Brack undergoes surgery following crash

The Swede was racing side-by-side with Scheckter into the third turn on the 188th lap of the 200-lap race when their cars touched. Brack's car became airborne, was caught by the fence and torn apart violently. Brack was extricated from the wreckage and flown to Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas, where he was listed in a serious but stable condition, with a fractured right femur, a fractured sternum and lumbar and fractures to both ankles.

Dr Henry Bock, the IRL's director of medical services, reported that Brack underwent surgery on his ankles and the femur bone on Sunday night at Parkland.

Scheckter, who escaped injury in the crash said: "I don't know what happened."

The severity of Brack's crash was best illustrated by the fact that his car ripped a hole in the fencing that lined the circuit.

Race winner Gil de Ferran said: "You certainly don't have to look too closely to realise there was no catch fencing. It was a horrific scene. Accidents are an unfortunate side of our sport. I have witnessed some very bad accidents during my lifetime in auto racing. Unfortunately, this wasn't the first one, and its not going to be the last one."

IRL rookie of the year Dan Wheldon declined to describe his view of the crash. "I don't really want to describe what I saw. I consider Kenny a very good friend. He and his wife Anita are a very nice couple. My thoughts and prayers are with them.

"He is one of those guys out there who is just a class, class racing driver. You can see from his results - he's been an IndyCar champion, he's won the Indianapolis 500. I just hope we can get back testing with him real soon."