Aric Almirola airlifted to hospital after vicious three-car crash
Aric Almirola was airlifted to a local hospital and is stable and being held overnight for observation after he had to be extracted from his car following a violent three-car wreck at during Saturday night’s Cup Series race at Kansas Speedway.
Joey Logano’s car suffered an apparent mechanical failure in the right front of his car, which sent it into Danica Patrick’s car entering turn 1. The contact sent Patrick careening headfirst into the wall — while collecting Logano — and Almirola’s car slid so viciously into the accident that the rear tires lifted off the ground before slamming back onto the track.
Almirola’s car came to rest at the exit of turn 2 and he immediately put the window net down, which is the universal signal that a driver is alert. But crews had to peel back the roof of his car to remove him from it, and he was taken to a waiting ambulance via a backboard.
The ambulance then took Almirola to the infield care center and he was subsequently airlifted to a local hospital for further evaluation. Richard Petty Motorsports released a broad statement regarding Almirola early Sunday morning.
Almirola was alert after the accident as safety professionals removed him from the car. He was transported by helicopter to a local medical facility for evaluation. He is in stable condition and will be held overnight for further observation.
Because his car came to a stop near the wall, photographers were able to get detailed shots of Almirola.
Logano said he was unsure of what happened to his car to cause the accident.
“Something broke on my car, I don’t know what it was,” Logano said. “I noticed it as I was trying to go in [turn 1]. I tried to back it off but you’re going 215 (mph) and it’s hard to check up. The car just took a bit step sideways into the corner and I hooked Danica. I haven’t seen a replay yet, I don’t know what happened. You can see the right-front popped and it popped. I just hope everyone is okay. I hope Aric is alright. That’s the last thing you want to see, a big hit like that for anyone. It’s unfortunate for everyone. Let’s hope that Aric is alright.”
Patrick lamented the fact that a good run got derailed by Logano’s part failure.
“We were having a really good race and having fun out there and had a lot of speed,” Patrick said. ” … All I know is that I all of a sudden crashed. I definitely had a feeling it was [Logano] and I am sure that the doctors in the medical center checking my neurological abilities are glad to know I was right that it was Joey. When he said he had a failure I can’t say it made me feel that much better in the moment. I am just frustrated for the lack of breaks I get. It seems like every time things are going better and something happens I get crashed or am in a crash.”
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Nick Bromberg is the editor of Dr. Saturday and From the Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
