The crash was horrific. With just two laps to go in the Cup Series race at the Chicago Street Course, Cody Ware’s No. 51 car blew a brake rotor and crashed headfirst at 93 mph. The Rick Ware Racing Ford Mustang was totaled despite slamming into the tire barrier, but bizarrely, NASCAR didn’t throw a caution until Shane van Gisbergen took the white flag 35 seconds later. Given the magnitude of the wreck, questions were raised afterward, particularly at race control.

And one prominent NASCAR insider wasn’t having it. Bubba Wallace’s spotter, Freddie Kraft, urged the sanctioning body to hold itself accountable for the delay in caution and issue an apology to Cody Ware for what could have been a very serious situation if the circumstances were slightly different.

Freddie Kraft urges NASCAR to do better

It seemed like NASCAR didn’t know the severity of Cody Ware’s impact. According to The Athletic’s Jeff Gluck, the race control would have thrown the caution much earlier if they knew just how bad the wreck was. They were hoping the No. 51 Ford could come out of the barrier, just like Kyle Larson did last year. Eventually, it took the sanctioning body nearly 35 seconds to wave the yellow flag, precious time that could have been used to attend to the 29-year-old, who said, “Need help” on the team radio immediately after impact.

Freddie Kraft, who was furious at NASCAR’s delayed response, didn’t hold back on the Door Bumper Clear podcast. The spotter said, “At the end of the day, I don’t wanna hear excuses. I want them to come out and just say, ‘Cody, we’re sorry. We will do better next time.’ Because that needed to be a caution, as hard as that kid hit the wall, and especially, you hear on the radio he’s asking for help as soon as he hits the wall. That needed to be an instant yellow or as instant as it could, and it felt like 34 or 35 seconds, whatever it was, was way too long.”

The incident highlights a big issue with race control. Missing a wreck of this magnitude should be inexcusable, and NASCAR needs to make changes to ensure such a situation isn’t repeated. Even if it means having more eyes to monitor the cameras, or placing officials on every corner. Ultimately, driver safety should be the biggest priority, and Cody Ware’s incident wasn’t even the only one that compromised the 2025 Grant Park 165.

Wood Brothers Racing’s Josh Berry was stranded on the track for 1 and a half laps as NASCAR seemed to snooze after the #21 spun out at Chicago. Berry was hit in the left rear quarter panel by Erik Jones and hit his nose on the wall before coming to rest on the track. This could have been an incredibly dangerous situation as NASCAR waited so long to call a caution that Denny Hamlin admitted he passed him twice before it was even called, saying, “I believe I saw him [Josh Berry] twice… Wait 30-45 seconds [for a caution], not a minute and a half.”

Meanwhile, looking visibly shaken up after the race, Cody Ware was mild in his criticism towards NASCAR but admitted he was surprised at the delay. The North Carolina native was on the verge of his best finish in the Cup Series so far, but had to settle for a “pretty c—— end of the day”. With the race going on, the 29-year-old admitted, “There’s not much I can do at that point,” even though he was “focused on getting out of the car and getting to a safe spot.” Ultimately, NASCAR needs to learn some valuable lessons from this incident and aim to do better going forward.

Tommy Baldwin shares an update on Cody Ware’s health

Missed opportunity. That’s how Cody Ware and Rick Ware Racing will feel now that the race in Chicago is over. The No. 51 Ford Mustang was running close to the top 10 in the final two laps and showed lightning-fast pace around the 2.2-mile street course throughout the weekend. Unfortunately, the racer lost his brakes with just two laps to go and slammed head-on into the tire barriers.

Revealing Ware’s condition on the Door Bumper Clear podcast, Tommy Baldwin, Competition Director at RWR, said, “He’s a little sore. They told us this morning it was probably the worst head-on hit in this car. Thank goodness NASCAR on making all the changes. I think the only one that was recorded harder was Ross [Chastain’s] before they made the changes. It was harder than even Ryan [Blaney’s] hit at Daytona or close to it.”

Now, Cody Ware has his work cut out for him. He’ll look to pick himself up, dust himself off, and get a good finish at Sonoma Raceway. The racer finished 13th at EchoPark Speedway and could potentially break into the top 10 on the road course if the No. 51 crew can replicate the speed he showed at Chicago. Could this be a turning point in the 29-year-old’s season? Time will tell. But he’ll be praying Lady Luck is on his side going into the Toyota Save Mart 350.