Felipe Massa was airlifted to a local hospital following a crash in qualifying that knocked the Brazilian unconscious.

Massa ran over a piece of debris on track towards the close of the middle 15-minute session that had been deposited earlier by Rubens Barrichello's Brawn GP.

The debris appeared to lodge beneath the Ferrari, seemingly locking into place not only the steering column, but also the throttle.

On-screen graphics showed the throttle was open as he straight-lined off the track at turn four, ploughing nose first into a tyre barrier.

Skid marks across the considerable run-off area showed the 28-year-old had at least attempted to brake before the collision.

However, the fact he made no attempt to turn away from the impact suggested a further problem with the steering.

The force of the collision knocked Massa unconscious as he showed no signs of movement inside the cockpit of his car for some time before finally being attended to by on-track paramedics.

After being taken to the circuit's medical centre in what the FIA described as "a stable condition", Massa was then flown to a city hospital for further examination 22 minutes after his shunt.

Click here for full details of Saturday's qualifying at the Petronas Race Centre