HAMILTON sprintcar driver, Dane Court, is set for an extended period out of the car following a nasty incident after which he was “lucky to be alive” during the Australian Sprintcar Championships at Warrnambool on Saturday night.

The 39-year-old had reached the D Main race, when chaos ensued in the mid pack, resulting in a multi-car crash and Court being rushed to Warrnambool Base Hospital, with plans for the driver to return home yesterday afternoon ahead of surgery in Melbourne on Friday.