A heavy multicar crash late in Saturday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race snared William Byron, Clint Bowyer and more, forcing a red flag with 14 laps remaining at Kansas Speedway.
Byron triggered the melee as he appeared to lose grip under the No. 14 of Bowyer, and his No. 24 Chevrolet nosed hard into the outside retaining wall, lifting its rear wheels off the ground with the impact. Byron’s car landed on the roof of Ryan Newman’s No. 31 Chevy as more cars scrambled to avoid the mess.
Byron exited his crumpled, smoldering car under his own power. He told FS1 after being released from the infield care center that it was the most severe hit of his career.
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“I think overall we were trying to kind of push some things there and it didn’t work out,” said Byron, who gained track position with two-tire stops on more than one occasion in Saturday’s KC Masterpiece 400. “We’re going to wherever’s next and that one was definitely the hardest hit I’ve been in, but thankful to be walking so that’s good.”
Other drivers involved were Matt Kenseth in his first event of the season, Jamie McMurray, Ty Dillon and Chris Buescher.
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“I just saw everybody wrecking and the track was kind of blocked, so I tried to get down toward the grass,” said Kenseth, who finished 36th in his return to competition in the Roush Fenway Racing No. 6 Ford. “This grass is not the new friendly grass with the rain and all it just kind of dug in and then I just hit the car in front of me.”
Said Bowyer, who continued and held on for 15th place as the last driver on the lead lap: “We started in the back and got up through there pretty good, but then kind of stalled out. We got wrecked there. I was trying to get us up in the top five and got wrecked there. That’s just part of it I guess.”