Letting drivers race on dirt can help sharpen their skills, and it makes the team owners second-guess the risk. Rick Hendrick’s stars are from the same mold. Kyle Larson even vouched for Corey Day’s talent and helped guide him toward Hendrick Motorsports. But seeing both the reigning champion and the future star slip up in the same race is a tough sight for any team.

Rick Hendrick and Jeff Gordon have long allowed their drivers to compete outside NASCAR, unlike teams that avoid the track danger altogether. Joe Gibbs Racing only recently eased its restrictions. Still, the chaotic Placerville crash was one everyone would rather forget. As HMS moves forward, one of the drivers has now chosen to speak up about the incident.

Not just driving, but predicting is also necessary, as per Day

Speaking to FloRacing, Corey Day said, “Yeah, unfortunate, you know people will probably watch it and say I’m an idiot and I ran him over but yeah it’s a whole different view from the driver’s seat in there so yeah it sucked.” He added, “It hurt for sure, but luckily my head’s all good and just out last night to see what the track is going to be like with all this rain. And to be honest with you, I’m at this stage of my dirt career; I’m more of a fair-weather racer. ”

During the Hangtown 100 last week, Corey Day endured a frightening crash after clipping a lapped car while running second. Although he is set to make a full-time NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts debut season with HMS, Day has been spending his off-season logging valuable dirt track laps, and this one turned rough in a hurry.

Day also explained why such crashes happen. When the pace is so fast, there’s a lot of predicting that needs to be done. He said,

“When you’re going that fast and the race pace is that high, when you get to the back end of lap cars, they don’t really know where they’re going. I don’t think the 97 did. He ran the bottom for every lap. I watched him in front of me in three and four. And then, of course I got to him, and he moved up. I guess I don’t know what happened, but he lifted just way early, and that’s kind of what caused it all.”

The unpredictability example was seen here by the No. 97 car, driven by Gavin Miller. Initially, it had been running at the bottom. But as Day reached him, it suddenly moved up, and when it lifted the throttle, as Day says, it surprised him, and that’s what eventually caused the crash, according to him.

And it wasn’t just Day. Kyle Larson also had a bad race. HMS had both Day and Larson entering the Placerville event, but neither made it to the finish.

Day’s crash came first as he tried to navigate traffic, sending him flipping hard with 42 laps still remaining. Only a short while later, Larson, who had been leading, was turned over in a separate incident. What looked initially like a potential showdown between the two Californians vanished almost instantly.

After the wreck, Day had reassured fans with a message on social media.

He wrote, “Thank you to everyone that has checked on me after last night. Thank you to [Arai Americas, Simpson Racing, Ultra Shield, and Placerville Speedway] safety crew for keeping me safe last night. Pretty banged up but overall ok. See you guys this week, [Factory Kahne] and I have some unfinished business.”

Even NASCAR veteran Ken Schrader couldn’t help but offer his thoughts on the incident.

He said, “Yeah, he took a ride. It was not one you want to be in, yeah. Had to be thinking, Oh, I got Corey and Kyle out there upside down. Kyle just spun around in the air. Now he spun around, you know, pretty impressively… Landed, landed, and then tipped over when you’re riding in them.”

Larson’s flip came in the closing laps after contact with Daison Pursley, who went on to win. Fortunately, both drivers walked away and are expected to be back behind the wheel again very soon.

In fact, the soon-to-be 20-year-old driver has already made his way to the Merced Speedway for the Chase John Classic, where he is gearing up to run a double duty on Sunday night. But Day definitely has some unfinished business with the Factory Kahne driver as Larson clears Pursley off the hook.

Kyle Larson settles the debate on the Placerville result

Amid fans slamming Larson for the flip, the 2025 Cup Series Champion chose to let it go. But Larson definitely offered a slow, sarcastic clap and a double thumbs up toward Pursley.

And as that moment settled, the Californian driver showed maturity. In his post-interview, he explained calmly, saying,

“We had a great car, a good race going. Daison must have built a run on the cushion behind me. Surprised me on the entry to 1 and hit the grease. I had nowhere to go. Just a bummer, but I mean, I get it, just because, you know, my entry was closed off, so he had to pull the trigger right there. I wished it wouldn’t have happened, he wished it wouldn’t have happened.”

With five laps left, Larson was confidently in control of the race. But as the next lap began, Daison, who was running second, saw an opening. He carried the momentum of the cushion into turn 1 and hit the slick part of the track just as he reached Larson. Since the HMS driver’s line was already sealed, the two made unavoidable contact.

Pursley’s right rear tapped Larson’s left front, launching the No.6 car into the air. However, in the future, luck finally ran out. And Larson was reminded of one truth about dirt racing. Even when you’re the fastest, the sport doesn’t owe you anything. Sometimes the wind gets taken away in an instant, and all you can do is walk away with grace.