At Michigan International Speedway, NASCAR driver Corey LaJoie experienced a dramatic rollover during a battle with Noah Gragson. On the podcast “The Teardown,” commentators Jordan Bianchi and Jeff Gluck addressed the peculiar nature of the incident and questioned the safety concerns behind it.
Bianchi expressed concern about the severity of the accident, pointing out that while incidents in which cars are thrown through the air are worrying, they do not occur frequently enough to indicate a trend.
“It’s always concerning when a car is thrown into the air and an incident like this happens. I guess it’s not like cars like this are a common occurrence, which, knowing about it, helps a little.
“If that had happened regularly, you’d think, ‘Wow, wait a minute!’ because there was a period, 2015/2016, when we got a lot of blackouts.”
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Bianchi further explained the strangeness of the situation:
“That was strange. That was very strange… It was a very strange incident. Disturbing, yeah, not alarming, if that makes sense, because I’m not thinking, ‘Oh man, we need to address this today.’ I would say NASCAR’s record on safety is very, very good.
“In such cases, of course, they take the car to the research and development center to examine it. They don’t want to see something like that.”
“If something can be done to prevent this, they will certainly take action.”
Gluck emphasized the potential dangers that such accidents pose not only to the drivers but also to spectators.
“The danger, of course, is that they must not fly into the fence or the grandstand. I think he is talking about rollover situations. If a car rolls over on the track, the drivers in the cockpit are, as far as we can see, relatively safe,” noted Gluck.
Corey LaJoie shared his perspective and reflected on a challenge in an interview with NBC Sports after the accident.
“That’s how the year went. You know, we have a good car and I find a way to turn it around.
“We were upside down twice this year, and I’ve never been upside down in my whole career. Unfortunately, that was the year for our No. 7 team. We were fast, but we couldn’t get it together. But the No. 10 caught me a couple of times, especially after Turn 2, and I had a run, and I don’t know, I haven’t seen the replay yet.
“If he had ripped it off the wall when I was trying to get to his left buttock… That was a lot of fun, buddy,” LaJoie said.
Results of the NASCAR Cup Series FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway
- Tyler Reddick – 23XI Racing
- William Byron – Hendrick Motorsports
- Ty Gibbs – Joe Gibbs Racing
- Kyle Busch-Richard Childress Racing
- Brad Keselowski – RFK Racing
- Chris Buescher – RFK Racing
- Zane Smith – Spire Motorsports
- Daniel Suarez – Trackhouse Racing
- Denny Hamlin – Joe Gibbs Racing
- Carson Hocevar – Spire Motorsports
- Ryan Preece – Stewart Haas Racing
- Noah Gragson – Stewart Haas Racing
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr – JTG Daugherty Racing
- Harrison Burton – Wood Brothers Racing
- Chase Elliott – Hendrick Motorsports
- Erik Jones – Legacy Motor Club
- Austin Dillon – Richard Childress Racing
- Ryan Blaney – Team Penske
- Michael McDowell – Front Row Motorsports
- Justin Haley-Rick Ware Racing
- Cody Ware – Rick Ware Racing
- Josh Berry – Stewart Haas Racing
- Daniel Hemric – Kaulig Racing
- Martin Truex Jr. – Joe Gibbs Racing
- Ross Chastain – Trackhouse Racing
- Bubba Wallace – 23XI Racing
- Alex Bowman – Hendrick Motorsports
- Austin Cindric – Team Penske
- John H. Nemechek – Legacy Motor Club
- AJ Allmendinger – Kaulig Racing
- Chase Briscoe – Stewart-Haas Racing – Suspended
- Corey LaJoie – Spire Motorsports – DNF
- Joey Logano – Team Penske – DNF
- Kyle Larson – Hendrick Motorsports – DNF
- Christopher Bell – Joe Gibbs Racing – DNF
- Todd Gilliland – Front Row Motorsports – DNF
