Young rider shows daring, grit after accident

Racing accidents are a common occurrence on the race track. There are some wrecks that are vicious and frightening while others are just mild fender benders. But what’s more important whenever an accident happens is to see the driver walking away from the crash with his life. It could happen at anytime, anywhere.

The ongoing Asian Formula 3 series also has its shares of mishaps. During its last race in Subic, Don Pastor, one of the AF3 young guns had an accident that cost him the race. During the morning race, Don was well ahead of rivals Dado Peña and Tyson Sy when he suddenly lost traction at the Bus Stop chicane and crashed rearward into the barriers on lap 10 of the 15-lap race.

Don, who was stunned by the impact, climbed out of his cockpit and collapsed beside his car, prompting race officials to deploy the safety car and ambulance. The medical team placed a neck brace on Don and was taken to hospital where he was checked for injuries. Hours later, the doctors said he just suffered from minor bruises and was pronounced fit to participate in round 4, which was scheduled later in the day.

Before the start of the second race, some of the spectators as well as his fellow drivers even asked him if he was ok. He signaled, "OK lang."

You can really see that the kid is hurt. But because he has a big heart, he decided to continue racing.

"I was following Dado (Peña) closely when we came upon a backmarker in a blue car. Dado hit his brakes to avoid the blue car and then I also had to brake hard, which caused me to swerve and spin out," Don recounted.

"I don’t remember actually hitting the tire wall. I probably blacked out for a few seconds. When I got out of the car I felt a sharp pain in my back and I couldn’t carry my weight. I thought that I had broken my back.

Thanks to the safety features of the F3 car, all I got were just bruises."

Don was also proud when he learned that his brother Enzo became the first Filipino to achieve a podium finish this season.

During the afternoon race, lady luck seemed to have turned her back on the Pastor brothers. From the start, Enzo immediately came to grips with the car’s lack of balance, which made it difficult for him to turn into the corners and dropped him down the order. On Lap 6, his shifter couldn’t downshift and he spun at the Bus Stop chicane but was able to continue. He eventually finished in ninth.

In the Promotions Class, Don was chasing down the leading Tyson Sy up to lap 13. As they came up to the hairpin, International Class driver Richard Joson clipped and punctured Pastor’s rear tire with only two laps to go. He raced on with a deflating rear tire and finished seventh overall, fourth in the Promotions Class and third in the Philippine National Formula 3 Series.

It’s good to see what Don showed in the Subic race. He proved to everyone that he has a heart of a champion, always ready to compete and thrives on whatever adversity he encounters in the track. He is very well on his way to winning it all someday.