Lacking an offer for a competitive drive in 1980, Regazzoni re-joined Ensign. His season came to an abrupt end only four races into the year. He crashed during the 1980 United States Grand Prix West, held at Long Beach, when the brake pedal of his Ensign failed at the end of a long, high-speed straight travelling at approximately 280 km/h. Ricardo Zunino's retired Brabham was parked in the escape road. Regazzoni later recalled, "I hit Zunino's car, then bounced into the barrier. For about 10 minutes I lost consciousness. Then I remember terrible pain in my hips...". The crash left Regazzoni paralyzed from the waist down, ending his competitive career. On recovery, Regazzoni sued the race organisers, claiming their safety procedures were sub-standard. The race organisers won the case.