NASCAR to Review Caution Procedures Following Chicago Incident
NASCAR officials announced a review of the caution procedures employed during the Cup Series race at the Chicago street course, following a significant incident involving driver Cody Ware. The evaluation comes after a delayed caution period for Ware’s head-on crash into tire barriers, which raised concerns regarding race safety protocols.
The incident occurred with just two laps remaining when Ware experienced a brake rotor failure while approaching Turn 6, resulting in a full-speed collision. Despite the critical nature of the crash, NASCAR refrained from immediately displaying the caution flag, waiting 35 seconds before taking action, which ultimately concluded the race under caution. Shane van Gisbergen, who was leading at the time, had already taken the white flag lap.
Brad Moran, NASCAR Cup Series managing director, discussed the incident on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, stating, “We’ll be reviewing all of this and getting all of our information put together. Unfortunately, we didn’t have the actual footage of the impact… We’ll be looking at certain areas of that racetrack and definitely improving that situation.”
Despite the potential risks, NASCAR personnel stationed in the TV compound opted to allow Ware some time to potentially drive away from the crash, a standard procedure for road and street courses. Local officials with blue flags were also present to communicate issues, with NASCAR relay systems in place to inform spotters.
Ware, who was positioned 18th when the crash occurred, reported needing assistance immediately after the impact but was subsequently cleared from the care center without major injuries. Moran highlighted, “If we would have had the shot of Cody’s impact, the caution would have come out sooner… It was thrown immediately when he dropped his window net.”
Moving forward, NASCAR plans to reassess its monitoring strategies to improve reaction times to similar incidents in future races, particularly should a return to the Chicago layout be necessary.
