Briscoe 'doing fine' in hospital.

Ryan Briscoe says he is doing just fine after the spectacular accident which saw him retire from the Peak Antifreeze Indy 300 at Chicagoland Speedway on Sunday.

Briscoe made wheel to wheel contact with the right front of Alex Barron's Red Bull Cheever Racing Dallara-Toyota as he made his way up the order in the race, with the contact sending Briscoe skywards, nose-first towards the catch fencing.

The Australian hit the fencing with the underside of the car first, his machine splitting in two as it ripped through the nearest fence post, leaving a gaping hole. With more than half a tank of fuel on board there was a brief explosion as the car split, the cockpit spinning violently down the track where Scott Dixon narrowly avoided collecting his teammate.

The Target Chip Ganassi Racing driver was airlifted to Advocate Christ Hospital in Oak Lawn under the supervision of Senior Medical Representative Dr Jason Linder, and was listed in good condition, but remained overnight for observation and in-depth examinations.

Initial medical assessments indicate that Briscoe sustained a concussion, two broken collarbones, a bruised lung and contusions to his legs and arms.

Briscoe will be transported to Indianapolis' Methodist Hospital Monday afternoon under the care of Indy Racing League medical staff, and will have further evaluation and treatment supervised by Dr Terry Trammell and Dr Kevin Sheid - possibly remaining in hospital under observation for the next few days as a precaution.

"I remember the initial contact with Alex and thought that we might just get away with not hitting the wall, but suddenly I was airborne and the rest is a little fuzzy," Briscoe said. "I was really happy to see the Delphi Safety crew guys so quickly and they took great care of me, even reminding me to give the crowd a quick wave to let them know I was okay.

"The HANS device and the safety features on the car did what they were designed to do and I credit them for helping me walk away from the accident relatively unscathed. I was happy to hear that Alex and Kosuke [Matsuura - who also spun] were okay as well. I haven't seen a replay of the accident yet but I hear it was pretty spectacular. It's been a difficult and disappointing weekend for the Target team but I'm doing just fine."