Formula One Driver Loses Eye

Formula One test driver, Maria de Villota, lost her right eye in a crash during a testing session and remains hospitalised in Britain, with teammates describing her condition as critical but stable.

The 32-year-old Spaniard sustained serious injuries to her head and face after colliding with a team vehicle at the end of one of her straight-line test runs at Duxford Airfield in Cambridgeshire, north of London. She underwent a lengthy procedure by neurological and plastic surgery teams, her team said, adding that de Villota was in the operating theatre from Tuesday afternoon until Wednesday morning.

“We are grateful for the medical attention that Maria has been receiving,’’ said John Booth, Marussia team principal. “However, it is with great sadness that I must report that, due to the injuries she sustained, Maria has lost her right eye.’’

De Villota was testing the team’s racing car for the first time Tuesday after joining Marussia in March. She is the sport’s first full-time female driver since Italy’s Giovanna Amati raced with the Brabham team in 1992.