The engine was sitting in the infield of the track and smoldering after the crash.
Advertisement
“So it was a wicked ride but thank the good Lord above for taking care of me”.
“It’s not the greatest feeling in the world …” he said of the wreck.
“It’s not really acceptable”, he said. “We’ve got to figure out something”, Dillon said. I think everybody can get good racing with lower speeds, and we can work on that and then figure out a way to keep cars on the ground.
Sparks fly as Dillon’s Chevrolet is airborne towards the crowd. “Fans are all safe”.
“As safe as you try to make it, there’s always going to be an inherent danger for fans”, said Alan Cavanna with Fox Sports.
Dillon then invoked an old racing saying. You just wonder about everyone else in the grandstands.
Dillon talked about it afterward – it is all about the speed.
“You have to be able to move on and trust in the safety equipment”.
“It’s swishing around in there and the belts are loosening with each hit”. I was happy, relieved to see Austin Dillon climb from the auto.
“The first thing is whether he’s alright or not you know”, said Harry Shafer from Pocono Lake.
Once again a NASCAR race at Daytona global Speedway finished with cars flying through the air.
The crash was eerily reminiscent of a 2001 crash at the same track that killed Dale Earnhardt, Earnhardt Jr.’s father and a seven-time Sprint Cup champion, on the final lap of the Daytona 500.
“It scared the [bleep] out of me”, Earnhardt Jr. said. “I (am) more thankful that everyone is OK than standing here in victory lane at the moment”. “You know a wreck like that has such high potential for someone to get injured”.
Austin Dillon’s crash near the end of Saturday’s Coke Zero 400 has NASCAR officials on notice.
As Earnhardt led the field to the finish line, Kevin Harvick touched the back of Denny Hamlin’s vehicle, causing a horrific multi-car wreck. The fence was twisted and mangled.
As for what’s next, track president Joie Chitwood, III points to the ongoing $400 million overhaul called Daytona Rising, which includes new safety measures. A fourth was transported to a local hospital and released early Monday. As the crash happened just after the finish line, Dillon was classified seventh. Track workers and crew members from various teams arrived quickly on the scene to extract the 25-year-old from the upside-down vehicle.
Earnhardt scored his ninth Top 5 finish of the season, but the sober tone of his press conference reflected the mood of the night.
Wheeler, ex- head of Charlotte Motor Speedway, said even with glass it won’t distract from the speed and vibrations if you are close.
The catch fence was torn down in the section where Dillon hit.
“You think about the vehicle getting that high, what has it done and is there any danger to the spectators”, Earnhardt said.
Advertisement
“We were unfortunate (for the crash) but fortunate in the fact that the Good Lord was looking at me and keeping me safe”, Dillon said.
