Despite a massive four-hour rain delay and obsessive talks in the media about the Confederate flags place in the sport, NASCAR showed its true colors Monday morning when Austin Dillon’s black number 3 skidded to a halt on its roof after a violent crash into the tracks catchfence.
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Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s crew members (along with Casey Mears’)who were standing just feet away from the carnage of Dillon’s car, rushed to the young driver’s aid to see if he was alright. The crew even beat safety crews to the wreckage in the process. The crew members talked to Dillon to make sure he was conscious and able to move around in the car, before signaling to safety crews and fans that he was ok.
Even the fans in the grandstands, who waited out a four hour rain delay, expressed their concern for Dillon staying collectively silent while safety crews worked to get Dillon out of the car. Fan silence turned to cheers of joy as Dillon was finally able to exit the car after several minutes and even waved to the fans to show that he appreciated their love and support.
Not only were fans and safety crews concerned about the safety of the drivers after the multicar crash at the finish of The Coke Zero 400 Monday morning, other drivers were concerned as well. Earnhardt Jr, who won the race Sunday night later told USA Today that he was “near tears.” “I didn’t even know who it is, but you just don’t want to see anybody get hurt. It’s an awful feeling.”
“The racing doesn’t matter anymore.” Earnhardt went on to say concerning the fact that both drivers and fans could have been hurt in the accident. Even as Earnhardt sat in victory lane to celebrate his second win at Daytona in two years, there was seemingly a somber and worried tone in the air. Earnhardt took a few minutes to thank his sponsors and his team for putting together a great car for the win, but then quickly became focused on the last lap crash that left five fans with minor injuries.
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“We have all become closer friends, I think, because of the (motorhome lot) environment,” Earnhardt later said in a press conference interview. “We all sort of live in this community, and you may not like everybody, but you damn sure grow to respect them and don’t want to see anybody get hurt.”
Six-time champion and second-place finisher, Jimmie Johnson, echoed JR’s concern about Dillon’s violent crash, stating “I’m shocked that Austin Dillon is even alive. I saw it in the mirror, and man, I expected the worst when I came back around.” While those statements might seem alarming, it should also show fans the level of concern that everyone was feeling after the crash Monday morning.
Instead of analysts, fans and news media picking apart the race as a complete failure of a debut for NBC, everyone needs to look at the biggest positive to come out of this race, and that’s the fact that NASCAR showed itself as an intense, exciting, and compassionate sport Monday morning.
The level of concern and compassion that was shown throughout the closing moments of the broadcast should be enough to show new fans that NASCAR may be a sport of good ol’ boys and girls fighting and clawing for the checkered flag at the end of the race, but they are also a group of loving, compassionate and caring people, who stand together as a community.
Aside from what transpired at the end of the race NBC should also take pride in the sophistication that they brought to the broadcast. The insight from Steve Letarte and Jeff Burton was spot-on all night. The pit road reporters were informative and informational. The new camera angles that NBC brought to the broadcast were exciting and made the watching experience all the better. Kyle Petty might have been a lowlight for some but overall the product was still refreshing and exciting to watch.
At the end of the day NBC got out of the gate strong despite having the 3.5 hour rain delay and the fans should be excited to watch the telecasts moving forward.