Carl Edwards has led calls for changes to be made to racing at Talladega following his dramatic accident during the latest round of the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
Edwards was leading on the run to the line when he went low to try and defend from Brad Keselowski, only to be turned into a spin that resulted in his car getting airborne and slamming into the fence on the outside of the circuit.
Eight fans picked up what were described as minor injuries caused by debris from the shunt, and Edwards admitted that something had to be done to improve safety at a venue where large accidents have become something of the norm.
Indeed, a wreck as early as lap six took a number of cars out of the race, while another large accident in the closing laps bunched up the field ahead of a four-lap sprint to the flag – which ended with Edwards' dramatic incident.
“Hopefully they can do something to change this style of racing,” Edwards said afterwards. “I guess we'll do this until somebody gets killed and then we'll change it, but that's the way it is.
“I don't know how I'd change this racing. I know it's a spectacle for everybody and that's great and all – but it's not right to ask all these guys to come out and do this. What if the car goes up in the grandstands and kills 25 people? I don't know if I could live with myself if I ended up in the grandstands.”
Ryan Newman, who took his wrecked car over the line to third after being caught up in the accident also admitted that some things did need to change.
“The one thing that stands out in my mind is two days in a row, we've had a car turned around and get upside down,” he said. “We need to go back, not to the drawing board, and develop some roof flats or something to keep the cars on the ground; that's one thing not just for the drivers, but for the fans, as well. That's one thing that stands out.
“NASCAR has got to do their job to get the cars on the ground and their job to make the cars safer. I noticed my windshield bed pulled away, and Carl Edwards windshield bed pulled away. Whatever we can do to keep making the cars safer, because I'm pretty sure that we are coming back to Talladega, and I'm pretty sure that we are coming back to restrictor plates, and I'm pretty sure that we are coming back to three wide and four wide for most of the races. What we can do to make everybody safer is what we need to do to come out of here today.”
