Austin Dillon’s crash during the final lap of the Coke Zero 400 not long ago was positively terrifying, yet somehow he managed to walk away from the incident unscathed.
Dillon went airborne and was thrown violently into the Catchfence on the outer part of the track, and several other drivers also bumped and spun out of control.
Now, in true NASCAR form, the organization has compiled the footage captured by the in-car cameras attached to the front and back of Jeff Gordon, Kevin Harvick, Aric Almirola, Tony Stewart and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (who won the race), showing us what it would be like to witness the collision from a drivers perspective.
In each case we are privy to the back-and-forth banter between pit crew and driver when, all of a sudden, each pit crew is forced to help guide their respective driver through the wreckage, debris and smoke.
“Oh no…oh my God…holy ****!” said Earnhardt.
No doubt, these sorts of accidents are still shocking to both pit crews and driver, despite what many of us might think.
Five fans were injured as a result of the crash and once you watch the footage it’s easy to understand why Dillon is eager to lower the speed limits on track.
Check out all the harrowing in-car action below and let us know if you think it’s time NASCAR needs to get around to a few changes.
Comments
Make changes? Why? Sports like hockey have legalized bare-knuckle fighting and horrendous injuries, but do you see any changes there?
Accidents are bound to happen and are part of the sport… and why people watch. The speed and inherent danger are what racing is… two goons fighting in hockey is not really part of the sport (even though that is the only reason many watch), yet no changes are made there. In car racing, they know exactly why they are racing and the risks.
You are never going to make it 100% safe. If you don’t want to take the risk then don’t get in the car.
The only thing I would do is eliminate the seats down low and move them up like Kentucky.
The fact is if the racing is not close or competitive no one will watch and the drivers will complain they can’t pass. The inherent thing about racing is it is only competitive on the edge and that is where the drivers have to make their choices. They have done that since the first race. We can continue to look for ways to make it safer but you have to keep the competition on the edge as that is where the winners are separated from the loser.
In years past losing a few drivers a year was common. It was never acceptable but it was expected. We have lowered the risk to maybe one every 10 years or so in NASCAR. To be honest with what they do that is very impressive.
Today drivers react a little more to this as many have never experienced the loss. In years past drivers like Junior Johnson, Ned Jarret and Freddie Lorenzen walked away because they chose not to risk it after Fireball Roberts loss.
That is the choice. Continue to improve safety and the drivers have to always be aware of the risk.
The Late great Dale Earnhardt knew this and accepted it as he had lost his best friend in a crash at Daytona. But he wanted to race more than he was worried about the risk.
I really think this is why Jeff Gordon is walking away. He has a family and enough income to live out his life. He just does not want the race more than anything else. He understands this and I expect some others in time will also think about it. Most of these guys no longer need to race to eat so they start looking at what they have and decide to take a step back and enjoy their lives not taking a great risk for a win.
By the way the Tour de France had a big one too for the same reason. They are competing and are willing to bunch up for the win.