Ashley Cooper Loses Battle For Life
The Confederation of Australian Motor Sport (CAMS) has confirmed V8 Supercar driver Ashley Cooper has passed away in Royal Adelaide hospital.
Cooper 27, of Ulladulla in NSW, died following a crash in last Saturday’s Fujitsu development series race at the Clipsal 500 in Adelaide.
An experienced motor racing competitor, Cooper was critically injured when his vehicle impacted with a safety barrier at the exit of a corner at speeds of more than 200kph.
Cooper was quickly attended to trackside by the event’s senior medical personnel and subsequently transported to the Royal Adelaide Hospital by ambulance.
CAMS President, Colin Osborne, said that Cooper’s passing was something that would be felt by the entire Australian motor sport community.
“Firstly our thoughts and sympathies go to Ashley’s family and friends, particularly his wife Casey and two children and parents Alan and Maree,” said Osborne.
“It is always a very sad day when any member of the motor sport community is taken from us.
“The motor racing community involves a close knit group of competitors and officials and I know that everyone will be feeling the loss of Ashley.
“CAMS will conduct its own full independent investigation to determine the circumstances leading to the incident.
“In the mean time, CAMS and event officials are working with the relevant civil authorities to assist with their investigations.”
V8 Supercars boss Wayne Cattach said there were no indications of safety equipment failure in the crash. (first reports suggested seat mountings or five point harness failures may have contributed - ed)
Cattach defended current safety measures and street circuits, saying it was an unusual accident and he’d seen other drivers walk away from even worse-looking crashes.
“This one didn’t look all that bad to me,” he said.
“(But) at the end of the day, motor sport is a dangerous pursuit and we try and make it as safe as possible, but when you’ve got a 1350kg car travelling at say 260 an hour top speed, it’s a risky combination.”
It was the second serious accident in the Fujitsu series, following New Zealand driver Mark Porter’s death at the Bathurst 1000 meeting in 2006.
Cattach said he was open to recommendations to improve safety measures, throwing his support behind an independent investigation into Cooper’s death, as well as any police or coronial inquiries that may take place.
He said Cooper, the 2006 V8 Utes rookie of the year, was a highly-regarded driver who be sorely missed.
“We will do everything we can to support Ashley’s family at this time of need,” he said.
Cross Posted @ Asian Motor Sports
