Karl Wendlinger (born December 20, 1968 is a former Austrian Formula One driver who competed in the sport from 1991 to 1995. During the first Free Practice session in the 1994 Monaco Grand Prix, on Thursday morning Wendlinger had a major accident in the Nouvelle Chicane after hitting the wall at almost 280 km/h. Wendlinger was in a coma for several weeks and threatened his F1 career. After the accident, the Sauber-Mercedes team decided to withdraw from the race.