Neither Finn Gehrsitz nor Mattia Drudi could be identified as the party at fault for the accident – team-mates describe it as an “unfortunate outcome”
Finn Gehrsitz’s serious accident at the 2026 Fuji 6 Hours will have no sporting consequences. The race stewards have classified the collision between the German driver and Aston Martin works driver Mattia Drudi as a racing incident. Neither Gehrsitz nor Drudi is being held primarily responsible for the incident, which turned the race on its head in the closing stages and triggered a decisive safety car period.
Just under an hour before the finish, Drudi in the #27 Heart of Racing Aston Martin (James/Robichon/Drudi) and Gehrsitz in the #58 Garage 59 McLaren (West/Gehrsitz/Goethe) were battling for eleventh place in the LMGT3 class when they made contact whilst braking for the first corner. The McLaren subsequently crashed violently into the crash barriers. Gehrsitz was able to exit the wreck unharmed under his own steam.
Following the race, both drivers were summoned to appear before the race stewards. The ruling states that both drivers, as well as a third car emerging from the pit lane, contributed to the fatal chain reaction.
“During the hearing, the driver of car 58 explained that he intended to stay close to car 27 in order to benefit from the ‘side-draft’ and build up a lead”, the official document states. The ‘side-draft’ acts like a brake parachute on the other car when the airflow, caused by driving closely alongside, is directed onto its rear wing.
“Both drivers explained that, given the high speed, the proximity of the cars and the presence of another car leaving the pit lane, they were trying to maintain a straight line,” the document continues. “Ultimately, both drivers regarded the incident as a racing accident, with neither considering the other to be predominantly at fault.”
“ Following a thorough investigation, the Stewards found that no clear or abrupt steering manoeuvre was discernible in either car. It could not be established that either driver was predominantly responsible for the contact. The Stewards therefore classify the incident as a racing incident and decide that no further action is required.”
As the two drivers involved in the incident were unavailable for interviews following the hearing, their team-mates commented on the incident.
“To be honest, it looks like close racing and it’s really unfortunate what happened to the other car,” said Zach Robichon. “I’m glad he’s okay. I think it was a case of ‘nobody wanting to give way’. And yes, I think that’s about it.”
Aston benefits, McLaren suffers twice over
In a crazy twist of fate, the #27 actually benefited massively from the subsequent safety car period. Drudi moved up to eighth place during the neutralisation and fought his way back to second place in the LMGT3 class after the restart.
“What a crazy end to the race,” says Robichon. “Mattia did a fantastic job and kept the car clean. People often say: if you don’t make any mistakes, you’ll end up in a good position, and that’s exactly what happened.”
“I think everyone was super-aggressive after the restart and we simply picked up positions whilst others were battling it out,” he added. ‘[Mattia] positioned the car in the right places, didn’t take any unnecessary risks, and in the end, this is the result.’
Benjamin Goethe, who shares the McLaren with Gehrsitz and Anthony West, confirms the assessment that a routine contact had unfortunate consequences.
“From what I saw on the onboard camera, it looks as though both of them moved slightly towards each other. I think the reason they got so close was that Finn was trying to make use of the ‘side-draft’,” explains the German.
“Normally, this contact would have been just a slight door-to-door brush that wouldn’t lead to a crash. A slight nudge and you carry on. In this case, unfortunately, the wheels touched, causing the car to lose traction and shoot off to the left, which is quite rare. I think it’s very unfortunate and nobody in particular is to blame.”
” “I spoke briefly with Finn before he went to see the stewards,” he adds. “He’s naturally quite disappointed because it ended our race. But the most important thing was to see that he could walk, stand and communicate without any serious injuries.”
The accident was a double setback for Garage 59. The sister car #10 (Au/Fleming/Kirchhöfer) lost the lead in the LMGT3 class during the final pit stop when Kirchhöfer was overtaken by both Corvettes, despite deciding not to change tyres. At the restart, the German, on his older tyres, fell further behind the competition running on fresh Goodyears.
“ “Not changing the tyres was the right move at that point to hold our position on the track, as we didn’t know how long the safety car would stay out,” Goethe analysed. “Unfortunately, it didn’t work out. With the tyres that had already been used twice, we lacked pace. Sometimes the tactic pays off, sometimes it doesn’t. This race simply went badly for both cars.”