Joey Logano was sitting third on the backstretch of the final lap of Stage 1 of Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, but as the field rocketed toward turn three, Logano was tapped by Denny Hamlin, who had contact from Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Th contact sent Logano up in the air, and his No. 22 car came to a rest after a wild flip.
Here is video of the accident as it happened live:
Joey Logano gets airborne and goes for a WILD ride at Talladega! pic.twitter.com/7E9vCyqCZD
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) April 25, 2021
Here are replays of the accident:
Here what sent Joey Logano up and over at Talladega: pic.twitter.com/NP8zgz6dWB
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) April 25, 2021
And here is a look at things from Bubba Wallace’s helmet cam:
Bubba Wallace's view of the Joey Logano flip is incredible. pic.twitter.com/P9RY4ho8OM
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) April 25, 2021
After leaving the infield care center, Logano did not place blame on his fellow drivers. Instead, he wondered how much longer we can continue this pack-style of superspeedway racing.
“I guess I don’t know exactly what to think,” Logano explained after the crash. “You know, it’s a product of this racing. On one hand, I’m so proud to drive a Cup car that is safe and can go through a crash like that and get out and speak about it. One hand I’m mad about being in the crash, the other hand I’m just happy to be alive. The other hand I think, when are we going to stop? Because this is dangerous. I have a rollbar in my head, you know? That’s not okay.”
While Logano was crashing, Matt DiBenedetto went on to score the Stage 1 win. This is the first stage win of DiBenedetto’s NASCAR Cup Series career.