Daytona 500

[JaxRed]

Don't know how many saw the finish, but that wreck was REALLY bad. Waiting word on Newman who was taken to hospital.

[adkindo]

I saw it.....assumed it is bad when they brought out the black tarp when they pulled him from car, and did not even report if he was conscious. I assume Hamlin did not know how bad it was, because that appeared to be one of the most classless acts I have ever seen with him celebrating.

[adkindo]

people in Halifax are telling friends and family he is alive.

[Roy Tucker]

I don’t Hamlin knew. I wouldn’t blame him. He had just won in a crazy ending.

When it took Fox 10-15 minutes to show a replay, I knew something was wrong. Replay showed a wicked bad wreck.

[adkindo]

I don’t Hamlin knew. I wouldn’t blame him. He had just won in a crazy ending.

When it took Fox 10-15 minutes to show a replay, I knew something was wrong. Replay showed a wicked bad wreck.

I assume you are correct, but someone from his team should have told him....Newman went across the Finish line upside down, they had to see that...Fox handled this wreck just like they did with Earnhardt.....they were showing and discussing everything but Newman which was a bad sign. Btw, tomorrow is the Earnhardt anniversary...same track, final lap and close to the same spot where Newman went nose first into wall.

Actually....probably about 100 yard away from where E went into the wall.

[adkindo]

https://www.nydailynews.com/resizer/I3GVjMtYyZ3zrzeWc6pd0DEA8oo=/415x276/top/arc-anglerfish-arc2-prod-tronc.s3.amazonaws.com/public/FHLOWLN5AVFETOD7PBMGGY5DMI.jpg

https://www.wfla.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/71/2020/02/AP20049043781506.jpg?w=900

https://s.abcnews.com/images/US/daytona-500-01-rt-jef-200217_hpMain_16x9_992.jpg

[Roy Tucker]

From ESPN:

Both team owner Joe Gibbs and Hamlin apologized in the media center for celebrating while Newman was being tended to on the track. Each said he didn't know the extent of what happened.

"We really didn't know," Gibbs said. "We got in the winner's circle and that's when people told us."

[RedsBaron]

I was watching the race. It was a bad crash. I was like a lot of others, recalling the Earnhardt crash, and remembering how there were no immediate reports as to his condition after his crash. I pray Newman is ok.

[adkindo]

Newman's wreck in Daytona from 17 years ago.....

https://twitter.com/CeeingTheDraft/status/1229579867202539520

[JaxRed]

Announced he is in serious condition with non life threatening injuries. That's about as good as you could have hoped for.

[adkindo]

Announced he is in serious condition with non life threatening injuries. That's about as good as you could have hoped for.

yeah, I would guess if his injuries are serious, he may just retire. He is in that age range where most guys step away.

Tell me those cars are not freakin amazing!

[Stray]

Probably the scariest crash I've ever seen live. These cars are so safe but the impact, at that speed on the drivers side of the roof was terrifying. One of those worst case scenario crashes drivers talk about and I feared it could be fatal. Cannot believe he's gonna survive it. The engineering going into these cars is next level stuff. I hope he can fully recover from whatever injuries he took.

[JaxRed]

The part that got to me was was when the car was on fire and the fuel was dripping.... that was like the longest 30 seconds until they hit it with the fire extinguishers.

[adkindo]

The part that got to me was was when the car was on fire and the fuel was dripping.... that was like the longest 30 seconds until they hit it with the fire extinguishers.

I was at my parents house watching with my dad, and that was his concern. He kept repeating they need to get there soon with that fluid leaking...and it seemed like it took them forever to get there. I am not a big Nascar fan, and since Junior retired, I basically watch parts of the Daytona 500 and a few more during the season. Actually last night, I was getting aggravated because I wanted to leave, and they kept restarting.....and Bubba Wallace was just close enough that I wanted to see if he could make a push into to the Top 5. That said, I really did not think much of the wreck when it happened. I feel like I have seen similar wrecks, even going up into the fencing upside down and the car being shredded....and it always seems like guys walk away with minor scratches. I only became concerned when time passed and they were not pulling him out....then the way Fox was so limited in information being given. It also makes it clear that if Dale Earnhardt would have just been wearing a HANS device, and Daytona had the soft walls at the time.....he walks away from his wreck without a scratch.

[adkindo]

Btw, Twitter is just a mess when that crap happens.....I saw one guy posted that he lived in Daytona, and said that there is a direct tunnel from the Race Track to the local hospital (Halifax)......which is absurd. Also, saw this one lady claiming she was from "Halifax", and was contacting people back home for more information....and would let people know what she learned. The problem is Halifax is the name of the hospital, it is not a place....so I looked at her page, and she is from Halifax, Nova Scotia! :confused:

[Assembly Hall]

My thoughts and prayers are with Ryan. I don't follow NASCAR much since #3 got killed, but I follow Ryan as close as I can. South Bend native and a Purdue grad with a B.S. in engineering.

[Chip R]

Newman continues to show improvement. It's remarkable how he survived that. They said after Dale, Sr. died they made the walls more energy absorbing and that may have been a big reason Newman survived. So many people deserve credit for his survival. From the people who made the car so strong and the pit crew who kept it up and the emergency personnel who put out the fire and got to him and got him to the hospital so quickly.

***edit***

He has been released from the hospital according to his racing team. :eek:

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/ERJz3vQWAAcZts4?format=jpg

[adkindo]

In regards to the walls, I think every current track has them....at least in the likely crash areas. As you can see in the image below, the old wall is the concrete wall in the back. Look at how much impact the flex wall takes and gives. Dale Earnhardt likely survives with these new walls, but he would have also likely survived if he wore the HANS Device which does not allow the head to move. When Earnhardt hit the wall, I am sure there is a better description, but the impact was so powerful his head whipped forward basically scrambling his brain as it went against his skull. The cage inside the car keeps it from actually crushing inward which is why these guys rarely have broken limbs.

https://markjrebilas.com/blog3/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/ea02A_1963.jpg

FWIW, that wall looks soft, but I have been up close and touched them....they are not soft and a human cannot budge them.

[dubc47834]

Newman being released less than 48 hours that wreck is truly a miracle and a testament to the safety of today's race cars!!!

[IslandRed]

Newman being released less than 48 hours that wreck is truly a miracle and a testament to the safety of today's race cars!!!

Yep. They have made the walls safer, no doubt, but I think the bigger credit here has to go to the car. You see wall contact like Newman's at almost any race run at restrictor-plate tracks anymore. What made this wreck so horrifying was that he got T-boned at full speed by the 32 on the driver's door while upside down. And you know how the driver's window is open on those cars, Lajoie's bumper might have been mere inches from Newman's head at impact. And then to go airborne and land and add in the fuel spill... all kinds of potential for that to turn out tragically. Very glad it didn't, and I hope he is back racing soon.

[dubc47834]

Yep. They have made the walls safer, no doubt, but I think the bigger credit here has to go to the car. You see wall contact like Newman's at almost any race run at restrictor-plate tracks anymore. What made this wreck so horrifying was that he got T-boned at full speed by the 32 on the driver's door while upside down. And you know how the driver's window is open on those cars, Lajoie's bumper might have been mere inches from Newman's head at impact. And then to go airborne and land and add in the fuel spill... all kinds of potential for that to turn out tragically. Very glad it didn't, and I hope he is back racing soon.

For sure man...for where all the contact points were during that wreck and the speeds involved, him walking out of that hospital yesterday was truly amazing. NASCAR and their safety team deserve a ton of credit. Now for how the rest of the sport has been ran and marketed by NASCAR, that's another story!!!