A judge has branded as “foolish” the decision to lend a 21-year-old a BMW sports car, as he jailed the boy racer for causing a horrific crash which saw a victim having to be cut out of his vehicle.

Zeeshan Ali had been given the powerful car by the father of one of his friends and was spotted by police going at three times the speed limit on June 18 last year, a court heard.

He was pursued by Thames Valley Police officers along the Wokingham Road in Reading, Berks., and failed to stop, while reaching speeds of up to 60mph in a 20mph zone, prosecutors said.

When Ali jumped a red light, his grey BMW M4 collided with a car driven by health and safety expert Steve Brown, whose vehicle was propelled into a lamp post and came to rest on the central reservation, a judge was told.

Prosecutor Gabrielle McAvock told how the fire brigade had to cut the victim out of the wreckage of his car.

Ms McAvock described the driving as “unbelievable and extremely dangerous and it is only sheer luck that nobody was killed as a result". 

In a victim impact statement, Mr Brown told how he had suffered multiple fractures to the right leg, fractures to two ribs, fractures to the breast bone and had to spend five weeks in hospital.

Mr Brown had to wear a cast for months and his bone had healed 10 degrees off-straight, the court heard.

Ms McAvock added: “He had a wedding on November 10 last year and was not able to do the first dance and a large number of arrangements were required, including special alterations being made to his wedding suit to account for the cast on his leg.

“It had a large impact on the enjoyment of his wedding and the victim had no choice but to delay going on his honeymoon with hid wife.”

John Riley, defending, told how Ali, who is now aged 22, had been working for Thames Water but had resigned voluntarily after the offence.

Mr Riley said it was notable that the BMW Ali was driving was one of the more powerful of the M-series.

“It takes some time and some considerable experience to handles one of those powerful cars. It is a vehicle that he clearly was not used to and did not really know terribly well”, the defence barrister added.

Judge Alan Blake commented: “And someone saw fit to give it to a 21-year-old”.

Ali admitted causing serious injury by dangerous driving and appeared at Reading Crown Court on May 24 for sentence.

The court heard he also accepted he did not have the right insurance on the day of the incident, but he had not been charged with an offence relating to that.

Judge Blake told Ali: “You were driving a heavily powered BMW M4. You drove it at excessive speed.

“You had borrowed that car from the father of a friend, foolishly willing to lend you an extremely powerful car.”

Judge Blake noted that cannabis was found in the car and said that was probably the reason why Ali had driven away, thinking he could escape the police.

Ali had also abandoned the vehicles after the crash and attempted to escape the scene on foot before being captured by police, who he told the brakes on his car had failed.

Judge Blake sentenced Ali, of Liverpool Road in Reading, Berks., to 26 months in prison and disqualified him for three years and one months.