During the Chicago Street Race, Cody Ware slammed into a tire barrier at 93mph and as smoke poured out of his wrecked car, he radioed two chilling words: “Need help.”
But for nearly 35 seconds, nothing happened.
NASCAR didn’t throw the caution until Shane van Gisbergen took the white flag and the final lap was underway, effectively ending the race under yellow and avoiding an overtime restart. That’s now causing backlash from all over the racing world with many calling it unacceptable and dangerous.
Cody Ware’s crash was on the last lap of the Chicago Street Race. A blown brake rotor left him unable to slow down into Turn 6 and he hit the barrier hard. Hard enough that drivers, analysts and fans all thought for sure a yellow would come. But it didn’t.
35 Seconds of Silence as Cody Called for Help
In-car audio captured Cody Ware’s voice asking for help. His window net was still up so he was still inside and potentially injured. Yet the race continued at full speed as he sat motionless in the runoff.
“It took NASCAR 35 seconds to throw a caution,” wrote reporter Seth Eggert. “Unreal. Unacceptable.”
Joseph Srigley, editor-in-chief at TobyChristie.com, was just as stunned: “That’s a brutal impact… I can’t believe that wasn’t an immediate caution.”But the delay has raised questions about safety protocols, and what could have happened if Ware couldn’t have walked away.
Thankfully, Ware was able to walk away from the crash without serious injury. The Rick Ware Racing driver himself was surprised by the slow response. “Obviously, I’m not going anywhere, there’s not much I can do at that point,” Ware said after the race. “At that point I’m just focused on getting out of the car and getting to a safe spot.”
Several reports indicate that NASCAR officials did not know how serious the crash was and whether Cody Ware would manage to come out alone. Kind of like what happened to Kyle Larson at this same race last year
But this time it was different and the delay was much more costly in terms of public trust.
Now that the Chicago race is behind us, the fallout continues. NASCAR’s response time is being questioned again and we’re asking: why did it take a driver’s radioed plea, and 35 seconds, to realize something was seriously wrong?
The driver walked away this time. But next time it could cost more.
Read the full article here