Richard Hammond: 2006 Top Gear Crash Left Permanent Memory Damage

Richard Hammond has shared insights about the lasting impact of his injuries from a significant car accident that occurred during his time on Top Gear.

In 2016, Hammond was behind the wheel of a jet-powered dragster going at 319 mph on the show when a tyre failure caused him to lose control and crash, landing upside down in a field. The accident left him in a coma for two weeks and resulted in serious head injuries, including a frontal lobe brain injury. However, in 2022, Hammond remarkably returned to drive the same car once again.

While speaking with The Sunday Times, Hammond reflected on the lingering effects of his frontal lobe brain injury and how it has started to impact his memory at the age of 54.

“It did have a knock-on effect. I’ve discussed it since with my family. I’m 54 and my memory’s getting shaky,” he admitted. Despite the severity of his injuries, Hammond said he has no recollection of the immediate aftermath of the 2006 crash but has been told he attempted to deliver a “piece to camera” shortly after the incident.

Nonetheless, Hammond sees a silver lining in the ordeal. He noted that the crash played a role in humanizing the Top Gear team beyond being mere car reporters, which helped to boost the show’s early viewership.

Earlier this year, Hammond also reflected on the crash when discussing former England cricket captain Freddie Flintoff’s injuries, which were sustained during a Top Gear filming accident in December 2022. Sharing his perspective on Times Radio, Hammond emphasized that his own crash was something that couldn’t have been prevented.

“But everything that followed from there was great. They had the right contacts in place. They did things in the right order. They got an air ambulance there. Everything was done properly. And that’s all you can ultimately do, isn’t it?” he remarked.

Hammond’s reflections come in the wake of Jeremy Clarkson’s announcement that he is ending his long-term presenting partnership with Hammond and James May. The trio began their collaborative work on the BBC’s Top Gear in 2002 and later transitioned to Amazon for the Prime Video series The Grand Tour, which premiered in 2021. However, it has now been confirmed that The Grand Tour will not be returning.

Clarkson, writing in The Sunday Times, revealed that he is “packing in” his career as a car presenter to focus on other ventures, such as his Amazon series Clarkson’s Farm and his newly-opened pub, The Farmer’s Dog.

“After 36 years of talking about cars on television, I’m packing it in because I’m too old and fat to get into the cars that I like and not interested in driving those I don’t,” Clarkson shared. “What this means of course is that my 22-year partnership with James May and Richard Hammond is now over. You can see our final road trip together on Amazon Prime very soon. It’s emotional.”

Additionally, it was reported earlier this year that Clarkson, Hammond, and May had dissolved their production company, declaring solvency and appointing a liquidator to “wind up” their business. The final episode of The Grand Tour will air on Prime Video on 13 September.

Source: The Sunday Times, Times Radio