Pit stops can either determine the success or failure of a NASCAR race. In most races, everything runs smoothly, but in rare cases, significant errors happen, causing chaos. Here are NASCAR’s most memorable pit crew blunders.
6. Jeff Gordon’s 39-second pit stop disaster (1995)
Jeff Gordon’s famous 39-second pit stop happened during the NASCAR Winston Cup Series championship race at Atlanta in 1995. Although he led Dale Earnhardt by a comfortable margin of points and was virtually assured of winning his first championship, his team made a chaotic and disorganized pit stop. Crew members were out of position, which created a lot of confusion. Even crew chief Ray Evernham and team owner Rick Hendrick had to come in and assist.
The duration of the stop was an agonizing 39,6 seconds. But despite the mistake, Gordon still managed to clinch his first championship.
5. Martin Truex Jr.’s wheel comes off (2011)
In 2011, another instance of a pit stop blunder happened at the Richmond Raceway. After a frustrating pit stop, Martin Truex Jr.’s wheel came off, thereby affecting his chances of a good finish. Following the event, Truex Jr. had a lot to say on the team radio as he was angry with the pit crew and called for his entire pit crew to be fired.
But since Truex could not fire them, Michael Waltrip Racing made changes. He dismissed several crew members, including both tire carriers and changers before the next race at Darlington. This change was introduced to try and solve the pit road issues that have been a big Achilles’ heel to Truex’s team in the entire season.
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4. Brad Keselowski runs over his pit crew (2015)
In 2015 during their pit stop at Pocono Brad Keselowski accidentally hit two of his pit crew members. When Keselowski missed his pit box, his brakes locked causing him to hit the jackman and a tire carrier flew onto the hood.
It was a horrible event, but both men miraculously walked away without serious injuries. Keselowski could only make it to the 37th position due to the chaos that happened during the race but he managed to regain his position to finish the race in second place.
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3. Ward Burton’s crash (2001)
During the 2001 Pennzoil Freedom 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, a pivotal pit road blunder marked NASCAR’s history. Ward Burton and Casey Atwood crashed into each other on lap 112 when leaving pit road. As Burton sped onto the pit road he swerved into Ricky Rudd’s stall, he struck several members of Rudd’s crew. Two crew members sustained serious injuries which brought up worries about safety on the pit road.
After this crash occurred NASCAR decided helmets and fire suits should be worn by all pit crew members starting the next season.
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2. Mark Martin’s scary pit incident (2012)
The scary pit road incident that Mark Martin faced happened in the 2012 Pure Michigan 400 held at Michigan International Speedway. While leading the race, Martin’s car was hit by Kasey Kahne which caused him to spin down the pit road. The most scary aspect of the accident was when Martin’s car hit the pit wall sideways and the narrow strip cut through his car near the driver’s seat.
It could have been much worse though. Fortunately for Martin, he sustained no major injury, and none of the pit crew was affected either.
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1. Mike Rich’s fatal pit road accident (1990)
In the final race of the 1990 season at Atlanta International Raceway-Mike Rich died after a tragic pit road accident. While serving as a tire changer for Melling Racing and driver Bill Elliott, Rich was caught in a shocking accident when Ricky Rudd slipped out of control while entering the pit lane.
As Rudd struggled with his brakes locking up, his car turned sideways and came crashing into Elliott’s pinning Rich trapped between the two cars. Even with everyone working to help him Rich perished from his injuries. As a result of the tragic event, NASCAR’s pit lane rules faced major revisions in 1991. It included setting pit road speed limits and making safety tools like helmets and protective clothing mandatory for the pit crew.
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