On February 18, 2001, the NASCAR world stood still. Dale Earnhardt Sr., “The Intimidator” himself, crashed into the Turn 4 wall at Daytona. It didn’t look catastrophic at first—no dramatic flips, no fiery explosion. But the impact was brutal, and NASCAR lost one of its greatest legends that day. His death reshaped the sport, leading to the introduction of SAFER barriers, HANS devices, and other safety innovations.
Yet, despite these advancements, NASCAR remains a dangerous sport where drivers still endure bone-rattling crashes. Just ask Richard Petty’s Cup star. The young driver recently opened up about a painful wreck. But what happened, and why was this crash one of the worst in recent memory?
A brutal impact – 60G wreck at Indianapolis
For John Hunter Nemechek, the 2024 Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway was supposed to be a defining moment. It was his chance to prove his worth in Richard Petty’s iconic No. 42 car. But instead of celebrating a strong finish, he found himself nursing injuries after one of the most brutal crashes of his career.
The wreck unfolded in overtime, just when Nemechek was in prime position for a top-10 finish. “We had a really good car, we led part of the race,” he said, but as the first overtime restart kicked off, disaster struck. Heading into Turn 1, Daniel Hemric clipped his left rear, sending him careening toward the wall.
The impact was devastating. “I hit a solid concrete wall with the left front first… then I bounced off that back into traffic and got hit in the right-side door… then hit the outside wall. It was gnarly,” John Hunter Nemechek explained. His car first slammed into the outside wall and then ricocheted off the SAFER barrier, leaving him exposed to another violent hit. The incident impacted many other drivers, too. The force of the crash registered over 60 Gs, making it one of the hardest impacts in recent memory.
Apart from Nemechek, the likes of Denny Hamlin, Chase Briscoe, Alex Bowman, and Daniel Hemric were all caught in the pile-up. The wall referred to by Nemechek was the inside wall on Turn 1, where his No. 42 Toyota Camry made hard contact after being mired in traffic and hitting the safer barrier.
Despite his efforts to salvage the race, the crash all but ended his hopes. He limped across the finish line in 28th place, a far cry from the top-10 finish that was within reach. “I was hurting,” he admitted. The physical toll was immediate, leaving him sore for days. “I didn’t feel very good let’s put it that way…I was super sore um for quite a few days. Just super sore!,” Nemechek explained.
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – JULY 29: John Hunter Nemechek, driver of the #4 yahoo! Toyota, looks on during qualifying for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series TSport 200 at the Indianapolis Raceway Park on July 29, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
Fortunately, the Olympic break provided much-needed time to heal. “Luckily, we had two off weeks… so I got to go on vacation and have a little time to recover,” Nemechek said. But while his body recovered, the memory of that brutal hit at Indy will likely stay with him for a long time. Well, Nemechek also spoke in-depth about his career trajectory and the high and lows he had to experience after making his Cup debut.
Kyle Busch’s mentorship helped Nemechek get back on track with his NASCAR career
We have seen NASCAR driver bow their heads down, vacate their seats in the Cup Series and grind it out in the lower series. Cole Custer and Daniel Hemric are the most recent examples of that. But in John Hunter Nemechek’s case, the script flipped completely. He started out as a Toyota driver initially in the Truck Series with NEMCO Motorsports, but the team transitioned into a Chevy team and that would lead his entry to the Xfinity Series.
As if this jump wasn’t enough, he joined Ford camp at Front Row Motorsports to make his rookie debut in the Cup Series. But, after the 2020 cameo, he was given the marching orders and the young driver was contemplating his next move. Dropping down the lower series was like taking a bitter pill, but when Rowdy Busch came up with the idea, he just couldn’t turn down his offer.
“During COVID, I was flying with Kyle Busch back and forth from the races and he was the one who owned KBM Kyle Busch Motorsports. He had been with Toyota forever, and we had some really deep conversations on the plane. The conversations that we had were, what do you want to do with your life? Like, where do you want your career to go? Like, how do you see yourself ending in your career? Like, do you want to be in this situation where you’re running 30th every week and you’re stagnant?” Nemechek shared.
Well, he joined KBM and reunited with TRD, and what followed next was a streak of success stories. Having aced the Trucks, he found a ride in the Xfinity Series with JGR in 2023. And the seven-race victories that year ultimately opened the door for him to return to the Cup Series. He was signed by Legacy Motor Club and drives the iconic No. 42 Toyota Camry. Now that’s one hell of a comeback story that NASCAR has seen in a while.
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