Image via NASCAR/YouTube
People are already calling the crash at Talladega Speedway the “Big One” after 28 cars were damaged in the carnage on the track. In fact, the chain reaction crash was so bad it led to NASCAR officials keeping the race under yellow until just three laps were left, throwing a red flag thanks to a handful of stalled cars on the track. In short, it was a chaotic time.
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For the first 185 laps at Talladega, the race was free of major incidents. But as Austin Cindric pushed his car, pulling away for a more commanding lead, Brad Keselowski pushed his Toyota Camry too hard in an attempt to catch up, crashing into the lead car and losing control, triggering the chain reaction of unfortunate events.
With the pack all bunched up, it was like watching marbles colliding with each other as cars shot off in different directions. Amidst all the tire smoke and chaos, drivers had to do the best they could and hope it was enough.
Different drivers after the race refused to blame the crash on anyone specific, saying it was just the result of everyone pushing to be as competitive as possible in the later stages of the race. It’s true that drivers were pushing the envelope and that’s when things can really go sideways in motorsports. Usually the result isn’t this bad.
Sadly, this crash might be the only thing some people will watch from NASCAR this year. Some are all about the big wrecks like this, caring little about the finer points of the sport.
Ultimately, the race began again with an overtime shootout of two laps, something which is rather common at Talladega. But a crash of this proportion isn’t quite so expected. In the end, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. came off victorious, barely edging out Keselowski by .006 of a second.
Image via NASCAR/YouTube
