“Looked Like He Hit the Gas” – Dale Jarrett Explains How Ryan Blaney’s Vicious Impact Exposed Next-Gen Car’s Limitations

While the fans actively discussed the race happenings and how Ross Chastain got back to his winning ways, they also got to witness the ugly side of the sport as Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney wrecked out of the race in a horrific fashion.

Reacting to the vicious crash, NASCAR veteran and 1999 Winston Cup champion, Dale Jarrett gave his thoughts about the crash as the incident pointed fingers at the Next-Gen car’s clear weakness.

While NBC covered the difference between these modern cars and older ones, the veteran cited the “strange” dynamics of these sophisticated race cars.

Concerned Dale Jarrett Mentions the Strangeness of Ryan Blaney’s Crash

Past Sunday definitely wasn’t a great day for the Fords and especially for the Coca-Cola 600 winner, Ryan Blaney. Shortly after the restart, the packed crowd witnessed the horror of another head-on collision. Chasing his next win, Blaney was spun out of control into the grass where the driver tried his best to shed some speed.

But right before the #12 Ford touched the pavement, it seemed like it gained some speed and was going head-first into the concrete barrier. Not only does the incident highlight the Next-Gen car’s apparent weakness, but the horrific crash itself showed that a bad day at the track is always a moment away.

While the driver was rushed to the infield medical center and was reported well, 3-time Daytona 500 winner Dale Jarrett pointed out his concern about the incident.

Not only was the car too stiff to turn, it felt like Blaney was no more in control of his car once it hit the grass. Jarrett said, “Yeah it was really strange to watch because there are some things about this car that are totally different and that seems to me to be something that I feel like I’ve seen this before but may not have ended up in a head-on crash like Ryan Blaney had last night but it seemed like the drivers aren’t able to get the cars to make as big a turn as what the old cars used to be able to do.”

Even though the veteran knew what Blaney was trying to do, avoiding unnecessary damage to the car so that he could continue the race, Jarrett points out the strangeness of the situation.

“I understand what exactly he was trying to do and what his expectations were and that was what was so strange. It was like it looked like he hit the gas you know the car took off so quickly once it hit the pavement,” 

Furthermore, the 66-year-old also highlighted NASCAR’s safety lapse. He questioned why was there a concrete barrier anywhere within the proximity of the race car. He said, “I have no idea and we’re gonna get into this I’ve no idea why there is a concrete barrier anywhere that a car can get, as crazy as it sounds, cars find these places on their own sometimes and you just never know.” 

READ MORE: “Trying Not to Get Sued” – NASCAR’s Diplomatic Response to Ryan Blaney’s Hard Impact Triggers Heavy Backlash From Fans

Jarrett Also Credited the New Broadcasting Team for Their Timely Effort

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Though the crash was vicious as it stunned the driver, fortunately, Blaney is well and good with no concussion-like symptoms. Veteran Jarrett also reflected on this aspect of the race. With Fox parting ways and NBC taking over, there’s been widespread praise going for NBC owing to their different ways.

While the veteran raised his concern for Blaney, he added praise to Steve Letarte and the whole NBC crew for letting the fans know what was going on.

Jarrett added, “I’m still concerned for him, I know that he was you know released and I know Steve Letarte and the NBC people did a great job of showing exactly how these cars have been changed from last year for safety issues all that’s great, I hope that’s that but you can tell that hit stunned Ryan Blaney and I just hope it was just the matter of it happening that took him a little time to recover from.” 

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With the wreck happening early in the race at stage 2, Blaney could only be content with the 36th position. He couldn’t finish the race with the #12 Ford receiving major front-end damage.