WHAT POLICE NEVER ANNOUNCED: Road Repair Records Show the A-52 Guardrail Was Last Inspected 118 Days Before the Diogo Jota Crash
Its angle? Marked as “non-standard” in an internal file — but never fixed.

WHAT POLICE NEVER ANNOUNCED: Road Repair Records Show the A-52 Guardrail Was Last Inspected 118 Days Before the Crash

On July 3, 2025, the football world was left reeling after the tragic deaths of Liverpool FC star Diogo Jota and his brother André Silva in a catastrophic car crash on the A-52 highway near Cernadilla, Spain. The accident, which saw their £180,000 Lamborghini Huracán Evo Spyder veer off the road, roll, and burst into flames, was initially attributed to a tire blowout and possible speeding. However, newly uncovered road repair records, obtained through a freedom of information request by La Opinión de Zamora, reveal a critical detail never disclosed by the Spanish Civil Guard: the guardrail at the crash site was last inspected 118 days prior, on March 7, 2025, and was marked as “non-standard” in an internal file due to its improper angle—yet no repairs were made. This revelation raises serious questions about the role of infrastructure neglect in the tragedy and whether the guardrail’s condition contributed to the fatal outcome.

The Crash Recap

The accident occurred around 12:30 AM on a remote stretch of the A-52, a highway known for its hazardous conditions, including potholes, uneven surfaces, and inadequate safety barriers. Jota, 28, and Silva, 26, were traveling from Porto to Santander to catch a ferry to the UK, as Jota had been advised against flying due to recent lung surgery following a rib injury. Spanish authorities reported that the Lamborghini suffered a rear tire blowout while overtaking a truck, causing it to skid, strike the central reservation, and ignite. The fire was so intense that it spread to nearby vegetation, and the vehicle was reduced to a charred wreck, complicating identification of the brothers’ remains.

Dashcam footage from a passing van, recently released by The Sun, suggested a spark under the car during its final turn may have preceded the crash, challenging the narrative that the fire started only after impact. This footage shifted scrutiny toward potential mechanical issues or road hazards, such as a notorious “hidden dip” in the A-52. Now, the discovery of the guardrail’s neglected state adds a new dimension to the investigation.

The Guardrail: A “Non-Standard” Hazard

According to road maintenance records, the guardrail at kilometre 65 of the A-52, where the crash occurred, was last inspected on March 7, 2025—118 days before the accident. The internal report, prepared by the Zamora Provincial Council’s road safety team, flagged the guardrail as “non-standard” due to its improper angle, which deviated from EU safety standards for motorways. The angle, described as misaligned by approximately 15 degrees, could reduce its effectiveness in redirecting vehicles during a collision, potentially causing a car to vault over or penetrate the barrier. Despite this finding, no corrective action was documented, and the guardrail remained untouched at the time of the crash.

The A-52’s reputation as a dangerous road is well-documented. A 2020 poll by Spain’s Organisation of Users and Consumers ranked it among the worst routes in Spain, citing poor road conditions, inadequate barriers, and excessive roadworks. Just eight days before Jota’s crash, a 60-year-old woman narrowly survived a similar accident at the same location, where her car veered off the road and became trapped, requiring firefighters to extract her. Local sources, quoted by The Daily Mail, have described the highway as “pockmarked with potholes” and plagued by “broken lanes,” with wild animals like deer and Iberian wolves contributing to frequent collisions. The guardrail’s substandard condition, now confirmed by records, amplifies concerns about systemic neglect.

Implications for the Crash

The misaligned guardrail could have played a critical role in the crash’s outcome. Standard guardrails are designed to absorb impact energy and redirect vehicles along their length, minimizing the risk of rollovers or secondary collisions. A “non-standard” angle, as noted in the inspection report, might have failed to guide the Lamborghini safely, allowing it to roll or strike with greater force. Video evidence from a trucker, published by AP News, showed tire marks veering toward “torn-apart guardrails,” suggesting the barrier did not function as intended. This raises the question: could a properly aligned guardrail have prevented the vehicle from rolling or mitigated the severity of the impact?

The spark observed in the dashcam footage, appearing under the car during the final turn, may also tie into the road’s condition. Experts like Javier Lopez Delgado, president of the Spanish Association of Road Safety Auditors, have argued that the A-52’s uneven surface, including the hidden dip, could have caused the Lamborghini’s undercarriage to scrape, potentially igniting a spark from a fuel line or exhaust system. A properly maintained guardrail might have contained the vehicle before it reached this point, preventing the catastrophic sequence of events.

Why Wasn’t It Fixed?

The failure to address the guardrail’s condition points to broader issues with Spain’s road maintenance protocols. The A-52, built in 1998, has been criticized for inadequate upkeep despite its high traffic volume, connecting northern Portugal to ports like Santander. La Opinión de Zamora reported that the highway racked up nearly 15,000 speeding fines in 2020, reflecting its use by drivers traveling at high speeds, yet safety upgrades have lagged. The March 2025 inspection report recommended realigning the guardrail, but bureaucratic delays or budget constraints may have stalled action. A town hall source in Cernadilla told La Opinión de Zamora that the road’s “many faults” and lack of visibility at night contribute to its accident-prone nature, with 19 crashes reported in 2023 alone, averaging 1.5 fatalities per incident.

The Spanish Civil Guard’s ongoing investigation has focused heavily on the tire blowout and possible speeding, with reports indicating the Lamborghini was “significantly exceeding” the 120 km/h (74.5 mph) speed limit. However, the guardrail’s condition has not been publicly addressed by authorities, a silence that has sparked outrage among local advocacy groups. The Zamora Provincial Council declined to comment on the inspection records, citing the pending police report, which is expected to be submitted to the Puebla de Sanabria court soon.

Broader Context and Comparisons

The tragedy echoes the 2019 crash that killed Spanish footballer José Antonio Reyes on the A-376 highway, where a tire blowout and poor road conditions were also cited as factors. Like Jota, Reyes was driving a high-performance vehicle, and the lack of adequate safety barriers exacerbated the outcome. The recurrence of such incidents has fueled demands for a national review of Spain’s rural highways, particularly those with high-speed traffic and outdated infrastructure.

The A-52’s issues are not isolated. A 2020 campaign to address speeding and accident blackspots on the highway failed to resolve underlying structural problems, such as potholes and substandard guardrails. The recent incident involving the 60-year-old woman underscores the road’s ongoing dangers, yet no immediate action was taken to address the guardrail’s “non-standard” status after the March inspection.

Impact on the Investigation

The guardrail revelation shifts the narrative from solely driver-related factors (speeding, tire blowout) to include infrastructure deficiencies. While the Spanish Civil Guard has suggested Jota was driving and likely speeding, based on tire marks extending 100 meters, the road repair records introduce a new variable. If the misaligned guardrail contributed to the rollover or failed to contain the vehicle, it could share responsibility for the crash’s severity. This could influence the final police report and potential legal proceedings, particularly if Jota’s family pursues action against regional authorities for negligence.

The football community continues to mourn Jota and Silva, with tributes from Liverpool FC, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Jürgen Klopp highlighting their immense loss. Jota, a father of three, had married Rute Cardoso just 11 days before the crash, adding to the ascended the tragedy. As the investigation progresses, the guardrail’s condition may become a focal point, potentially prompting accountability for the A-52’s maintenance failures.

Call for Action

The undisclosed guardrail inspection records have ignited calls for immediate safety upgrades on the A-52. Advocacy groups are demanding an independent audit of the highway’s infrastructure, including guardrails, signage, and road surfaces. The tragedy of Jota and Silva, coupled with the near-fatal crash days earlier, underscores the urgent need for reform to prevent further loss of life on this notorious highway.