Crash may prompt harsher penalties for aggression

NASCAR may implement harsher penalties for blocking and aggressive driving in the wake of Sunday's final-lap accident at Talladega Superspeedway, but stopped short of blaming the drivers for the crash that sent Carl Edwards flying into the track's restraining fence.

Seven fans in the grandstand were injured by flying debris when Edwards' car went airborne following contact with the vehicle of eventual race winner Brad Keselowski. Edwards walked away uninjured. The accident occurred as Keselowski was trying to pass while remaining above the yellow line at the bottom of the race track -- dipping below it would have resulted in a penalty -- and Edwards attempted to protect his position by blocking.

"We tried letting the competitors police themselves when it comes to blocking and bump drafting," Jim Hunter, NASCAR's vice president for corporate communications, said on a conference call with reporters Monday. "We might have to start making some judgment calls of our own and issue penalties for drivers who blatantly block and abuse the bump drafting. We're going to take whatever measures we need to in order to ensure the races are as safe as possible for everyone."

Yet NASCAR steered clear of specifically blaming Keselowski and Edwards for the accident and the injuries to those in the grandstand. "I don't recall trying to blame anything on anyone," Hunter said.

NASCAR has taken a more stringent stance on aggressive driving on restrictor-plate venues in recent years, going as far as to install "no zones" around Talladega and Daytona where excessive bump-drafting and other aggressive moves are off limits. Robin Pemberton, NASCAR's vice president for competition, said that any further restrictions that result from Sunday's incident will likely be procedural, meaning that drivers will serve penalties during a race rather than have points docked or fines levied afterward.

"A greater emphasis may come at Daytona and Talladega, because we have tried to let the racers take care of themselves," Pemberton said. "When certain situations develop a pattern on a more regular basis, that's where we may have to step in and make some calls. We really don't want them to put us in that position to make those calls. We'd rather let the competitors take care of it on the track."

Despite the injuries to fans, Hunter said the safety systems in place Sunday worked properly. Pemberton said the roof flaps on Edwards' car did deploy, and that the vehicle was in the process of settling to the ground before it was struck by the oncoming car of Ryan Newman, which sent it airborne. Hunter added that the restraining fence did its job, even though some pieces of debris went through it.

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"Nothing is bulletproof," Hunter said. "From what we saw [Sunday], the restraining fence did what it was supposed to do, it threw the car back on the race track. There was some debris that went into the grandstand that fortunately did not evoke serious injury. We'll analyze the fence and make sure it did what it was suppose to do. We think it did. If there's something we come up with as we analyze his accident, we'll put it in play. We'll make it as safe as we humanly can."

Pemberton said investigators from NASCAR were at the Roush Fenway Racing shop on Monday analyzing Edwards' car, and that the driver safety devices within all "worked accordingly." The height of the restraining fence at Talladega, he said, will also be examined. Yet any idea of reducing Talladega's 33-degree corner banking to perhaps eliminate restrictor plates or cut down on the pack racing that produces so many accidents there is likely a non-starter.

"Flattening the track, sure, that would put us in a position where you could run without restrictor plates, but I don't see that as a real viable option," said Cup Series director John Darby.

"I think the safety efforts that have been made today to the cars and the race tracks and everything else that surrounds Daytona and Talladega have proven effective, and they will continue to be improved as we go forward and learn more. I also believe, and it goes without mention, that the most exciting races we have today are both at Daytona and Talladega. That's a big part of our sport. Those two tracks have been a big part of our sport for many, many years. I think there's more value in continuing our safety efforts at those tracks than turning those two very historical very, exciting race tracks into flat parking lots. I don't understand that thought process."

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