Ken Block’s prized Escort RS Cosworth has been destroyed by fire following a crash during the New England Forest Rally in Maine.
The sequence of unfortunate events unravelled as Block accidentally hit a rock on the apex of a left hand corner. This impact jolted the side of the Escort into the air, flipping it multiple times before it came to a rest in the trees.
Helmet camera footage from Block shows fire spewing out of the hood as soon as the rally car lands upright. Block and his co-driver Alex Gelsomino can be seen rushing to get out of the car before the inferno engulfs the car.
Fortunately, both Block and Gelsomino escaped the crash without any injuries.
“Ken and Alex are safe. It’s unfortunate that the Cossie is no more, but we are very happy that both KB and AG stayed focused on the most important part: getting each other out alive! A reminder to everyone who races, that when it goes wrong, it goes wrong very fast. Be safe!,” Block’s Hoonigan team posted on YouTube.
Block’s Escort RS Cosworth was a 1991 example originally built to compete in WRC’s Group A series. It was one of his most head-turning examples in his collection of Ford rally cars that also includes a rare 1986 RS200 Evolution.
While the car is sadly no more, you have to respect Block for racing many of his prized cars. What’s more, he doesn’t take them to racetracks with huge run-off areas but rather speeds through forests in them where even the smallest mistake can land you in trouble.