, was involved in a crash at the Shanghai International Circuit during a China GT event. His Ferrari burst into flames after being smashed by two other cars while navigating a bend. Rival Dutch driver Loek Hartog pulled up beside the wreckage and risked his own life to free Millroy from the fireball, eventually using a fire extinguisher to put out the blaze. Hartog's heroic actions allowed Millroy to escape with serious injuries, including 5 broken ribs, a broken collar bone, and a bruised lung.
Written by AI on 2026-09-07, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

A racing incident at the Shanghai International Circuit in China has resulted in a British driver, Ollie Millroy, being trapped inside his Ferrari after it burst into flames following a crash with two other cars. Loek Hartog, a Dutch driver and rival of Millroy's, stopped to pull him out of the car, using an extinguisher to put out the fire before freeing Millroy from the other side of the vehicle. Millroy suffered significant injuries in the incident, including six broken ribs and damage to his hand and lung, but was able to thank Hartog for saving his life on social media. The organizers of the China GT Championship have announced that they will review the safety procedures at the circuit following the incident.

Written for “Heroic Racing Driver Rescue” on 2026-11-01, grounded in this article and the 3 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Heroic Racing Driver Rescue
Sports · 4 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 15% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
Daily Mail
Hedges 2 of 35 claims Outlet record 68/100
ABC News (AU)
Hedges 0 of 4 claims Outlet record 68/100
Both report
The incident at the Shanghai International Circuit in China involved Ollie Millroy's Ferrari bursting into flames and Loek Hartog rescuing him, resulting in serious injuries for Millroy.
This one adds
Michael Doyle's article provides a concise summary of the incident, stating that Dutch racing driver Loek Hartog has been hailed as a hero. The predicted follow-up from organisers is also mentioned, implying that there may be some criticism of the safety measures in place.
The other adds
Gethin Hicks' article provides more detail about the crash, including descriptions of the horrific circumstances and Millroy's injuries. It also includes quotes from Millroy thanking Hartog for saving his life on X. The article implies that the rescue effort was more complex than initially reported, with Hartog needing to find a fire extinguisher to put out the blaze.
Framing
While both articles report the incident in a serious tone, Gethin Hicks' article seems to frame Loek Hartog as a "superhero" who risked his place in the race to save Millroy's life. In contrast, Michael Doyle's article focuses on the organisers reviewing the safety measures after the incident, implying that there may be some criticism of their procedures.
ABC News (US)
Hedges 0 of 1 claims Outlet record 70/100
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
20
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
15%
3 of 20 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
68/100
Daily Mail's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
4
Sports
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-09-07 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

Daily Mail · 8613 article(s) · 20 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 20 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Gethin Hicks
53 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
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🔮 If some didn't like it then they could have walked out!
Also by Gethin Hicks
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 53 articles by Gethin Hicks →

Topics

Brit British Daily Mail Dutch Ferrari

Subjects

Hartog PERSON · 6× Millroy PERSON · 6× Brit NORP · 4× British NORP · 2× Dutch NORP · 2× Loek PERSON · 2× Loek Hartog PERSON · 2× Ollie Millroy PERSON · 2× Daily Mail ORG · 1× Google ORG · 1×

Narrative

A British driver almost lost his life after a horrific crash China GT event sent his vehicle up in flames Ollie Millroy was left trapped inside a Ferrari which was sent spiraling off the track Rival Dutch driver Loek Hartog (right) however sacrificed his place in the race to pull the Brit to safety Millroy (left), who suffered serious injuries in the crash, later took to X to thank Hartog for 'saving his life' The Brit suffered significant injuries in the crash, but thanked the Dutchman for 'saving his life'.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-07
🔮 But Hartog could not initially pull the Brit to safety, meaning he had to scramble to find a fire extinguisher to put out the blaze.

Claims (20 extracted, 3 hedged)

- See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred Source This is the moment a British racing driver's Ferrari bursts into flames - before a heroic rival rushes to his rescue. asserted
rival → see → rescue
Ollie Millroy, 36, had been racing in a China GT event at Shanghai International Circuit when two cars smashed into his Ferrari while navigating a bend. asserted
cars → race → bend
In video footage of the incident, Millroy's vehicle is seen spiraling off the track while aggressive flames and huge plumes of smoke billow above it. asserted
flames → see → it
Rival Dutch driver Loek Hartog is then seen pulling up beside the wreckage before hurriedly unbuckling his seat belt and jumping out - sacrificing his chances of winning the event in the process. asserted
Hartog → see → process
Through a camera near the driver's seat of Hartog's car, the 23-year-old can then be seen desperately rummaging through the Ferrari's remains in a bid to free Millroy, who had become trapped in the fireball. asserted
who → see → fireball
But Hartog could not initially pull the Brit to safety, meaning he had to scramble to find a fire extinguisher to put out the blaze. uncertain
he → pull → blaze
Fire crews then arrive to combat the fire while Hartog and track staff pull Millroy away from the fireball. asserted
Hartog → arrive → fireball
Eventually, the clip cuts to show Hartog and Millroy perched on a wall by the side of the track after the Brit was miraculously pulled to safety. asserted
Brit → cut → safety
A British driver almost lost his life after a horrific crash China GT event sent his vehicle up in flames Ollie Millroy was left trapped inside a Ferrari which was sent spiraling off the track Rival Dutch driver Loek Hartog (right) however sacrificed his place in the race to pull the Brit to safety Millroy (left), who suffered serious injuries in the crash, later took to X to thank Hartog for 'saving his life' The Brit suffered significant injuries in the crash, but thanked the Dutchman for 'saving his life'. asserted
Brit → lose → life
Sharing a picture from his hospital bed, Millroy wrote: 'I am still alive tonight, entirely thanks to one man. asserted
I → share → man
@loekhartog_ stopped instantly with no flag marshalls or fire crews in sight, and risked his own life to get me out of the car. asserted
@loekhartog → stop → car
I don't remember anything between 30 seconds before the crash and 1 hour after it, but I will remember his incredible act of bravery for the rest of my life. asserted
I → remember → life
One day I will tell our three kids this story and Loek will be the biggest superhero in history in their eyes too. asserted
Loek → tell → eyes
I'm laying here tonight with 5 broken ribs, broken collar bone, broken hand and finger and a bruised lung, but it could have been much worse. uncertain
it → lay → ribs
I owe you my life for your selfless act today'. asserted
I → owe → act
Hartog, meanwhile, posted on his own social media: 'When I saw a car turning into a huge fireball far ahead, there wasn't really a decision to make. ' asserted
car → post → fireball
From what I had seen, I genuinely believed the driver might not be able to get out by himself. uncertain
driver → see → himself
I stopped, got out and went towards the car. asserted
I → stop → car
There were moments where I didn't know I would actually be able to get Ollie out. asserted
I → be → Ollie
But this isn't about what I did, and I'm sure many people in the same position would have reacted exactly the same way.' asserted
people → react → position
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