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Car Dealer Struck by Ex-Formula 1 Star
July 31, 2008 2:34 PM
Eliza Browning, ABC News, London
A car dealer in England was sent flying into the air when he was struck by a van driven by one of his favorite car racers:
German ex-Formula 1 star Michael Schumacher.
On Sunday afternoon, Martin Kingham, 39, was putting up the security barriers at his car dealership, Millfield Garage, when a Fiat van struck the edge of the security barrier while driving by the entrance.
The barrier hit Kingham in the leg and he went flying onto the hood of a nearby car in the sales lot.
“Before I knew it, there was this almighty crash and I ended up on the bonnet of the car,” Kingham told ABCNews.com.
When the van turned around Kingham saw the driver, he knew the face looked familiar, but he couldn’t place it.
“I had that feeling that I knew who he was, but it didn’t click at first,” said Kingham.
It wasn’t until he phoned the police and tried to describe the driver of the van that he realized the striking resemblance to the racing star Schumacher.
Kingham said when Schumacher’s “entourage” arrived at the scene he knew he was right.
Police arrived at the scene to investigate the accident soon after the crash. Kingham sustained minor injuries, including a bruise on one side of his leg, but he said he is not planning on pressing charges against Schumacher.
“At the end of the day,” said Kingham, “it was just an accident.”
But Kingham, who has followed Schumacher’s successful career, said his estimation of the racer went down after Sunday’s accident.
“All I wanted was an apology, that’s all I wish I had,” he said.
“After the police left, the first thing I did was phone my wife to tell her but she didn’t believe me,” Kingham said.
A spokesman for the seven-time Formula 1 champion told BBC News that the incident had taken place and that Schumacher had cooperated with the police.
July 31, 2008 in Eliza Browning | Permalink | User Comments (4)
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If that's what fame does to a person....then I'm glad it's not me. Couldn't even pick up the phone to apologize for hitting another human is not only unacceptable but quite disgusting. He really should have gone back in person to apologize...that would have been the aproppriate thing to do.
Posted by: Jan | Jul 31, 2008 2:49:33 PM
He didn't even apologize. What a loser.
Posted by: Ben Straub | Jul 31, 2008 2:57:56 PM
How hard would it be to say "I'm sorry" and set the poor guy up with some free tickets?
Posted by: obamamama | Jul 31, 2008 3:41:17 PM
If I were the car dealer and the racer was being a jacka** I would sue.
Posted by: billedmundson | Sep 13, 2008 3:18:53 PM
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