This year's Isle of Man TT spectators came close to witnessing tragedy unfold after bikers whisked past a stray football at 130 miles per hour on Saturday.
Superbike legend John McGuinness was at major risk of an accident after whizzing within a few feet of the ball at the Bray Hill section. The 50-year-old made his Isle of Man TT debut in 1996 and has racked up 23 wins from 100 races around the course.
Twitter user Craig Hughes captured the moment on camera and tagged McGuinness as he uploaded the video. Spectators can be seen waving their arms in warning as TT riders sped toward the unseen obstacle.
The ball in question migrated out of frame and further from causing a potential pile-up within seconds. That being said, even that would have been enough to wreak havoc given the speed riders reach during the race.
As fans pointed out on social media, a rider wouldn't necessarily need to hit the ball in order to crash. The slightest wobble or attempt to dodge at such blistering pace would be enough to unseat a competitor a lot of the time.
It remains unknown how the ball came to be on the road during competition. Bray Hill is situated near some greens and football pitches, but both riders and residents are fortunate no injury was caused on this occasion.
The Isle of Man TT is regarded as one of the most dangerous sporting events on the planet. The race made its debut in 1907 and has since been the host of more than 250 fatalities.
This year's event has now been struck with a third tragedy after the death of Northern Irish rider Davy Morgan on Monday following an incident on the final lap of the first Supersport race. The 52-year-old's greatest feat was winning the North West 200 in 2005, followed by two victories in the Ulster Grand Prix.
That followed other tragedies last week when Welsh rider Mark Purslow died following a crash in qualifying at Ballagarey. Frenchman Olivier Lavorel was then named as the second fatality on Saturday following a crash in the first sidecar event.
