On July 13th, the Sonoma Raceway was lit up with intense mid-summer action, punctuated by repeated late-race actions and record-breaking dominance from Shane van Gisbergen. And sprint car support driver, Chase Johnson, was among the notable figures in attendance. It was an encouraging presence, given the harsh crash he endured the previous August at Silver Dollar Speedway. The multiple vertebral fractures he had endured left him wheelchair-bound.

Johnson had described the injuries as “the most pain I’ve ever experienced,” and detailed a complex emotional journey that led him to return to public life and racing venues. But what should have been a celebratory race weekend at Sonoma Raceway instead ended up becoming a deeply troubling incident for Johnson.

According to an official statement released by Chase Johnson Racing, which has since been deleted, Johnson was physically assaulted by a security guard at the NASCAR Cup Series event at Sonoma. The deleted statement read: “Sunday, July 13th at the NASCAR race at Sonoma Raceway, Chase was physically assaulted and hurt by this security guard on pit row. Chase was physically pushed hard enough to flip him and his wheelchair completely backwards and upside down. When his head hit the concrete, he lost consciousness for about 15 seconds. We spent the next hour in the med center at the racetrack, then went directly to the hospital after that, where he was at until early Monday morning.

“Here is the story: Chase and Hayley were leaving the race track headed back to the truck that was parked at the handicap parking lot which is in a completely different area than the normal parking lots. The security guard at the top of the pit row gave them direction to go down pit road towards turn 11 to exit. They finally made it all the way down to the end of pit road to the exit where another security guard was at. He then for some reason said we needed credentials to exit. We showed him the appropriate credentials.

“At the same time, individuals with the same credentials were allowed by at this same moment. We asked him multiple times to call his supervisor. We tried to explain that was are parked in the handicap parking lot not the normal parking lot. He also went on to tell us that another ‘crippled’ that was worse than I was, had to turn around and go back the other way. After this point, he said he wasn’t going to get his supervisor and told Chase he wasn’t going anywhere. Immediately after those words he shoved Chase backwards with his hands on his chest. He flew backwards with his hands on his chest.

“He flew backwards with the chair. It was a hard enough push to completely flip the wheelchair over the wheelie bars/tip bars. He hit his head on the ground, along with his neck, back and shoulders. Chase woke up on the ground with Hayley in a panic holding his head. The crowd of people and other witnesses around were shocked and in panic trying to get help and medical attention. The NASCAR medical team and some other officials came over, checked out Chase. They helped him back into his chair. Then, they took him to the Med Center and they suggested that he should go to the hospital.

“We went to Kaiser in Santa Rosa, spent a little over eight hours there. Chase had CT scans on his head, neck and back. In the CT scan, they found a 5mm crack on C1. This then prompted a MRI, which resulted in showing spinal swelling to the C6 and T2 areas on the spinal cord. The doctors had a difficult time determining if these injuries were part of Chase’s initial injury or if these were new. He was released early Monday morning, and was recommended to wear a neck collar to the next couple weeks or until he feels better.

“Chase’s wheelchair also has damage. The back rest is broken along with the back of the chair now scratched from the pavement. The Sonoma County Sheriff was there at Sonoma Raceway and ended up taking him to the Sonoma County jail,” The Press Democrat reported.

The whole incident had occurred in front of LASTCAR’s Brock Beard, who was there to cover the event and even took to X to confirm it. He explained he didn’t post about it earlier because he didn’t want to impede the investigation. He shared how the track medical staff at the nearby Mobility Pit Box were quick to respond and help, and also that the law enforcement is now handling it.

While the original statement, which was made on Facebook by Chase Johnson Racing, was deleted for unknown reasons, ‘The Press Democrat’ reported that the security guard was Alexander Rosiles, 27, of Stockton, and was arrested at 3 p.m. He was charged with assault and battery. Rosiles reportedly appeared in Sonoma County Superior Court on Tuesday, where a judge set his plea for Aug. 12.

He remains in on $35,000 bail, and reports suggest that prosecutors have alleged that Rosiles had also violated the terms of an assault conviction from March 2019 in San Joaquin County.

The incident has come across as a big shock for the racing community. After all, Johnson, a fourth-generation racer, has already undergone emergency surgery at UC Davis Medical Center and spent the next five months doing intensive rehabilitation at the Shepherd Center in Atlanta after his car crash. He had been continuing with his physical therapy and training through SCI Fit, and it was only in the past couple of months that he started attending local races.

Chase Johnson’s racing career started with adversities…

March 2013: It was Johnson’s family’s team opening night of the season. And in the first practice session, the steering wheel in Johnson’s sprint car malfunctioned, and he lost control of the car. He crashed that night out of the exit gate and, unfortunately, his car struck and killed his 14-year-old cousin, Marcus Johnson, and another gentleman, Dale Wondergem Jr.

After the incident, Johnson didn’t return to motorsports… It was only several months later that he had the courage to return to racing, and he did so by racing in honor of those who lost their lives that day. And by the time he was 28, he raced regularly at 410 and 360 Winged and Non Wing Sprint Cars, Silver Crown Cars, Midgets, and Outlaw Karts. He also became the 6-time Outlaw Kart Champion and a 360 Winged Sprint Car Champion.

But his car crash changed everything. He had once said, “The sport of racing has made me who I am today and I try to give back to the sport that has helped me in many ways.” And though he doesn’t compete today, one can’t remove his love for the sport