In a year of spectacular and historical moments in NASCAR history, the sport has broken yet another record. However, this record is not one fans, drivers, owners, or even NASCAR would like to see broken. NASCAR broke a 21-year-old record when a lap 185 wreck tallied 28 cars, but how did this happen?
The “Big One” is not an official term in the NASCAR rule or history book. However, it may be the most well-known informal term used by fans and insiders in the NASCAR lexicon.
As self-explanatory as the term is, most fans have their most memorable big one, be it due to race or championship win implication. While most tracks can have these wrecks, drafting tracks like Talladega and Daytona are the typical home of the most major, multi-car accidents.
Recent and memorable “Big Ones” include the 2022 Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona. After numerous rain showers throughout the weekend and a significant delay, a lap 139 crash on a slick track saw 18 cars and most of the contenders involved.
As memorable as this was, it is not the largest crash of the last ten years. The 2018 incarnation of the Coke Zero Sugar 500 saw a lap 54 accident involving 26 cars, breaking the ten-year record from 2016 of 25 cars.
However, at the time, this was still not the largest crash in NASAR Cup Series history. That goes to the 2003 Aaron’s 499 at Talladega. Four laps into the 188 Lap race, a 27-car pile-up resulted in 17 of 43 cars finishing on the lead lap.
It took 21 years to break this record, and several pieces had to be in place for it to happen.
This year’s YellaWood 500 at Talladega was the perfectly imperfect setting for this wreck to happen. With a shot at the championship on the line and close-knit racing all day long, the door finally came off the hinges on lap 184.
To the benefit of the drivers involved, the racing felt unstable all day long. At one time, the field was four-wide for multiple laps, mostly due to saving fuel.
On the backstretch, with less than five to go, the field was split into two lanes. In need of a win to advance in the playoffs, Austin Cindric led the inside row while Rickey Stenhouse, a superspeedway ace, led the outside line.
However, entering turns three and four, Todd Gilliand, one lap down, shuffled past the roaring field and to the back. This pass stacked up the inside lane, with the front bunching together until it reached the No. 2.
Brad Keselowski shoved into the back of Cindric’s car. This spun Cindric into the rear of Stenhouse and then back around door-side into the entire pack. The question at hand was whether Brad was too aggressive on the No. 2. However, SMT data and onboard footage might suggest a different story.
This data shows that Brad was off the throttle, and the rest of the pack, unknowing how close the No. 6 was to the No. 2, moved Brad into Austin, causing what many deem “a racing incident.” Brad is posting this information, which is a recent trend in NASCAR. When a driver is wrecked or takes the blame for a wreck, they have often used this information to prove otherwise.
While this is no one’s fault, these massive wrecks typically happen this way. No one wants them to happen, but minor errors and small miscues have a more prominent impact than aggressive driving and angry drivers.
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