A “road rage” motorist who punched a pensioner after stopping his car on the inside lane of the A1 was jailed for seven months.
Jamie Winnard, 28, of Pinewood Drive, Grantham, knocked his 71-year-old victim unconscious after their two cars were involved in a collision coming out of a petrol station on the northbound carriageway, near Stoke Rochford.
Lincoln Crown Court heard Winnard was traveling along the A1 when his car was struck a glancing blow by the other vehicle as it came off the slip road.
The court was told Winnard pulled in front of the other car on the inside lane of the dual carriageway, forcing the traffic to stop.
Mark Knowles, prosecuting, said both drivers got out of their cars and other motorists saw Winnard punching the pensioner to the ground.
Mr Knowles told the court: “His head was left just two or three feet from the outside lane where traffic was still speeding past. It was a very dangerous situation.”
The court heard Winnard pulled his victim on to a grass verge but fled to his car and drove away despite the older man still being unconscious.
Winnard was arrested in Grantham after an eye witness took the down the registration plate of his car.
He later admitted panicking and leaving the scene after realising he was in “big trouble”.
His victim spent two days in hospital after suffering bruising and a cut to the back of his head.
Chris Milligan, mitigating, told the court Winnard had thrown one punch in a “moment of madness”.
Winnard admitted a charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm and failing to stop after the accident on November 12, last year.
Passing sentence, Judge Sean Morris told Winnard: “What followed this collision was nothing short of disgraceful. It is rightly termed a road rage incident.
“When that man was out of his car he was obviously an old, frail man, smaller than you. You are a scaffolder, no giant, but you are powerfully built.
“His head was just a few feet away from the traffic, with no doubt HGVs thundering past.”