WATCH | Drag racer crashes into crowd during illegal race, hits boy

A young boy was hit by a speeding Mercedes Benz AMG during an illegal drag race in Johannesburg at the weekend.

The incident‚ which is alleged to have happened in Nasrec‚ was caught on camera and shared on social media platforms.

In the video‚ scores of people are seen lining a non-barricaded road with the two vehicles - an Audi S3 and the Merc - in position for the start of the race.

Moments after the flag is lifted‚ signalling the start of the race‚ the Mercedes driver is seen experiencing some difficulty‚ with his vehicle swerving left and right‚ before heading towards the crowd.

A thud is heard and the crowd of onlookers is seen rushing to the scene. “Give some space! Give some space!” someone from the crowd is heard shouting.

The boy had reportedly gone to the busy Nasrec road on Saturday with his father. His father shared on Facebook that the young boy is recovering.

“My son woke up and asked what car bumped him... told him it was a Merc AMG... he said ‘Yoh! Daddy that’s a fast car... but that guy can't drive‚” the boy’s father wrote.

He also shared that the Merc driver had contacted him privately‚ subsequent to the incident.

The father has not responded to requests for comment. They are not being named to protect the child’s identity.

The Johannesburg Metro Police Department said it had not received any reports on the incident and the SAPS said no case had been opened with them.