Hot time in Pocono for Schrader, Jarrett

LONG POND, Pa. -- One of the first people to greet Ken Schrader after his wild ride at Pocono was his car owner, Beth Ann Morgenthau.

"Sorry about your car," Schrader said with a laugh.

Schrader's No. 49 BAM Dodge was the victim of brake failure heading into Turn 1 at Pocono Raceway, sending him flipping wildly before settling in the grass.

The fiery Lap 8 crash finished Schrader for the day, sending him to a 43rd-place finish in the Pocono 500.

Schrader was uninjured.

"NASCAR has done so much with safety," Schrader said. "You don't go by rides, you go by (severity of) hits, and it wasn't a bad hit."

POCONO 500 The defending Winston Cup champ celebrates his first win of 2003 Play video Martin finished second, his best run of the season Play video A late-race caution allows Stewart to cruise to the win Play video Ken Schrader hits the wall and flips over to bring out the first caution Play video Jarrett hits the wall hard to bring out the second caution Play video  •  Results  •  Standings  •  Photo Gallery

As Schrader barreled down the front straightaway at 200 mph, he eased off the gas and began to apply the brake for the sharp entry into Turn 1.

He had little warning as to what was about to happen next.

"Got down there, and (had) massive brake failure," Schrader said. "I hit them and it went to the floor."

Schrader said he didn't want to hit the wall nose-first, so he looped the car around for a softer impact.

"I said, 'I ain't going to hit it looking at it, I am going to back into it,'" Schrader said. "Lot softer back there."

This is the second straight year a wild crash has marred the opening laps of a race at Pocono.

In July 2002, Steve Park flipped down the backstretch on Lap 1 after contact with Rusty Wallace and Dale Earnhardt Jr. Park was uninjured in that crash.

Tire problem sets No. 88 Ford ablaze

A second fiery single-car crash, this time involving Dale Jarrett, occurred on lap 54 in nearly the same spot as Schrader's.

Jarrett blamed a tire problem for the crash, which caused him to finish 42nd. It's his fourth finish of 36th or worse in the past five races.

"As I was coming down the straightaway, the car got a serious vibration and started hopping before it just turned around," Jarrett said.

It took Jarrett several moments to get out of the car, but he was uninjured. At 6 feet, 3 inches, he's one of the tallest Winston Cup drivers, making it more difficult for him to get out of the car quickly.

"It's always hard to get out, especially when you're trying to get out in a hurry, but everything is fine," Jarrett said.

Jarrett had a good car before the incident. He had qualified seventh -- his best start of the year -- and had spent 52 laps in the top 10.

"I had a really good race car and it's just kind of the way the season has gone," said Jarrett, who has scored just two top 10s in 2003.