supersalvadoran
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|  #1 Posted on 10.8.14 0157.39
Reposted on: 10.8.21 0157.57 | Click Here (usatoday.com)
I just saw a headline of this at ESPN and when I went to read the story and saw the video, I was shocked and horrified by what happened. I don't think the driver should had ran onto the middle of the track like that but I just can't believe that Stewart hit him with his car like that. My prayers to Kevin Ward Jr. As for Stewart, he's one of my favorite drivers and I like his no BS personality but sometimes his temper gets the best of him and his actions when angry are questionable at times. Whether or not this was accidental, this may have serious consequences for him and damage his reputation in a way that he may never be able to recover from.
(edited by supersalvadoran on 10.8.14 0324) | Promote this thread! |             | Oliver
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|  #2 Posted on 10.8.14 0206.53
Reposted on: 10.8.21 0207.03 | Wow, that's just insane. Tony's known for his temper, but I don't want to believe that he'd do something like that on purpose.
On the other hand, I can understand Ward's anger, but walking into the track while the race is going on is a bonehead move.
I don't know Sprint cars very well at all - can anyone explain their aerodynamics? How quickly can they brake? | supersalvadoran
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| #3 Posted on 10.8.14 0231.11
Reposted on: 10.8.21 0231.59 | There are now different reports coming out that Kevin Ward Jr. passed away. Terrible news. RIP.
I had the video of the incident posted up earlier but now after learning of Ward's death, I took it down. I realized too late it was inappropriate to display. I apologize for anyone offended by my actions and once again offer my thoughts and prayers to his family. | BigDaddyLoco
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| #4 Posted on 10.8.14 1151.41
Reposted on: 10.8.21 1151.51 | ... and he was planning on racing today under the guise of 'business as usual'. Luckily someone has some sense.
It's hard to tell for sure from that angle whether it was malicious or not, I kind of think that it was but I'm not sure if I would think that if it was the exact same thing and say Earnhardt driving instead.
Tony shouldn't be down there anyway. I get it that he just wants to race, but that seems like one of the things you lose when you become a multimillionaire team owner. I'm guessing he won't be racing too many more small tracks no matter how this shakes out. | Rush4Life
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| #5 Posted on 10.8.14 2329.36
Reposted on: 10.8.21 2330.09 | I woke up to that coverage this morning. Just horrific to see. As far as mini-sprints go, I am not sure of their braking characteristics but my guess would be that they stop quicker than NASCAR Cup cars simply because they are lighter.
I too hope that Stewart's temper didn't cause this terrible situation. I do hope that this will cause some sanctioning bodies to finally do something about drivers getting out of their cars to try and confront other drivers on the track.
Indycar and Formula 1 both make sure that their drivers and track marshals are not unnecessarily dangerous situations. Another way of making sure that these drivers don't do something like this is to hit them in the pocket book. | kwik
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| #6 Posted on 10.8.14 2339.15
Reposted on: 10.8.21 2339.57 | Originally posted by BigDaddyLoco
... and he was planning on racing today under the guise of 'business as usual'. Luckily someone has some sense.
It's hard to tell for sure from that angle whether it was malicious or not, I kind of think that it was but I'm not sure if I would think that if it was the exact same thing and say Earnhardt driving instead.
Tony shouldn't be down there anyway. I get it that he just wants to race, but that seems like one of the things you lose when you become a multimillionaire team owner. I'm guessing he won't be racing too many more small tracks no matter how this shakes out.
The camera cuts away at the absolute worst time to judge intent, but it is tough to think that Tony did this intentionally, even though it looked it this morning. What this is seeming to be more is a bad decision by one party, and a bad decision by another party leading to a real bad outcome.
The nature of dirt track racing, combined with the size of the tracks, mean that most cars are set up to drift through the turns, more so than a traditional asphalt car would be. When you get on the throttle, then, they also have a tendency to fishtail a bit. Unless some particularly damning video is out there that no one has yet made public, we have bad decision 1 (Ward should have not gotten anywhere near those cars) combined with bad decision 2 (Tony either got on the throttle at the wrong time, or wanted to rev the engine to try and dissuade Ward, or something similar), leading to the worst possible result.
Tony's done with the sprint cars at this point, he has to be. I don't think he'll be *criminally* charged, again unless there is some new video out there. Civil liability is a whole other question though. I would think that his sponsors are gonna start insisting on contact language that limits Tony's racing to NASCAR only. It wouldn't shock me if he sits out the next race as well, but he'll be back before the season is out. | Kevintripod
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| #7 Posted on 11.8.14 0710.57
Reposted on: 11.8.21 0711.39 | Originally posted by kwik
they also have a tendency to fishtail a bit. Unless some particularly damning video is out there that no one has yet made public, we have bad decision 1 (Ward should have not gotten anywhere near those cars) combined with bad decision 2 (Tony either got on the throttle at the wrong time, or wanted to rev the engine to try and dissuade Ward, or something similar), leading to the worst possible result.
Heard on the news tonite that many people are saying that Stewart was either attempting to scare Ward by fishtailing his car a little bit as he drove beside him, accidentilly hitting him....or most likely Stewart was trying to throw mud on Ward by throttling the car up a bit as he passed him, causing the back end of the car to fishtail into Ward. | JayJayDean
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| #8 Posted on 11.8.14 2212.56
Reposted on: 11.8.21 2213.55 | Originally posted by Kevintripod
Heard on the news tonite that many people are saying that Stewart was either attempting to scare Ward by fishtailing his car a little bit as he drove beside him, accidentilly hitting him....or most likely Stewart was trying to throw mud on Ward by throttling the car up a bit as he passed him, causing the back end of the car to fishtail into Ward.
I don't think this either one of these things happened. Have you ever driven for a long time and been in that "zone", and then have something pop into your vision? What do you instinctively do? You swerve away from the object, right? My take: A kid in a black firesuit and black helmet on a relatively poorly lit track popped into Tony Stewart's vision when he had no business being there. Tony flicked the wheel to the left to avoid him, and as sprint cars are engineered to do with camber, the car kicked out to the right a bit, and the young man was run over.
And here's what I keep coming back to: if Kevin Ward has stood by his car and waited to confront Stewart after the race, he would be alive today. There is no way (omitting the same small chance we all hope to avoid) this is an untrue statement. Drivers don't really approach other cars at caution speed...those sprint cars were NOT at caution speed yet - they were WHIPPING by Ward and he was nearly hit by another car BEFORE Stewart hit him. This was a completely avoidable tragedy. | CEOIII
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| #9 Posted on 12.8.14 0124.57
Reposted on: 12.8.21 0129.00 | I don't know NASCAR. I don't know either guy in this. Know what I do know?
If your stupid ass wanders onto a race track WHILE THE GODDAMN RACE IS STILL RUNNING, you deserve several tons of metal slamming into you. Stewart deserves, at best, a very light slap on the wrist, and Ward deserves a posthumous Darwin award. | CRZ
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| #10 Posted on 12.8.14 0208.41
Reposted on: 12.8.21 0210.19 | | Hot take, Charlie. | CEOIII
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| #11 Posted on 12.8.14 0234.34
Reposted on: 12.8.21 0239.59 | *googles hot take*
You know what, no. An actual hot take would be if I were doing what far too many other people seem to be doing: demanding Stewart's head on a pike. This moron wanders onto a track mid-race, but no, Tony's the bad guy. | | ALL ORIGINAL POSTS IN THIS THREAD ARE NOW AVAILABLE |
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