A HEART condition may have caused a Monmouthshire racing driver to lose control of his car and crash into a tyre wall, killing himself, an inquest heard yesterday.
Company director Rhys Howells, 61, of Earlswood, near Shirenewton, died in an accident at Llandow race track in the Vale of Glamorgan on April 26 last year.
Cardiff coroner's court was told Mr Howells was suffering from a myocardial bridge with a coronary artery, which was a narrowing of his arteries.
He was driving a one-seater Pillbeam Hillcrest car when it crashed into a protective tyre wall on a long bend at high speed.
The inquest heard from track marshal John Pinch, of Barry, who saw the accident from the track tower.
He said he saw Mr Howells drive straight off the track at about 100mph without any attempt to brake or turn.
Consultant pathologist Dr Stephen Leadbeater, who carried out a post-mortem examination, found Mr Howells died of head and chest injuries. Tests also revealed he was suffering from a heart condition.
Dr Leadbeater said the tension caused by driving fast could have put Mr Howells' heart "in jeopardy" and caused him to lose control.
Deputy coroner for Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan Geraint Williams said Mr Howells had been driving carefully. He recorded a verdict of accidental death.
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