A MOTORIST drank at least four beers before speeding along a country road and hitting an oncoming cyclist, leaving her with serious injuries.

Jeremy Lewis, 33, was overtaking “six or seven” cars when he hit 26-year-old Susannah Mangan on the A338 near Wantage. He fled the scene.

Lewis later admitted drinking “three or four bottles of Stella Artois and one can” before getting into his Nissan estate on March 26, but could not be breathalysed as he was not arrested on the day.

Lewis, of Vineyard, in Abingdon, was sentenced at Oxford Crown Court on Friday, after admitting dangerous driving, driving without a licence, failing to stop after an accident and failing to report an accident. The father-of-one, who is expecting another child in February, had his driving licence revoked after a previous conviction, one of 21 offences to his name.

Miss Mangan suffered cuts to her legs and serious hand injuries that have yet to fully recover. Lewis was jailed for a year and banned from driving for three years, after which he must take an extended re-test.