 Towards the close of the fourth hour of the race , Dumbreck 's Mercedes came into contact with the GTS @-@ class Porsche 911 GT2 of the Estoril Racing team at the Ford Chicanes , but continued with no apparent damage . On lap 76 Dumbreck was in third place and catching Thierry Boutsen 's Toyota in second place . The Mercedes and Toyota were nose to tail on the run from Mulsannes Corner to Indianapolis at nearly 200 mph ( 320 km / h ) with both drivers partially blinded by the setting sun ahead of them . At a slight right kink in the straight , Dumbreck 's CLR ran over the small apex kerbing and suddenly lifted its front wheels from the ground before somersaulting backwards as the entire car became airborne . The Mercedes rotated three times as it flew in the air , reaching a height of nearly 15 m ( 50 ft ) . The car continued its trajectory as the circuit curved to the right , clearing a marshaling post and the safety barrier on the left side of the track and missing a large advertising billboard bridging the track just ahead of it . Television cameras broadcasting the live world feed captured the CLR 's aerobatics before it went out of view behind trees . The car impacted the ground in an area of woods alongside the circuit that had been cut and cleared only two weeks prior and was inaccessible to spectators . The car dug a rut in the dirt as it continued to tumble in the clearing . The impact forced a tree limb to penetrate the monocoque between the driver 's seat and fuel tank . The CLR came to rest right side up and track marshals rushed to the stopped car . Track officials quickly slowed the race with caution flags and safety cars to dispatch recovery vehicles . Dumbreck was knocked unconscious after the initial impact but awoke and climbed from the car where he was found by the marshals and local Gendarmerie officers in the area . Dumbreck was later given a breathalyser test by the officers due to Le Mans ' use of public roads before being transported by ambulance to a local hospital for examinations before being released . At the end of the 76th lap Lagorce was ordered by the team to bring the remaining CLR directly to its garage ; upon the car 's arrival AMG @-@ Mercedes shut the last of its three garage doors signifying its official retirement from the event . National rivals BMW went on to win the race the following day . 
