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After a 32-second lag in calling a caution for the heaviest front-end impact in the Next Gen era, NASCAR is re-evaluating its camera coverage for future street course races.

During the latest episode of the “Hauler Talk” podcast, NASCAR managing director of racing communications Mike Forde confirmed Cody Ware‘s crash into the Turn 6 tire barrier on the penultimate lap of the Chicago Street Race was the heaviest recorded since the debut of the Next Gen car in 2021. The yellow flew on the last lap after Shane van Gisbergen had taken the white flag, negating the possibility of an overtime finish.

Forde said NASCAR officials weren‘t immediately privy to the footage that showed Ware approaching the tire barrier at full speed. Race director Jusan Hamilton waited before triggering the caution because Cup drivers previously have been able to wriggle out after having their cars buried deep in a tire pack. Forde said the yellow began when Ware dropped his window net after being unable to reverse out of the tires.

Ware‘s in-car camera showed the full-speed collision with the barrier, and Forde said if NASCAR officials had seen that angle, “a caution would have been immediately thrown, but all we saw at that moment in time was the car in the barrier.”

MORE: Caution flies in closing Chicago moments, SVG wins

Although NASCAR has access to all 40 in-car cameras, they aren‘t monitored in real-time by race control. In the Turn 6 area where Ware‘s collision occurred, there are two cameras to capture cars entering and exiting the corner. Forde said that because the No. 51 Ford was off line entering the turn, Ware was in a blind spot for the fixed camera (which is focused on the racing groove). The cameras monitored in real-time by race control picked up the car only after it had impacted the barrier.

Forde said NASCAR would evaluate improving coverage of Turn 6 by adding cameras in that area if NASCAR returns to the Chicago circuit next year. NASCAR also is building out an off-site race control in Concord, North Carolina, that could offer more support (such as increasing real-time monitoring of in-car cameras) in the future.

“When we say, ‘We missed it,‘ it wasn’t that they weren‘t watching that particular screen at the time,” Forde said. “When (Cup Series director) Brad Moran says we need to have that footage in the future, what he means is that coverage area needs to be expanded. If we come back to Chicago, the solution there is more cameras in different positions. That‘s absolutely something that we need to keep our drivers safe, and something that will be put into place in the future.”

Forde said he confirmed with Hamilton that the timing of the caution for Ware‘s wreck was unrelated to an approaching storm that might have caused major delays if the race had entered overtime.

“We have a system where if a lightning strike is within a certain number of miles, we’ll start getting text messages,” Forde said. “We started getting lightning alerts that the strikes were about 27 miles away but approaching us. So I asked (Hamilton) if we held that caution because it was going to be touch and go with a restart, and then we’d have to have a 30-minute hold or more. He said, ‘No, weather was not in my mind whatsoever in this decision at all. It strictly was, let’s see if the 51 can back out.”

Other topics covered by Forde and NASCAR senior director of racing communications Amanda Ellis during the 22nd episode of “Hauler Talk,” which explores competition issues in NASCAR:

— The pause before throwing a yellow flag after Josh Berry‘s impact with the wall

— The battle between Alex Bowman and Bubba Wallace and whether NASCAR officiates differently for cars facing off during the In-Season Challenge

— Whether there would be penalties from the incident involving Joey Logano and Ross Chastain

— The details of a caution being called for a spectator medical emergency

— The future of the Chicago Street Race

Click on the embed above to listen or search for “Hauler Talk” wherever you download podcasts to hear it on your phone, tablet or mobile device.

Nate Ryan has written about NASCAR since 1996 while working at the San Bernardino Sun, Richmond Times-Dispatch, USA TODAY and for the past 10 years at NBC Sports Digital. He is a contributor to the “Hauler Talk” show on the NASCAR Podcast Network. He also has covered various other motorsports, including the IndyCar and IMSA series.

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