Latest news with #ArizonaNationals
Fox Sports
01-04-2025
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
'Literally just a bomb going off': Inside the cockpit of a 290-mph crash
Ron Capps Special to Ron Capps is second all time in NHRA history with 75 Funny Car wins. The 2025 season marks Capps' 31st year competing in the sport's professional ranks. This is a first-person account of his fiery crash at Arizona on March 23 in which he walked away unscathed. It was a regular Sunday morning. I started to get suited up and strapped in the car, and nothing was any different. That weekend of the Arizona Nationals, we qualified really well. We had a great race car through qualifying, so I felt pretty confident. You get up there and do the burnout, back up — the crew is checking everything out to make sure the car is good. We ran over 320 mph in qualifying, so I felt pretty confident that the car was going to repeat that and at least go 330 or something similar. I stepped on the gas and everything was normal. FOX Sports had what they call the visor cam on me, so I guess it's good and bad for the fans that they were able to watch it after the fact — they got a feeling of what I went through. I've been through these explosions and fires before in a Funny Car, having driven them for almost 30 years. On this run, the car was about half-track, and at that point we were going about 290 mph — and then it was so quick and so sudden this time, that it was literally just a bomb going off before I knew it. I kind of felt daylight, so I knew the body had been blown off the car, but the car was on fire, and the fire — since I sit behind the engine — was pretty strong in my face and around my arms. I knew the car was out of control. I didn't know where my opponent was on the track. I knew I was ahead of them at the point of the explosion, but I wasn't sure where he was. I didn't want to get into him or get in his way in his lane, but it escalated quickly. My first thought was back to John Force's accident last year, which was close to taking his life. We were the next car behind him when that accident happened in Virginia, so I had a firsthand look. As soon as I realized during this crash what was going on with my car, it started veering very hard to the left and I had no brakes or no steering and I was just picturing Force's wreck in my brain, like this is going to be bad. I knew I was going to the wall pretty hard and before the impact, I just kind of told myself to brace, and I didn't honestly think I'd be awake at the angle and the speed I was going after the hit. So once the hit happened, I was shocked that I was still awake. I naturally tried to get back on the brakes, they weren't working very well, but the car finally came to a stop. The safety crew team was already at my car before it came to a rest. I didn't know at the time but when I tried to get out, I couldn't get my left leg up to hop out of cage, and I wanted to get out pretty quickly to wave to the cameras because I know my mom watches the broadcast live from home and my wife and my kids were in the grandstands, so something like that when I've seen those accidents from behind you don't know whether the driver is hurt or killed, you just don't know. So that's the first thing I was trying to do, is let him know I'm okay. Once I got out of the car, the safety crew put the fire out and they brought me back over to look at the carnage. A piece of the engine had come through the side cockpit area down by my feet and that's what was holding my left leg up. So watching the replay on TV that night and on social media, I could see myself trying to get out and my leg being caught, so I was pretty lucky that my leg wasn't injured on top of everything else. ----- When it comes to crashes as a Funny Car driver, it's not I'm gonna have an accident or I'm gonna be on fire — it's just how many times. It is just such a violent sport. They are the most exhilarating race cars in the world to drive. They're exciting for fans to watch, but when you sit behind the engine like that — that's part of the allure that, when I was a kid, made me want to be a Funny Car driver — seeing these drivers who were heroes of mine that would be on fire and then hop out of the car like no problem. So it's a good and bad thing about driving a Funny Car. If you Google my name, I always tell people the first three or four things that pop up are big explosions. But this was definitely the worst accident for sure that I've had in my 30 years of driving a Funny Car. Again, with Force's accident last year and this one — they were very eerily similar when you play the two side-by-side, how the impact and the angle and speed were. It's ironic because in the offseason, NHRA had a big meeting with all the teams about making the head padding in the cockpit a little bit better, different ways to do things to make things a little bit safer, and our team went above and beyond that and re-did our seats and cockpit padding. Ironically, my daughter works for a dentist and she just had a mouthguard made for me a couple of months ago, and she's been on my case about wearing it. I forgot to wear it a couple of times recently. Before this run, I actually forgot to put it in and I already had my helmet on, so it took me about five minutes to get it through my helmet to my mouth — otherwise I wouldn't have worn it and I probably would have broken my teeth. A lot of things were very, very lucky, but that was definitely the worst crash of my career. ----- The dangers of drag racing are what makes our sport so exciting. It's why the grandstands are packed. It's why people turn the TV on. They want to see side-by-side 330-mph runs. My sponsors and our partners don't want to sponsor a daredevil, they want to sponsor an exciting motorsport. Anytime we post something on social media with a visor cam or any in-car camera, it's just amazing how many people, when they feel like they're going 330 themselves, get immersed in this sport. You have to remember: we go 0 to 100 mph in less than one second from a standing stop and 0 to 330 mph in 3.8 seconds with more G-Forces than anything on planet Earth except a fighter pilot — more than a space shuttle pilot — and then negative 8 or nine Gs when the parachutes pops. On this crash, we'll get the black box reading and I'm sure it was upwards of 30 or 40 Gs on impact to the wall. It's an exciting sport and things do happen like John Force's accident, like my accident, and I believe I'm alive because of the accidents that happened previously. I really think the advancements and gained knowledge on why these things happened can keep it from happening again. I know for sure I was walking around Pomona and racing again this past weekend because of the increased safety we had as a result of Force's accident. I truly believe the sooner you can get back in the car following a bad crash, the better. I had to wait a week after this crash, and I've tried not to watch the replay, but it's all over the place, and when I do see it, you kinda grit your teeth because it's ugly to watch, especially when it's yourself. The sooner you can get back in the cockpit, for me anyway, and just get that out of your head, because it doesn't happen very often. But I am very lucky, that's for sure. 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Yahoo
29-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Mudflaps or Canards: The NHRA Aero Experiment Everyone is Watching
When a drag racer talks about 'mudflaps,' don't envision the big, wide rubber strips with the slinky silhouettes behind the tires on semi haulers that keep mud, rocks, and debris from pocking car windshields on the Interstate highways. What they're referring to is the canards, or 'air deflectors,' in front of the giant rear Goodyear slicks on an NHRA Top Fuel dragster. They're the hottest tech topic on the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series; these additions are designed not for the advertising billboards they have become but for decreasing downforce, and reducing rear-wheel loads, all without causing a significant impact on other areas of the race car. The NHRA is studying it all and has allowed crew chiefs to experiment with the panels for the next four races. The experiment started with last weekend's Arizona Nationals at Firebird Motorsports Park in the Phoenix suburb of Chandler. Until the end of April, 'mudflaps' on Top Fuel dragsters will be optional. After the Arizona Nationals, the flaps are allowed at this weekend's Winternationals at Pomona, Calif., and the two four-wide events, at Charlotte and Las Vegas – and the NHRA Technical Department will be evaluating their effectiveness. The Tech Department will reassess the mud flap after the trial period, working with Top Fuel teams to gather as much information as possible. If a team does not use mud flaps, the side of the Top Fuel body must be covered with a replacement body panel, with no bare chassis exposed. Brian Corradi, current champion Antron Brown's crew chief, said, 'We don't need to have any tires failing. And they think that maybe you could take some downforce off the car by taking the mudflaps off, because we have nowhere else to go on the wing unless we change the wing design. So that's the plan.' Brittany Force was one of the first to make a pass without the familiar flaps, at last week's Arizona Nationals, at Phoenix, and she clocked a 3.768-second, 329.10-mph performance. But that was right in her wheelhouse. Neither she nor Dave Grubnic, her crew chief, put their stock in either of the car's configurations. Grubnic said, 'One run doesn't prove anything. We've been given the opportunity to explore [whether to use the mudflaps]. We've got to look at driveshafts. We've got to look at a lot of things. The car pretty much ran its number. It doesn't suggest the mudflaps did anything. It's way too early. Let's see what happens.' Force's co-crew chief, John Collins, joined the debate about what to call them – mudflaps? Canards? – and his suggestion was to 'call them useless.' Force has made runs both with and without mudflaps, and she said, 'There is a lot of theories and speculation around it. We're going to take all these four races to see what we could do, if it affects me as a driver, what it does to our car performance-wise. I'm excited to see.' Public-address announcer Jason Galvin said Saturday, 'The one thing that we do know, just from talking to our friends at Goodyear last weekend, when these race teams took those air deflectors off the car, they were seeing significantly cooler temperatures on the tires on the top end compared to the cars that were still running them.' Conditions were hot at Phoenix and are cool at Pomona, providing a wide array of data. Drag-racing legend Don 'The Snake' Prudhomme ushered in the mudflaps in 1990, with technical expertise of General Motors/Pontiac engineers, in an effort actually to increase downforce on the dragsters – the opposite of what the purpose of them is today. 'One of the engineers put aluminum flaps out on the side of the car, and that changed everything,' he said. That gave us downforce and everything we needed. And that's how they got born. Now they're [made of] carbon fiber.'
Yahoo
24-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Entrepreneur Paul Lee Gets First NHRA Funny Car Victory After Long Time Trying
Paul Lee has a lot of achievements in life. Lee owns successful automotive aftermarket companies. He is an expert poker player. He has earned a law degree—three college degrees, to be exact. He won several alcohol Funny Car races. He even survived a widow-maker heart attack several years ago. But he never won an NHRA Funny Car Wally trophy—until Sunday at the Arizona Nationals at Firebird Motorsports Park in the Phoenix suburb of Chandler. The 67-year-old Lee, who earned his nitro license and made his Funny Car debut in 2005 after starting in Top Alcohol cars in 1988, joined Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) and Shawn Langdon (Top Fuel) on the winners podium. Lee's first triumph, at reigning class champion Austin Prock's expense, was a tremendously sentimental one, for it came 18 years to the day after Eric Medlen's passing. Eric Medlen's father, John Medlen, is Lee's co-crew chief along with tuner/builder/racer Jonnie Lindberg. 'I had a feeling about today,' Lee said as he received his trophy. 'We prayed about it today, and there was just a calm in our pit. We're blessed. Today was surreal. This trophy is going straight o John Medlen. He's the strongest man I know. He's a blessed man, and he has blessed us with his presence on our team.' Moments after watching Lee clinch the victory, John Medlen said of his son, 'I think he pushed that car right into the winners circle.' Lee also credited Lindberg, a Top Alcohol Funny Car champion turned Funny Car racer turned crew chief. Lee likened him to drag-racing legend Don Garlits. Curiously, Lee's only three final rounds in Funny Car competition have come in the past eight months, including at Seattle last July and at Las Vegas in November 2024. And in all three Lee has had to face Prock. Prock, representing John Force Racing, had a lot of emotion attached to this final round, as well. Prock grew up around the beloved Eric Medlen when Medlen competed at JFR with John Medlen tuning the car. The win also gave Lee the Funny Car points lead. It was as though neither Pro Stock driver wanted to win the final round that was a rematch of the season-opening Gatornationals. And even when Anderson was declared the winner, he said he had no idea what he had done or why he won or what Glenn—who beat him at Gainesville two weeks ago—had done. Anderson is 64 years old and constantly wisecracks about being a greybeard. Glenn, too, fondly gets in his digs to his mentor. But Anderson was not going crazy Sunday. The final round was the weirdest even the experts have seen in the sport's history. You see, drag racing has no start-finish line. It has a starting line, and it has a finish line. For the Pro Stock class, those two lines are a quarter-mile apart. But with a weird technical twist, Sunday's starting line was the finish line. Both Anderson and Glenn committed foul starts, and both cars lost power immediately. Anderson saw his win light come on, and he said later that he didn't know how he could red-light—and have his car quit on him, to boot—and still win. He said he knew he had red-lit at the Christmas Tree—jumped the gun—but didn't have any idea what Glenn, his KB Titan Racing teammate, was doing. So he figured he needed to try to get his Chevy Camaro to hook up again and was supremely frustrated he couldn't do that. 'I had no chance of winning that race,' he said, but little did he know he already had won it. Glenn, too, was frustrated for his own reasons. 'We both blew it,' Anderson declared. 'We wanted to put on a good show, and that wasn't much of a show. They say there's no such thing as an ugly win. Well, that was an ugly win. But a win is a win is a win. We'll forget about the details of it. The Great Lord shined on me today.' Final finish order (1-16) at the 40th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals at Firebird Motorsports Park. The race is the second of 20 events in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series. TOP FUEL: 1. Shawn Langdon; 2. Doug Kalitta; 3. Jasmine Salinas; 4. Brittany Force; 5. Antron Brown; 6. Justin Ashley; 7. Tony Stewart; 8. Josh Hart; 9. Clay Millican; 10. Ida Zetterstrom; 11. Travis Shumake; 12. Scott Palmer; 13. Steven Chrisman; 14. Shawn Reed. FUNNY CAR: 1. Paul Lee; 2. Austin Prock; 3. Jack Beckman; 4. Bob Tasca III; 5. Matt Hagan; 6. Blake Alexander; 7. J.R. Todd; 8. Cruz Pedregon; 9. Ron Capps; 10. Jon Capps; 11. Daniel Wilkerson; 12. Alexis DeJoria; 13. Bobby Bode; 14. Chad Green; 15. Dave Richards; 16. Buddy Hull. PRO STOCK: 1. Greg Anderson; 2. Dallas Glenn; 3. Matt Hartford; 4. Aaron Stanfield; 5. Eric Latino; 6. Cory Reed; 7. Mason McGaha; 8. Greg Stanfield; 9. Cristian Cuadra; 10. Troy Coughlin Jr.; 11. David Cuadra; 12. Brandon Foster; 13. Erica Enders; 14. Jeg Coughlin; 15. Deric Kramer; 16. Fernando Cuadra Jr.. Sunday's final results from the 40th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals at Firebird Motorsports Park. The race is the second of 20 in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series: Top Fuel -- Shawn Langdon, 3.724 seconds, 330.39 mph def. Doug Kalitta, 3.770 seconds, 325.53 mph. Funny Car -- Paul Lee, Dodge Charger, 4.030, 313.22 def. Austin Prock, Chevy Camaro, 4.507, 240.68. Pro Stock -- Greg Anderson, Chevy Camaro, Broke def. Dallas Glenn, Camaro, Foul - Red Light. Competition Eliminator -- Jeff Taylor, Spitzer, 6.912, 159.83 def. Paul Mitsos, Chevy Camaro, 21.356, 35.22. Super Stock -- Ryan McClanahan, Chevy Cobalt, 8.284, 161.32 def. Leo Glasbrenner, Chevy Camaro, 9.413, 142.49. Stock Eliminator -- Justin Lamb, Chevy Camaro, 9.618, 135.21 def. Jody Lang, Chevy Malibu Wgn, 12.019, 107.05. Super Comp -- Chad Webber, Dragster, 8.944, 180.91 def. Steve Williams, Dragster, 8.927, 182.62. Super Gas -- Roger Kato, Chevy Camaro, 9.932, 171.60 def. Jerry Denton, Chevy Corvette, 9.826, 157.85. Top Dragster -- Mike Fuqua, Dragster, 7.237, 184.77 def. Mallory Reis, Dragster, 6.495, 203.95. Pro Modified -- Mike Stavrinos, Chevy Camaro, 5.725, 248.43 def. Rickie Smith, Ford Mustang, 5.787, 250.09. Legends Nitro Funny Car presented by Extreme Steel -- Ryan Horan, Chevy Camaro, 4.706, 240.55 def. Bobby Cottrell, Camaro, 4.826, 235.39. Final round-by-round results from the 40th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals at Firebird Motorsports Park, the second of 20 events in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series: TOP FUEL: ROUND ONE -- Tony Stewart, 4.940, 189.84 def. Shawn Reed, 7.961, 64.16; Justin Ashley, 3.805, 327.19 def. Ida Zetterstrom, 3.818, 324.51; Brittany Force, 3.779, 320.89 def. Steven Chrisman, 4.089, 254.90; Doug Kalitta, 3.762, 325.92 def. Travis Shumake, 3.829, 330.88; Shawn Langdon, 3.783, 323.66 def. Scott Palmer, 3.918, 296.57; Antron Brown, 3.770, 329.34 def. Josh Hart, 3.810, 322.27; Jasmine Salinas, 3.779, 328.70 def. Clay Millican, 3.815, 319.98; QUARTERFINALS -- Langdon, 3.841, 311.49 def. Ashley, 4.124, 246.08; Force, 3.793, 328.38 def. Stewart, 5.328, 135.00; Salinas, 3.821, 322.88 def. Brown, 3.870, 314.24; Kalitta, 3.821, 322.27 was unopposed; SEMIFINALS -- Kalitta, 3.767, 317.94 def. Salinas, 3.809, 320.66; Langdon, 3.833, 325.37 def. Force, Broke; FINAL -- Langdon, 3.724, 330.39 def. Kalitta, 3.770, 325.53. FUNNY CAR: ROUND ONE -- Bob Tasca III, Ford Mustang, 3.949, 326.16 def. Jon Capps, Dodge Charger, 4.570, 221.96; Jack Beckman, Chevy Camaro, 3.910, 327.66 def. Dave Richards, Mustang, 7.303, 94.31; Austin Prock, Camaro, 3.936, 324.75 def. Buddy Hull, Charger, 14.943, 58.78; Blake Alexander, Charger, 4.003, 306.67 def. Ron Capps, Toyota GR Supra, 4.165, 230.61; Paul Lee, Charger, 4.445, 196.22 def. Chad Green, Mustang, 7.219, 92.78; Cruz Pedregon, Charger, 3.977, 322.34 def. Alexis DeJoria, Charger, Foul - Red Light; Matt Hagan, Charger, 3.987, 324.44 def. Bobby Bode, Mustang, 4.768, 190.62; J.R. Todd, GR Supra, 7.556, 87.55 def. Daniel Wilkerson, Mustang, Foul - Red Light; QUARTERFINALS -- Prock, 4.010, 311.92 def. Hagan, 4.005, 316.38; Beckman, 3.973, 319.14 def. Pedregon, 10.113, 80.73; Tasca III, 3.979, 325.22 def. Todd, 5.294, 161.63; Lee, 3.964, 319.82 def. Alexander, 4.151, 276.58; SEMIFINALS -- Lee, 4.411, 207.62 def. Tasca III, 5.219, 156.41; Prock, 3.966, 321.19 def. Beckman, 3.979, 321.42; FINAL -- Lee, 4.030, 313.22 def. Prock, 4.507, 240.68. PRO STOCK: ROUND ONE -- Mason McGaha, Chevy Camaro, 6.907, 207.69 def. Deric Kramer, Camaro, 9.620, 109.58; Eric Latino, Camaro, 6.598, 209.20 def. Erica Enders, Camaro, 6.824, 209.39; Aaron Stanfield, Camaro, 6.596, 209.33 def. Cristian Cuadra, Ford Mustang, Foul - Red Light; Cory Reed, Camaro, 6.546, 209.62 def. Jeg Coughlin, Camaro, 7.075, 205.60; Matt Hartford, Camaro, 6.560, 208.71 def. Brandon Foster, Camaro, 6.619, 207.50; Greg Anderson, Camaro, 6.555, 209.49 def. Fernando Cuadra Jr., Camaro, 10.798, 85.46; Dallas Glenn, Camaro, 6.560, 210.57 def. David Cuadra, Camaro, 6.602, 208.71; Greg Stanfield, Camaro, 6.582, 208.75 def. Troy Coughlin Jr., Camaro, 6.587, 209.79; QUARTERFINALS -- Hartford, 6.588, 208.46 def. M. McGaha, 6.837, 204.48; Glenn, 6.590, 209.95 def. G. Stanfield, 18.127, 58.53; Anderson, 6.616, 209.17 def. E. Latino, 6.594, 209.17; A. Stanfield, 6.589, 208.49 def. Reed, 6.603, 209.10; SEMIFINALS -- Anderson, 6.586, 209.79 def. A. Stanfield, 16.603, 50.14; Glenn, 6.591, 209.79 def. Hartford, 6.586, 208.49; FINAL -- Anderson, Broke def. Glenn, Foul - Red Light. Point standings (top 10) following the 40th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals at Firebird Motorsports Park, the second of 20 events in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series - Top Fuel 1. Shawn Langdon, 219; 2. Antron Brown, 179; 3. Doug Kalitta, 161; 4. Jasmine Salinas, 145; 5. Brittany Force, 118; 6. Tony Stewart, 107; 7. Clay Millican, 89; 8. Justin Ashley, 85; 9. Steve Torrence, 75; 10. Shawn Reed, 66. Funny Car 1. Paul Lee, 151; 2. Jack Beckman, 149; 3. Bob Tasca III, 143; 4. Chad Green, 139; 5. Ron Capps, 132; 6. Austin Prock, 127; 7. Matt Hagan, 124; 8. Alexis DeJoria, 107; 9. (tie) Bobby Bode, 87; Cruz Pedregon, 87. Pro Stock 1. Greg Anderson, 228; 2. Dallas Glenn, 221; 3. Cory Reed, 129; 4. Matt Hartford, 117; 5. Eric Latino, 109; 6. Mason McGaha, 105; 7. Aaron Stanfield, 104; 8. Jeg Coughlin, 103; 9. Troy Coughlin Jr., 89; 10. Greg Stanfield, 86.
Fox News
23-03-2025
- Automotive
- Fox News
NHRA star Ron Capps' funny car explodes, crashes during Arizona Nationals
National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) funny car driver Ron Capps was involved in a scary crash during the Arizona Nationals on Sunday. Capps' vehicle came off the starting line fast and in the blink of an eye, the top of his car exploded. He careened across the dividing line and into the left guard wall. Capps was able to get out of his vehicle under his own power. The NHRA said he was examined by the on-site medical team before he was released. "It was an unfortunate first round, & we are thankful that @RonCapps28 was able to get out & walk away," Ron Capps Motorsports wrote on X. "The @NHRA Safety Safari was right there, & the safety equipment & chassis did its job. Thanks to our awesome sponsors like @theNAPAnetwork and Toyota we will be in Pomona!" Capps has 75 wins in a funny car and has made 151 final rounds. He had three wins and was a runner-up four times during the 2023 season. In 2024, he reached the final round in four events but failed to secure a victory. So far this season, he reached the final round in Gainesville, Florida, in the Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals. Capps finished third in the funny car standings last year. He was behind champion Austin Prock and John Force, who suffered his own scary crash back in June. Force has been back at the track this season to root for his family members and drivers as he deals with a traumatic brain injury stemming from the crash. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Yahoo
23-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Ron Capps Okay After Violent Crash at NHRA Arizona Nationals
NHRA Funny Car team owner/driver Ron Capps credited safety advancements that were inspired by previous profound accidents to the John Force Racing team. Horrifying-looking wreck slices car's body in two, sends parts, pieces flying. Hurtling at speed topping 230 mph, Capps said he braced for the side impact with the wall. Public-address announcer Jason Galvin described it in four words: 'Big. Violent. Expensive. Painful.' For Ron Capps, his massive Funny Car accident in Sunday's opening round of the Arizona Nationals eliminations at Firebird Motorsports Park in Chandler, Ariz., was all of those things. The engine explosion happened, eerily, on the 18th anniversary of John Force Racing Funny Car driver Eric Medlen's death at Gainesville, Fla., that led to safety advancements that Capps said he believes helped save him nearly two decades later and a continent away at Chandler, Ariz. It also came nine months to the day after John Force's ferocious wall-banger at Virginia Motorsports Park, near Richmond, that has the 16-time champion and 157-time winner still on the shelf with after-effects of a traumatic brain injury. Just past the 660-foot mark on the 1,000-foot course, the engine of Capps' NAPA Auto Parts entry blew up, turning his carbon-fiber Toyota Supra body to confetti spewed in all directions—and his chassis, as Capps put it, into a convertible. The force sliced the body in two behind the supercharger. Leaning to its right side, the car spun around and headed into the other lane, where it side-slapped the wall at perilous spot, near the gate. All of this unfolded in the fraction of an eyeblink after he clocked a 230.61-mph speed on that run that lasted only 4.165 seconds. Capps said that as his engine detonated with terrifying power in his first-round match against Blake Alexander, 'I don't know if I just didn't catch it at the time, just didn't expect to smoke and then didn't see Blake. But then it's just blurry. It bangs so quick, so violent, and then it was a convertible again. But I had fire in my face when it did it. It just started going left and I'm just, I'm living Force's accident, right? I know it's coming. I had no control. Moving pretty fast, and I know it's going to be bad. And sometimes when it's coming, it's going to be bad—and other times you feel like you're in control. 'But I just kept picturing John's accident that was right in front of us in Richmond,' Capps said. 'So I just hung on and just tried to brace myself. And when it hit, I honestly didn't expect to be awake afterwards. It was going that fast. And then I was still awake.' Capps praised everyone responsible for safety equipment, much of it improved since Medlen's testing crash that claimed his life several days later in 2007, along with a pair of devastating wrecks for Force (one at Dallas six months after Medlen's incident, the other last June's dealbreaker at Richmond). 'So I mean, paddings, all the stuff that Eric Medlen's and Force's accidents and all those things over the years have thankfully been fixed and upgraded so that I could be OK right now. I feel fine,' Capps said. 'No issues at all. You want to thank chassis builders and Toyota and the bodies and all the work that we do. 'Man, I am sure I'm not going to want to watch it,' he said. 'It was just 'Hang on' and 'This is going to be bad.'' He said one of his first thoughts was 'to get out as quick as I can and wave the camera' to signal to parents John and Betty Capps, who were following the action from home at San Luis Obispo, Calif., and wife Shelley and children Taylor and Caden on hand that he was uninjured. Immediately after the accident, Capps said he didn't know the cause of it. But he knew two things: 'I'm bummed we lost. And I'm really bummed [about the expense to repair it].' He even joked, 'Anybody want to throw some money as a partner? Want to come in? That's the second new car. And I feel so bad for Guido and the guys [crew chief Dean Antonelli and the team]. It's a lot of money. "Thank God, we got NAPA Auto care and Toyota to help us, but we're a single-car team, and we're just doing our best out here. So we'll be okay. We've got a week [until Race No. 3, at Pomona, Calif.'s In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip], and I've got the best guys in the world. So the NAPA Boys will get it fixed. We can fix the car.'
