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Indy driver Dan Weldon dies in crash during
Vegas 300
CBS sports.com
LAS VEGAS - Indianapolis 500 winner Dan Wheldon died Sunday in a fiery
15-car wreck at Las Vegas Motor Speedway when his car flew over another
on Lap 13 and smashed into the wall just outside turn 2.
Wheldon was 33. Drivers were told of Wheldon’s death in a meeting about
two hours after the fiery, smoky crash that many drivers said was the
worst they had ever seen.
The British driver won the Indianapolis 500 twice, including this year.
“IndyCar is very sad to announce that Dan Wheldon has passed away from
unsurvivable injuries,” IndyCar CEO Randy Bernard said. “Our thoughts
and prayers are with his family today. IndyCar, its drivers and owners,
have decided to end the race. In honor of Dan Wheldon, the drivers have
decided to do a five-lap salute to in his honor.”
Three other drivers, including championship contender Will Power, were
hurt in the pileup.
The wreck left Townsend Bell upside down and smoldering cars and debris
littered the track nearly halfway up the straightaway of the 1.5-mile
oval.
The track was red-flagged following the accidents while crews worked on
fences and removed smashed cars.
Wheldon started in the back of the pack but quickly worked his way
through the 34-car field before the wreck.
“It was like a movie scene which they try to make as gnarly as
possible,” said Danica Patrick, making her final IndyCar start. “It was
debris everywhere across the whole track, you could smell the smoke,
you could see the billowing smoke on the back straight from the car.
There was a chunk of fire that we were driving around. You could see
cars scattered.
Drivers had been concerned about the high speeds at the track, where
they were hitting nearly 225 mph during practice.
Their concerns became reality when contact on Turn 2 sent cars flying
through the air, crashing into each other and into the outside wall and
catch fence.
“I’ll tell you, I’ve never seen anything like it,” Ryan Briscoe said.
“The debris we all had to drive through the lap later, it looked like a
war scene from Terminator or something. I mean, there were just pieces
of metal and car on fire in the middle of the track with no car
attached to it and just debris everywhere. So it was scary, and your
first thoughts are hoping that no one is hurt because there’s just
stuff everywhere. Crazy.”
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