Watch: Driver Survives Catastrophic Crash at Daytona
NASCAR driver Ryan Preece was released from the hospital Sunday, less than 24 hours after surviving a horror crash at Florida’s Daytona International Speedway.
The terrifying incident occurred late into Saturday’s match. Erik Jones hit Preece’s car from behind, which sent him careening into the infield grass. Once it made contact with the turf, Preece’s No. 41 car lost control and launched into an aerial spin. The car twirled mid-air an astonishing ten times before it finally came to a rest in flames.
A look at what happened to the No. 41 car on the backstretch.@RyanPreece_ has exited the vehicle. pic.twitter.com/NkmPJEtOKm
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) August 27, 2023
"This is just violent," NBC NASCAR analyst Jeff Burton remarked just after the crash. "That is just amazing that something that weighs over 3,500 pounds can get in the air like that.” Burton went on to remark that these sorts of catastrophic crashes are rarely seen anymore, since NASCAR has remodeled their vehicles with a focus on safety. "15 to 20 years ago, these were the kind of wrecks we expected to see…. NASCAR has changed a lot about these cars to try to keep them on the ground. And for the most part, unless these cars find themselves in these kind of odd situations—it works."
Ryan Preece flipped 10 times in this violent crash late at Daytona.#NASCAR | @NBC and @Peacock pic.twitter.com/ho1EpXZr3E
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) August 27, 2023
Medical personnel came onto the field to assist Preece, but the driver was miraculously able to extricate himself from the wreckage. He was nevertheless placed on a stretcher as a precaution, and taken to the infield care center. NASCAR decided not to issue a red flag after the crash, with the race instead heading into overtime.
Preece was subsequently treated at Halifax Health Medical Center. Shortly after the crash, he tweeted: “If you want to be a race car driver, you better be tough…I’m coming back.”
If you want to be a race car driver, you better be tough.
— Ryan Preece (@RyanPreece_) August 27, 2023
Dammit. Fast @racechoice @FordPerformance Mustang. I’m coming back.