Hot Topics:

Brian Vickers' blown right-front tire breeds eight-car melee at Talladega

By SceneDaily Staff

Sunday, October 05, 2008

Article Rating: 0.0
Rate this Article

Chris Graythen / Getty Images

Red Bull Racing's Brian Vickers crashes into Dale Earnhardt Inc.'s Martin Truex Jr. after blowing a tire during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Amp Energy 500 at Talladega Superspeedway.

Latest Headlines

TALLADEGA, Ala. – Before the "Big One" in Sunday's Amp Energy 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, there was another incident. And it was pretty big itself.

While a late 12-car crash involving Chase contenders Carl Edwards, Greg Biffle and Dale Earnhardt Jr. among others stole the most attention, an eight-car wreck on lap 68 proved the undoing of several drivers as well.

Red Bull Racing's Brian Vickers blew a right-front tire and lost control of his Toyota in a huge pack of cars, setting off a chain reaction crash that also collected Dale Earnhardt Inc.'s Martin Truex Jr., Yates Racing's David Gilliland, Gillett Evernham Motorsports' Kasey Kahne, Roush Fenway Racing's Jamie McMurray, Petty Enterprises' Terry Labonte, Haas CNC Racing's Tony Raines and Red Bull's Mike Skinner.

Five cars involved in the fray had spent time out front.

"I just went down into the trioval and it didn’t cut or go flat - it exploded," said Vickers, who led three times for 10 laps but finished 35th. "I saw the right-front fender going through the air before the front of the car even dropped. It was the same thing that happened to (Dale Earnhardt) Jr. in practice.”

Truex was battling for second at the time of the incident, which started when Vickers' blown tire forced him up the track into Truex's Chevrolet. Truex finished 41st.

"It is frustrating certainly," said Truex. "We had a great car."

Others were equally disappointed.

“That was a shame, you know," Skinner said. "The car was pretty good. We were just biding our time. Our goal today was to miss that and we didn’t miss it.”

Average Rating: 0.0

No Comments

Be the first to comment on "Brian Vickers' blown right-front tire breeds eight-car melee at Talladega". Login or sign up for a free account below to post your comment

Leave a Comment

Promotions

Latest Videos

Where should the NASCAR Sprint Cup awards banquet be held?

Where should the NASCAR Sprint Cup awards banquet be held?

NASCAR celebrates the 2008 Sprint Cup Series season in New York this week, culminating in a black-tie awards banquet at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. But is there a better location for the banquet? Would Las Vegas with all its glitz and glamour be a better fit? Or would Charlotte, the home to most NASCAR teams, be an ideal location? SceneDaily.com's roundtable discusses the issue and where the banquet should be held.

 

Most Rated Stories

Poll Position

Which NASCAR competitor should be Driver of the Year?

view the results

Don't have an account yet?

Insiders Guide to NASCAR

Register with SceneDaily.com and get access to the following features:

  • FREE Insider’s Guide to NASCAR (available as a PDF download)
  • Daily NASCAR news updates delivered directly to your e-mail
  • Pre-race and Post-race emails delivered each race week
  • Ability to comment on blog and news articles
  • Information on new website features and upcoming contests
Create my Account

Login

Forgot Password?

Login or Create an Account