Carlos Sainz will not participate in Rally Australia, the final round of the World Rally Championship, due to ongoing neck pain following Tuesday's accident during the recce.

“In a long and fast left corner, I picked the right line and slid the car into the tightening bend," Sainz explained. "A sudden change of grip launched our car towards the outside where we hit a big tree at around 80 or 90 km/h.”

“The doctors strongly advised me not to drive considering another impact of the same kind could lead to serious consequences”

Overnight, Sainz took the decision not to take part in the second day's recce. Later this afternoon, he went through further medical checks that confirmed the original diagnosis.

Only one Xsara WRC will start driven by Sébastien Loeb and Daniel Elena.