As they say, Rubbin’ is racing. For the sake of not romanticizing, one truth reigns over it—safety is paramount. The recent heart-stopping crash of Ryan Blaney serves as a visceral reminder that the pursuit of excellence in safety technology never rests. The incident at the Ally 400 race on the 146th lap gives the chills precisely because it occurred where the new SAFER barriers were absent.

Bubba Wallace‘s spotter Freddie Kraft voiced his concerns about the safety standards in place. He highlighted the alarming trend of crashes occurring in peculiar spots on the tracks, emphasizing that the sport needs to address these vulnerabilities urgently.

Unmasking vulnerabilities: Bubba Wallace’s spotter speaks up

The Door Bumper Clear podcast discussed the recent crash during the Ally 400 and the safety updates to be put in place after the Atlanta race. Kraft stated during his debate with TJ Majors and Casey Boat,

“So I mean, what to show you? There is a good hit. And then I’ve seen where he was pretty much asking for help right away over the radio. And these things [Next Gen cars] are still pretty rigid. These guys, when these guys wreck, they feel it, and they’re still complaining about it.

“Hopefully, these new updates will help with that a little bit. But yeah, there’s just no reason in 2023 why we’re still adding SAFER barriers in places that, you know, we don’t have them.” 

Kraft further stated, “Like, just put them everywhere. Wherever it… wherever it is. If there’s a wall, put a SAFER barrier on it, because we’ve made it pretty obvious that they work, and we’ve made it also pretty obvious that if you leave somewhere unprotected, we will find it. We just have to step up as an industry and make this stuff safer.”

Kraft was hopeful that these updates would alleviate some of the issues drivers face when encountering crashes. However, he argued that the sport should not wait for incidents to happen before bolstering safety measures. Innovation is an ever-burning necessity. But Blaney doesn’t let things slide. Instead, he gets real with NASCAR.  

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NASCAR gets a wake-up call from Ryan Blaney: “It sucks”

Just eight laps after Tyler Reddick’s unfortunate incident, Blaney’s car slammed head-on into the inside wall of the track, leaving him shaken and injured. Blaney described the collision as the “hardest hit” he had ever experienced, shedding light on the alarming lack of safety barriers in that area.

In the aftermath of the crash, Blaney expressed hope that this incident would prompt the immediate installation of SAFER barriers where they were conspicuously lacking. He remarked, “It sucks that things like that have to happen, someone hit a wall head-on like that and then you’re like, ‘Oh, we’ll put a SAFER barrier on it now.'”

The recent incident involving Ryan Blaney has prompted an insider to voice concerns about NASCAR’s safety measures and advocate for immediate and comprehensive safety upgrades. The incident, combined with drivers’ ongoing complaints about the impact of crashes, underscores the need for a proactive approach to driver protection.

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