Matsuda leaves intensive care after horror Suzuka crash

Matsuda was involved in a high-speed accident at 130R on lap 59 of 77 in the 450km race last Sunday that left the #23 NISMO Nissan Z almost completely destroyed.

The 43-year-old was transferred to hospital by air, but Nissan announced that he had escaped any serious injuries that evening.

On Wednesday, Matsuda updated his social media for the first time since the accident to say that he had left the intensive care unit he had been kept in, although he remains in hospital.

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He wrote on Twitter: “Today, I moved from the ICU to the hospital ward and am able to send messages again.

“I apologise for the great concern I have caused this time.

“I am now working hard on my rehabilitation in order to be well again and to be able to race again as soon as possible. Thank you for your continued support.”

Matsuda had been battling for a spot on the podium at Suzuka when he made contact with the apr Toyota GR86 of Manabu Orido exiting 130R, with the JLOC Lamborghini Huracan of Kosuke Matsuura also caught up in the incident.

Matsuura was able to walk away unaided from his badly damaged Lamborghini.

The #23 Nissan shared by Matsuda and Ronnie Quintarelli, who had led the standings going into Suzuka, will now need to be built up around a new chassis in time for the next race at Fuji in August.

It marks the second time that the two-car NISMO team has had to do this in recent years after Mitsunori Takaboshi’s heavy crash at Fuji last year.

Matsuda and Quintarelli sit third in the standings, which remain provisional subject to the result of the appeal against the 60-second penalty that the car shared by Takaboshi and Katsumasa Chiyo was handed at Suzuka for not completing both mandatory refuelling stops.

NDDP pair Takaboshi and Chiyo took the win by virtue of leading when the red flags were shown for Matsuda's crash, with the race not restarting, but were dropped to fourth by the penalty.