A three-day test session ended in drama when Dale Earnhardt Jr. caused a domino effect that took out 12 drivers at Daytona earlier today.
Formula 1 aficionados will never stop criticizing the rather apish format of racing -- ungainly, big displacement V8 racing cars in sweeping oval circuits. Meanwhile, Nascar diehards can't get enough of the thrill of an oval track's inherent pack-racing.
Coming out of the back straight with a quicker exit, Dale Earnhardt Jr. lined up behind Marcus Ambrose for a little bump draft when his car somehow managed to send Ambrose's Ford into the wall, taking out a number of cars that were running behind with nowhere to go.
Thankfully, there were no injuries beyond bruised egos. Drivers involved in the wreck include Earnhardt's Hendrick Motorsports teammates Jeff Gordon and Kasey Kane. Sprint Cup defending champion Brad Keselowski, teammate Joey Logano, and Carl Edwards, Kyle Busch, Jamie McMurray, Martin Truex Jr., Aric Almirola and Regan Smith were also involved.
Suggesting a flaw in the new NASCAR vehicles, Earnhardt said after the incident, "It was a big mess and tore up a lot of cars down here trying to work on their stuff. Definitely the drafting is not like it used to be. You can't really tandem certain cars; certain cars don't match up well."
Keselowski agreed. "It is unfortunate, but sometimes you have to wreck them to learn. The sport is rewinding. That is the important thing to say. The sport advanced to the two-car tandem three or four years ago, and there were certain things you could do then that you couldn't do in the past without wrecking.
"Now the rules package is back to where we were in the early 2000's when the fans enjoyed the racing better. We as drivers have to rewind to how we used to drive these cars. This is how you do it. You make mistakes and learn and that is part of it. I might be the guy who makes the mistake next time, so I can't be mad about it."
For 2013, the new NASCAR regulations have introduced vehicles that not only more closely resember the production vehicles found in showrooms, but more importantly, possess significantly less downforce at speed as well. While a bump draft would have been a safe maneuver in the previous years, the new 2013 racing cars no longer have front and rear bumpers that line up squarely due to the unique exterior designs. An awkward bump at nearly 200 mph can cause a severe imbalance in tire grip and aerodynamics and send the car sideways into the wall.
As car builders are still scrambling to produce enough vehicles for the teams, the racers have tested their cars more cautiously ahead of the season and the pack-racing simulation test at Daytona was a first thus far. A total of 18 cars were on the track when Earnhardt started the accident.
Jeff Gordon said, "You can't push, which I think is a good thing. The bad thing is you can still get to the guy's bumper, but the cars just don't line up very well. ... It's something that is going to have to be dealt with very carefully. You are going to have to be cautious when you do it and do it with the right guys, but most of the time you're going to need to stay away from it. That is certainly something we learned."
One driver that saw it coming even before the test was five-time series champion Jimmie Johnson, who made the decision with his crew chief Chad Knaus to remain in the garage. Johnson said before the crash: "It doesn't make any sense to go out there and draft. You don't learn anything. You're just taking a chance of ruining your best race car."
Guess what? Johnson is right. Check out the incredible crash out on Daytona's back straightaway in the video below:
