Noah Gragson, who is driving the No. 16 Chevrolet Camaro for Kaulig Racing this weekend, saw his race come to a halt on lap 24. Gragson got loose by himself in turn two, as Gragson attempted to save the car, his car darted to the right.
The No. 16 car shot into a direct head-on impact into the wall. Gragson’s car was destroyed and the 23-year old radioed to the team, “I’m sorry.”
Noah Gragson climbed out and is okay. https://t.co/oKf2DytGAp pic.twitter.com/k5Hr5JhgY5
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) March 20, 2022
Following being evaluated and released from the infield care center, Gragson accepted blame for the crash.
“I just got loose there through (turns) one and two,” Gragson explained. “It was still early in the race, so I wasn’t pushing it. I was just trying to bide my time and stay patient. It’s such a long race. It’s unfortunate. I hate it for the ChevyLiners.com team and everyone at Kaulig Racing. They’ve been putting in so many hours this year. My goal was to complete all the laps and finish the race. The No. 16 Camaro ZL1 was fast, it was just a mistake.”
This is without a doubt one of the hardest hits we’ve seen with the Next Gen car, but it appears the car held up well, and Gragson was able to walk away from an absolutely savage hit on lap 24.
Sunday’s Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta was Gragson’s first start of the 2022 season for Kaulig Racing. Gragson ran the season-opening Daytona 500 for Beard Motorsports. The No. 16 car had been piloted through the first four events by Daniel Hemric and AJ Allmendinger.
