The Frenchman went off the road at the 12.4 km point, in the 40.8km Panzerplatte Lang stage, crashing into the trees which tore the front end of the car away and ripped out its engine.

Watch the video of what happened…

The crew, once extricated, were airlifted to hospital where Moreau had surgery on his broken left leg.

“I can remember the whole thing very clearly,” Lefebvre recounted in a Q&A on his Facebook page. “I had noted a right-hand turn with a corner that could be cut.

“Given the marks left by the other competitors, I had turned in slightly early but the car drifted onto the outside of the corner and we hit a row of hilkensteins [the huge stone barriers designed to halt tanks].

“The last rock turned the car around and sent it flying into the trees. That was what caused the most damage.”

Lefebvre thanked the strength of his Citroen DS3, and added: “I think we were well protected by the car. You can never control the outside environment in rallying and on this occasion, we paid a fairly heavy penalty for going off.

“We're going to need some time to get back on our feet. The only thing that is really getting to me is the fact I might not be able to take part in the Tour de Corse.”

Co-driver undergoes surgery

Co-driver Moreau explained what happened in the immediately aftermath of the accident.

“Eric Camilli and Benjamin Veillas, who had started the stage just after us, were the first to arrive on the scene,” he said. “We're friends and when they saw what had happened, they hurried over to help us.

“Then the medical teams arrived and they managed to get me out of the car. We were then taken to hospital by helicopter.

“When you look at the state of the car, I feel pretty fortunate. The survival cell and the various items of equipment did their job, especially the reinforced sections which are not mandatory, but which were added to improve safety for the crew.

“I feel we've had a lot of support, both from the medical staff and from my friends and family. It's going to take a bit of time for the fractures to heal, but I'm determined to recover as quickly as possible.

“I had an operation yesterday to reduce a fracture in my leg and everything went well. According to the doctors, I will be able to fly home in the middle of next week. I will also be back in competitive action as soon as I can.”