Former NASCAR and Indy Car driver Paul Tracy was involved in an accident on Friday. The Canadian driver-turned-announcer took to his Instagram account to share the details of the crash.

The 55-year-old is a passionate bicycle rider and often posts about his new adventure online to share with his community. However, on Friday, while going about his usual routine of riding his bike Tracy was hit by an SUV. An initial update shared by the former IndyCar driver stated that he dislocated his shoulder and did not sustain other major injuries.

But he soon shared a gutting update about his condition following the gruesome crash. Tracy said he suffered three broken vertebrates in the lower back. “Getting transferred to trauma center looks like 3 broken vertebrae lower back 👎🏼👎🏼👎🏼 this is going to f**k up my fitness 😤😤😤.”

Paul Tracy’s last competitive racing appearance was at the Camping World SRX Series this year. However, he was suspended from the series for igniting a major crash at the Motor Mile Speedway. Tracy is known to be aggressive and brunt with his racecraft, but his actions at the last race were detrimental to his continued presence in the SRX Series.

Since then, he’s been focused on his cycling adventures, and unfortunately for him, it will need to be put on hold. At least, until he regains full fitness. The NASCAR community, along with his ardent supporters, took to special media to send out best wishes and messages for his speedy recovery.

The racing community reacts to Paul Tracy’s accident

Tracy has an extensive portfolio of competing in different disciplines in auto racing. Which includes his short stint in the NASCAR Xfinity and Truck Series. In 2006, he ran a partial schedule, competing in races of the Xfinity Series. However, his best result (P20) came while running in the Truck Series in 2008. It’s hard to know if he made any strong connections with the drivers during that time. But the likes of Mark Martin and Kenny Wallace sent out their wishes to him. “Really sorry. ❤️”, Kenny Wallace wrote. This was followed by Martin’s comment, “Damn bro, that sucks.”

Initially, it did feel like Tracy’s injuries weren’t egregious since he was able to post updates despite the accident. However, with the latest news on the severity of his back injury, fans were hoping for his speedy recovery. “Damn. Here I was thinking it wasn’t bad and making some jokes because you had been posting. Guess you’re just tough. 💪.”

Paul Tracy has been on the receiving end of the brutal crashes throughout his racing career. In 1998, he was involved in a brutal crash during an IndyCar race at Long Beach. His race was launched up in the air and crashed into the tire barriers. The following year, he ended up wrecking hard while racing against Michael Andretti at Chicagoland Speedway. However, he always found a way to script a comeback, and a fan was hoping for the same this time around. “I haven’t seen a crash, your fault or not 😉, that didn’t make you comeback stronger than before! ❤️🙌💪.”

Recently, NHL star Johnny Gaudreau and his brother lost their lives after a drunk driver hit them while they were riding their bicycles. The driver who caused this accident remains in police custody and awaits a decision by the court. Tracy was indeed lucky to have survived a similar accident, which could’ve gone south. This incident was brought to light by a fan on Instagram, “Get well Paul. Glad we didn’t have another Gaudreau incident.”

A fan even suggested a safer alternative to Paul given the rise in such acts on the city roads. One that would help maintain his fitness goals while also avoiding the hustle and bustle of the city traffic. “Sorry to see that happen to you mate. I got off my road bike two years ago I alway feared what’s happened to you. MT Biking is a great substitute. Get well soon 💪.”

Healing and recovering from multiple broken vertebrae can be a tedious and uncertain journey. So he will have to be careful with his recovery journey to be able to regain full fitness.