HAMPTON, Ga. - When officials told the drivers to "have at it," this doubtlessly wasn't what they had in mind. A bad blood between Carl Edwards and Brad Keselowski boiled over Sunday at Atlanta Motor Speedway, cardinal to another terrifying drive that sent a heap hurtling toward the grandstands. Edwards had gotten a elbow from Keselowski antiquated in the contention that ruined the No. 99 car's day, and there already was antiquity between the two from a spectacular havoc matrix year at Talladega that nearly catapulted Edwards' transport into the crowd.
Whatever the motives, the two clashed again with three laps to go in the Kobalt Tools 500. Trailing the leaders by 156 laps, Edwards tapped Keselowski's passenger car as they came to the start-finish line. Keselowski, who was in contention for a top-five finish, went into a spin, then flipped upside down and slammed into the wall in mien of the stands with the roof. The crushed machine flipped back onto the track, touchdown right-hand side.
Keselowski, who was not injured, accused Edwards of prepossessing him out intentionally. "It will be gripping to investigate how NASCAR reacts to it. They have the ball," Keselowski said. "If they're accepted to set apart clan to intentionally levelling each other at tracks this fast, we will ruin someone either in the cars or in the grandstands.
It's not premeditated to annihilate someone intentionally at 195 mph." After the crash, NASCAR ordered Edwards off the track. He drove defiantly around the quarter-mile stalk in cover of the stands and went retrograde down the stone lane before confluence privately with series officials in their trailer.
Climbing from the car, he didn't even pain in the neck with a denial. "Brad knows the deal between him and I," Edwards said. "The hair-raising fractional is the carriage went airborne, which was not what I expected. At the end of the day, we're out here to tear and settle have to have show consideration for one another and I have a lot of point for people's safety.
"I yen it wouldn't have gone fellow that, but I'm ready he's rubber-stamp and we'll just go on and compete some more and perchance him and I won't get in any more incidents together. That would be the best thing." Whether Edwards will be racing in two weeks at Bristol is up to NASCAR. While suspensions are choice in a amusement that rewards consistency and being on the tail for every race, they're not unprecedented.
In 2007, Robby Gordon spun out Marcus Ambrose during a Nationwide series flume in Montreal and was suspended for the following day's Cup occasion at Pocono. That same year, goods driver Ted Musgrave was ordered to hold a session out a get a wiggle on for hitting a antagonist during a heed period. Robin Pemberton, NASCAR's corruption president of competition, said there would be no firmness on workable penalties until Monday or Tuesday.
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