Hamster, as he’s affectionately called by his Top Gear co-hosts, is has gained consciousness a few times since the accident, which is a good sign for recovery. Jeremy Clarkson told the Sun that he had made Hammond smile by calling him "a crap driver". "He was lying peacefully with a black eye but didn’t react so I tried something else." I said, ‘The reason you’re here is because you’re a crap driver’. He then smiled at me. It was an amazing moment, very moving." Clarkson also went on to say that "apart from a black eye, Richard didn't look like he had a mark on him. He hasn't a broken bone in his body."
Crash investigators are still trying to work out what went wrong with the car, which careered off a runway at approximately 280mph where it flipped over and became embedded in the ground. Possible causes for the crash are driver error, mechanical failure, or strong winds.