Health Update on Self-Proclaimed “Ricky Bobby” After Fiery Incident Scared NASCAR Fans

With 20 laps to go till the end of Stage 1, Ryan Sieg of RSS Racing faced unexpected difficulties as his car caught fire at the Dover NASCAR Xfinity Series race. Sieg’s #39 Ford Mustang displayed a shocking sight around Turn 2, as the incident happened without any prior contact. Also, a competitor for this season’s final $100,00 Dash 4 Cash, Sieg came across an unexpected halt to his day. 

There was drama on the front stretch as the #39 stopped near the inside wall. Engulfed in flames, Sieg quickly escaped, leaping from his car and bolting towards a nearby safety vehicle. Steven Taranto of CBS Sports speculated on Twitter: “That looks almost like a gas fire on Ryan Sieg’s car. Or something close to it. That’s a scary one.” On the other hand, Jonathan Fjeld of KOB4 put out another update which read, “Team reported it happened suddenly. They suspect it may be an oil line.”

What happened to Sieg’s car on lap 27 is still under speculation. But after undergoing evaluations, last week’s Dash 4 Cash winner has been reportedly released from Dover’s infield care center. 

Ryan Sieg emerges “okay” in true Ricky Bobby fashion

Post-release, Sieg seemed thankful as he told FOX, “I was Ricky Bobby on fire with my hands waving around.” A lighthearted, yet eerie reference to the Talladega Nights scene where Ricky Bobby strips down to his jocks chaotically claiming he’s “on fire” with none in sight. Interestingly, a similar real-life incident happened in 1981, when 3-time IndyCar champion Rick Mears was burnt due to invisible methanol fuel during a pitstop at the Indy 500. Therefore, the true extent of an accidental fire is not something anyone should take lightly.

Nevertheless, in another interview with Bob Pockrass, the #39 driver expressed his disappointment at registering a DNF at Dover after running in the top 15 spots. He said, “I’m okay. Just inhaled a lot of smoke and no indication of what happened. And all of a sudden it was just fire. So just sucks… We had a pretty good car. I thought just riding right there, waiting for everybody to sort it out. Just sucks ’cause we had good momentum going.”

Fans can now breathe a sigh of relief, but mysteriously only a few laps later, his RSS Racing teammate, Blaine Perkins, manning the #29 Ford, also stopped his car at the same spot due to “electrical issues.” PRN reported from their official Twitter handle, “He (Perkins) stopped right where Ryan Sieg had his fire and there’s smoke coming from his No. 29 machine.”

Many noticed this unusual occurrence and one fan observed on Pockrass’ initial post, replying, “Two out of three RSS Racing cars now out with fire-related DNFs today. Pretty concerning to say the least.”

However, the NASCAR community is certainly “Glad (all of ) you are ok,” as the race officially awaits its exciting conclusion.