Dutch teenage driver Dilano van't Hoff died as a result of a crash which happened during the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine (FRECA) race in Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium, on Saturday, 01 July 2023.
The 18-year-old driver from Dordrecht in western Netherlands, was competing in the second morning Formula Regional race, at the wheel of the orange Tatuus-Renault bearing the race number #17, entered by MP Motorsport. Near the end of the race, held in wet conditions with heavy spray, the green light was given for the last laps, after an accident had forced the Safety Car to intervene. At the restart, Dilano van't Hoff was caught in a multiple-car accident at the exit of Raidillon, just before the Kemmel straight. In very poor visibility it appeared his car spun out of control and was struck at high speed by the RP Motorsport car driven by Adam Fitzgerald who could not avoid the other vehicle and T-boned it.
Dilano van't Hoff was killed almost instantly. Adam Fitzgerald and the other drivers involved in the mishap, Joshua Dufek, Enzo Scionti, and Tim Tramnitz, escaped injuries.
The Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine is a Formula 3 racing series intended to be a stepping stone to the FIA Formula 3 European Championship. The Belgian seventh and eighth rounds were on the support programme for the 24 Heures de Spa-Francorchamps, scheduled to start later on Saturday. All start line entertainments for the main endurance race were canceled and a minute's silence was held before the start in memory of Dilano van't Hoff.
After a successful karting career, Dilano van't Hoff graduated to cars joining the Dutch auto racing team MP Motorsport since the start of his single-seater career. He won the Spanish Formula 4 Championship in his debut season 2021 and immediately progressed to the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine. But during his first full year in the category he sustained a shoulder injury that sidelined him for six rounds of the season. On his return, Dilano took a strong third at Barcelona. His 2023 season started with a seventh place at Imola and, before the Spa-Francorchamps fatal race, he sat 15th in the FRECA standings.
Dilano van't Hoff's death came four years after Anthoine Hubert's fatal crash at Spa-Francorchamps in similar circumstances on the same section of the track, during a FIA Formula 2 race, on 31 August 2019.
On a black weekend for Dutch motorsport, 24 hours after Dilano van't Hoff's fatal accident, motorcycle rider Joey den Besten of the Netherlands was killed in an accident while competing in an IRRC race in Imatra, Finland, on Sunday, 02 July 2023.
R.I.P
The 18-year-old driver from Dordrecht in western Netherlands, was competing in the second morning Formula Regional race, at the wheel of the orange Tatuus-Renault bearing the race number #17, entered by MP Motorsport. Near the end of the race, held in wet conditions with heavy spray, the green light was given for the last laps, after an accident had forced the Safety Car to intervene. At the restart, Dilano van't Hoff was caught in a multiple-car accident at the exit of Raidillon, just before the Kemmel straight. In very poor visibility it appeared his car spun out of control and was struck at high speed by the RP Motorsport car driven by Adam Fitzgerald who could not avoid the other vehicle and T-boned it.
Dilano van't Hoff was killed almost instantly. Adam Fitzgerald and the other drivers involved in the mishap, Joshua Dufek, Enzo Scionti, and Tim Tramnitz, escaped injuries.
The Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine is a Formula 3 racing series intended to be a stepping stone to the FIA Formula 3 European Championship. The Belgian seventh and eighth rounds were on the support programme for the 24 Heures de Spa-Francorchamps, scheduled to start later on Saturday. All start line entertainments for the main endurance race were canceled and a minute's silence was held before the start in memory of Dilano van't Hoff.
After a successful karting career, Dilano van't Hoff graduated to cars joining the Dutch auto racing team MP Motorsport since the start of his single-seater career. He won the Spanish Formula 4 Championship in his debut season 2021 and immediately progressed to the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine. But during his first full year in the category he sustained a shoulder injury that sidelined him for six rounds of the season. On his return, Dilano took a strong third at Barcelona. His 2023 season started with a seventh place at Imola and, before the Spa-Francorchamps fatal race, he sat 15th in the FRECA standings.
Dilano van't Hoff's death came four years after Anthoine Hubert's fatal crash at Spa-Francorchamps in similar circumstances on the same section of the track, during a FIA Formula 2 race, on 31 August 2019.
On a black weekend for Dutch motorsport, 24 hours after Dilano van't Hoff's fatal accident, motorcycle rider Joey den Besten of the Netherlands was killed in an accident while competing in an IRRC race in Imatra, Finland, on Sunday, 02 July 2023.
R.I.P
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