Top Gear legend The Stig unmasked as star reveals he 'nearly died' in horror crash that left Freddie Flintoff with life-changing injuries

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Paul Rees was in the passenger seat, giving expert driving advice to Flintoff when he crashed while filming Top Gear in 2022.

Rees, 41, has reflected on the accident in a new interview, claiming he “genuinely felt like we were going to potentially die, because we had no protection”.

The driver said, like Flintoff, he has been left with PTSD after the crash and “still has no idea” how he survived, considering the three-wheeler vehicle – a Morgan Super 3 – had no roof, and he wasn't wearing a helmet.

“I was acutely aware the only thing holding my head off the tarmac was Fred’s head,” Rees told The Sun of the moment they hit the road. “My vision went red. I now know that was blood from Fred spraying me in the face”.

Read more: Andrew 'Freddie' Flintoff's passenger sues BBC for £150k over Top Gear crash

Read more: Freddie Flintoff reveals Ricky Hatton's death made him finally open up about mental health

According to court documents, Rees is seeking up to £150,000 for personal injury.

It had not previously been publicly known that anyone else was inside the open-topped three-wheeled Morgan Super 3 when it overturned at the Top Gear test track.

Flintoff suffered serious facial and rib injuries in the crash. BBC Studios, in its legal defence, said Rees did not complain of any injuries either at the time or afterwards.

Rees claimed he was rushed to hospital after a two-hour wait, having been allegedly told by a solo medic on site: “I’m not equipped for this.”

He was given the all-clear, but found out a year later that he’d broken his back.

The company denied it had been negligent “as alleged or at all” and claimed Rees’s “faulty instructions” caused the accident.

The available court documents give fresh details about the crash, which happened at Dunsfold Park Aerodrome in Surrey on 13 December 2022.

According to BBC Studios’ defence, microphones inside the car captured Flintoff expressing concern at one stage when the vehicle’s front wheel lifted as he took a corner.

The broadcaster said Rees then reassured him the car could not roll over.

Approaching the same corner again, BBC Studios said Rees told Flintoff: “Now turn right... now full power, full power."

The defence filing added: “A front wheel lifted and because on the claimant's instruction the presenter continued to apply power the Morgan turned over."

The court documents also state: “At no time in the period after the accident did the claimant suggest that he had suffered any injury in the accident.”

In a statement, BBC Studios said: “We dispute this claim and are defending it. As it's now before the courts, it would be inappropriate to comment further.”

In 2023, Flintoff reached a £9m settlement with the BBC 10 months after his horror crash.