NASCAR Crashes

SI Staff | May 16, 2011

NASCAR Crashes /

NASCAR Crashes

During the 5-Hour Energy 200 at Dover International Speedway, Joey Logano tagged the wall on the last lap, sending his No. 20 Toyota into the path of an oncoming Clint Bowyer. The wreck knocked Bowyer out of contention and caught up several other cars in the field. Carl Edwards went on to take the Dover checkers for his third Nationwide win of the year.

The Chase's seventh stop, Talladega, is known as a hotbed of hard-racing and big, series-altering crashes. With Jimmie Johnson, Denny Hamlin and the rest of the field headed to 'Dega, SI.com takes a look at some of racing's most spectacular crashes. The 2009 Chase for the Championship stop at Talladega saw a terrifying crash involving a number of drivers, including Ryan Newman. With just five laps to go in the Amp Energy 500, Newman was turned around in mid-pack, sent airborne, launched onto the hood of Kevin Harvick's No. 29 and flipped over. Miraculously, Newman climbed out of his car and walked away virtually unscathed.

More than eight cars were involved in a massive crash at 2010's Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway. After a smaller collision in the front, the majority of the field attempted to swerve and avoid a wreck only to cause a bigger accident that knocked out close to half the field. Tony Stewart's car was involved in the wreck, caught on fire and ultimately came to rest in the grass.

Brett Raymer's ride caught fire coming off Turn 4 during this year's Education Lottery 200 at Charlotte. The car spun into the wall before settling on the outside lanes of the track. Raymer jumped out of the truck and crews rushed in to put out the blaze.

In one of the most notorious crashes in recent history, Carl Edwards' No. 99 was bumped by Brad Keselowski, sending him in to the path of an oncoming Ryan Newman. The impact hurtled the car into the fence at Talladega.

Seven fans were injured as a result of the final-lap crash and tensions have run high between Edwards and Keselowski ever since.

Though Edwards emerged from the wreck with no major injuries, the incident drew attention to fan safety at races.

Nationwide driver Kertus Davis was involved in a fiery crash during the Subway Jalapeno 250 at Daytona. After blowing his right rear tire, Davis spun out, careening into several oncoming cars before his caught on fire. Davis crawled out of the driver's side window and walked away.

Clint Bowyer secured a spot in the annals of NASCAR history with his very unconventional finish to the 2007 Daytona 500. After getting caught in a wreck toward the end of the race, Bowyer was flipped, yet managed to slide down the final stretch and across the start-finish line.

Bowyer's car ultimately slid into the grass and flipped right side-up allowing him to hop out unscathed.

On Lap 20 of the UAW Ford 500 at Talladega, Mark Martin, Michael Waltrip, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Elliott Sadler were among the drivers caught in "The Big One." After a nudge by Jimmie Johnson, Sadler's car was turned and pushed into oncoming traffic, sending several cars into the wall or careening into the grass.

While Dale Jarrett managed to avoid the pileup and win the race, Martin, Mike Skinner and Michael Waltrip weren't so lucky.

Marcos Ambrose tangled with No. 28 driver Robert Richardson Jr. during the Food City 250 at Bristol in 2007. Ambrose's car got loose, careening into Richardson. Both drivers emerged from the accident unharmed.

Greg Biffle's day at Atlanta was ruined when he got sent into the wall during the Kobalt Tools 500 in 2009. Running 31st, Biffle got caught in a wreck that affected several other drivers, including Jeff Burton and Scott Speed.

On a double-file restart at the Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway, several drivers, including Martin Truex Jr., Denny Hamlin and Max Papis, piled up and crashed against the wall.

Kyle Busch looked poised for a first-place finish at the 2009 Coke Zero 400 at Daytona. That was until Tony Stewart, hot on Busch's tail, spun out the driver, sending him into the wall and back into the rest of the field. Most drivers avoided the mayhem, but Kasey Kahne wasn't so fortunate.

Busch collided with Kahne, sending the No. 9 into the path of several oncoming cars. Kasey was sent spinning down the track before coming to rest near the grass.

During the Education Lottery 200, Camping World Series driver Mike Skinner was involved in a heinous crash that flipped him into the wall and later onto the hood of his No. 5 Toyota. Skinner was first spun out into the grass, but then strayed into the outside wall, where he was struck by an oncoming T.J. Bell. Astonishingly, Skinner escaped with no major injuries.

Mike Skinner and Ken Schrader wrecked in Turn 1 during the Bank of America 500 at Lowe's Motor Speedway. Both drivers drove off after the crash.

Craftsman Truck Series driver Terry Cook found himself on the receiving end of some poor bump drafting during a 2007 race at Daytona. Cook was sent into the wall and his truck caught on fire before coming to rest near the grass. Surprisingly, the rest of the field managed to avoid the wreck.

In one of Daytona's most spectacular crashes, Ryan Newman was sent airborne after a collision with Kenny Schrader. After hitting the wall, Newman lost his right rear tire, causing the car to lift off the ground and barrel roll several hundred feet. Emergency services hurried over to Newman, but the driver escaped major injury, waving at the crowd as he walked to the ambulance.

A massive crash marred the 1998 DieHard 500 at Talladega. Starting with slight contact between Ward Burton and Dale Earnhardt, the crash swallowed up much of the field, most notable Bill Elliott, whose car was flipped and slid down the track on its roof. Luckily, there were no serious injuries.

Published May 16, 2011

SI STAFF