Drag racers caught in double crash

A drag racing run in the US has left two drivers lucky to escape serious injury after both their cars flipped and rolled in a rare double crash.

Speed demons Monte Green and Don Kritzky were racing in the third round of Top Dragster eliminations at the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals, in Minnesota, when the crash occurred on Sunday.

The accident, which was captured on TV, shows both drivers lose control and flip their racers.

As the footage reveals, Green is just ahead of Kritzky when his car begins to skate in his lane and edge toward the centre, narrowly missing his rival, before flipping over as he tries to correct.

With Green's vehicle barrel-rolling over the finish line, Kritzky then loses control of his seven-second dragster, veering across the track and into a retaining wall, tail-first, before also flipping over and skidding on its side.

During the horrifying seconds of rolling, Green’s dragster loses its nitrous oxide bottle, which breaks free from the chassis and darts around the shutdown area like an unguided missile.

While Kritzky’s dragster bursts into flames as it comes to rest, before track safety officials arrive to extinguish the blaze.

According to NHRA officials, Green was treated and released at the scene, while Kritzky, although conscious and alert, was airlifted to North Memorial Medical Center in Minneapolis for further evaluation.