Race driver Ollie Millroy thanks rival Loek Hartog for saving his life by pulling him from burning Ferrari during China GT race in Shanghai

A British motor racing driver says he owes his life to a rival who dragged him from the burning wreckage of his car after he crashed during a race in China.

Ollie Millroy said in a post on Instagram on Sunday that he was alive "entirely thanks to one man", Dutch racer Loek Hartog, who "stopped instantly" and "risked his own life to get me out of the car".

Millroy said he would remember Hartog's "incredible act of bravery for the rest of my life".

He continued: "Thank you, Loek. I owe you my life for your selfless act today."

Millroy, 36, was involved in a multi-car crash on the seventh lap of a ‌China GT Championship race in Shanghai on Saturday.

He suffered five broken ribs, a broken collarbone, a broken ​hand and finger, and a bruised lung, but admitted it "could have been much worse".

'Huge fireball' ahead

Video of the incident shows Hartog running towards the burning Ferrari as a thick plume of smoke rises.

He is seen pulling off what appears to be a door before using a fire extinguisher on the flames and, eventually, pulling the British driver clear.

Hartog, 23, said he had acted ‌instinctively.

The Phantom Global Racing driver said: "When ⁠I saw a car turning into a huge fireball far ahead, there wasn't really a decision to make.

"From what I had seen, I genuinely believed the driver ​might not ​be able to ⁠get out by himself. I stopped, got out and went towards the car. There ​was never a moment of doubt. It ​was scary."

In his post Millroy said he was "counting my lucky stars tonight, that's for sure".

He thanked his Ferrari team "for building a car capable of taking that impact" and apologised for destroying it.

The driver said his plan was to "rebuild, recover and then back on the horse".

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The incident will be investigated to see whether it highlighted shortcomings in competition management, emergency response, rescue operations and medical support, organisers said.

Millroy's ⁠team, ​AAI Motorsport, criticised the handling of ​the accident and said it would no longer compete in China GT ​events.

This year's China GT competition is made up of five races, with the final one in Sepang, Malaysia in November.

GT or Grand Touring racing car speeds vary from 155mph (250kph) to 186mph (300kph).

(c) Sky News 2026: Race driver Ollie Millroy thanks rival Loek Hartog