BRISBANE, Australia (AP) – Porsche Supercup Championship leader Sean Edwards died today in a crash during a training drive in Australia.
Porsche Motorsport said on its website that the 26-year-old Edwards, the son of former Formula One driver Guy Edwards, was sitting in the passenger seat as an instructor in a private driver training session at Queensland Raceway at Willowbank, west of Brisbane, when he was killed.
The car was being driven by a 20-year-old local driver when it crashed into a tire wall and caught fire. The driver was taken to the hospital and is reported to be in a critical condition with severe burns and broken bones.
Hartmut Kristen, head of motorsport at Porsche, said news of the accident “has sparked immense regret at Porsche”.
“Edwards has for many years been one of the most popular and successful pilots in the Porsche one-make race series,” Kristen said. “Our thoughts are with his family and we want to express our deepest condolences to his relatives.”
Edwards had told fans via social media he would be in Australia on a short visit before returning for the last two races of the Supercup series.
Edwards started his racing career in 2003 in Formula Ford, and later competed in Formula Renault UK, British GT and the FIA GT3 Championship before starting his Porsche Supercup career in 2008.
The British Motor Sports Association issued a statement today saying it was “shocked and saddened”.
