| | ESPN.com news services
LOUDON, N.H. -- Kenny Irwin was killed Friday when his car
slammed into a wall at 150 mph at a track where tragedy is becoming
all too familiar.
The crash came eight weeks to the day -- at almost the same spot -- where Adam Petty was also killed in a wreck during practice at New Hampshire International Speedway.
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Friday, July 7
The mood in the garage area Friday in New Hampshire
was one of shock and very deep sadness over the loss
of Kenny Irwin. It was an uncomfortable situation for
drivers and teams, as well as us the media. I'm sure
everyone would have preferred to pack up their brief
cases, lock up their tool boxes and just head back to the
hotels for a quiet evening of mourning Irwin's death.
But the schedule dictates that everything goes on -- as it
has in past years when tragedy strikes. There is no official policy by NASCAR, but
the precedent that the schedule would go on was set
many years ago. Rusty Wallace spoke about this very
thing after winning the pole, saying he didn't really
know why we had to go on today. But then again, he
said it's something we've always done.
Through the years, Irwin and Tony Stewart became
friends, on-track rivals and were even teammates
during their open-wheel days. Stewart asked the media
if we'd leave him alone so he could grieve in peace and
quiet. Stewart did, however, offer his private plane to
Kenny Irwin's family.
A lot of people are speculating on the cause of Irwin's
crash, which could wind up being a hung throttle --
which is what many people speculated caused the crash
that took Adam Petty's life here at New Hampshire
International Speedway two months ago. NASCAR says
it found no mechanical failures in the Petty crash.
Nevertheless, there remains several ideas about how to fix stuck
throttles. The modified cars, which run in a NASCAR
series, have a mechanism on the carburetor which acts
like a kill switch. If the throttle does hang, the driver
has the ability to shut the motor off and stop the car in
time.
Irwin was a young man full of potential, and a lot of
people though he could become the next superstar in
Winston Cup racing. He made his way up through the
open-wheel ranks, the Craftsman Trucks Series and into
Winston Cup. Today was a very tough day, Saturday will
be even tougher and Sunday may be the toughest of all
when Irwin was expected to make his 88th career
Winston Cup start.
But it seemed apropos that following Winston Cup
qualifying we had a brief rain shower which produced a
rainbow over in Turn 3 -- very similar to the one on the
uniform Kenny Irwin wore this year. It will be a very
somber weekend for sure.
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Irwin, the Winston Cup Rookie of the Year in 1998, was entering the third turn when his car struck the wall and flipped onto its roof during practice for the New England 300.
Irwin, 30, died of "multiple injuries," Concord Hospital spokeswoman Jennifer Dearborn said, but offered no other details.
Irwin's death was not announced at the track until nearly four hours after the crash.
Speculation centered on a stuck accelerator that would have prohibited Irwin from slowing enough to make the turn. That also
was believed to be the reason for Petty's crash, but NASCAR has not
been able to verify that.
Richard Petty, Adam's grandfather, said it was just a coincidence that the two drivers were killed in crashes at almost
the same spot.
"Those things are circumstances beyond human control," said Petty, the king of stock car racing with a record 200 victories and
seven championships. "There ain't nothing the matter with the
racetrack.
"It's circumstances with the way you stop that thing so quick.
Your body just can't stand it," he said.
Other drivers, though, were quick to criticize the track.
Rusty Wallace said there is a bump at the end of the long backstretch, where cars are going about 150 mph, and that most
drivers are prepared for it. He also said dirt and rubber buildup on the asphalt surface also has made the 1.058-mile oval among the
slickest on the circuit.
Mark Martin thinks the design of the track leaves little margin for error
.
"This race track and Martinsville are a particular danger to stuck throttles because the corners are so sharp," Martin said.
"At a lot of the bigger race tracks with sweeping corners, you have a chance to do something about stuck throttles."
Ward Burton, visibly upset after visiting Irwin in the infield care center before his friend was taken to the hospital, said he
would like to see the almost-flat turns banked higher in view of
the deaths here.
"Two's a problem," he said. "I think it needs to be addressed."
Officials of the track, which probably is criticized more than most on the circuit, had no immediate comment.
Operations director Kevin Triplett said officials immediately began looking at the twisted wreckage of what once was Irwin's
sleek blue Chevrolet, hoping to learn what went wrong. Told of driver criticism of the track, including the need for higher
banking in the turns, Triplett said NASCAR would listen all
suggestions.
"But it's really too early to say what happened here," he said.
Wallace won the pole for the race Sunday with a record qualifying run of 132.089 mph, but Irwin was not far from his
thoughts.
|  | | Track officials attend to Kenny Irwin's car following his crash during practice Friday. |
"These are the days that make you really sit back and look at yourself in the mirror and ask, 'Why do I do this?"' he said.
Irwin's car was withdrawn, and that of teammate Sterling Marlin didn't try a qualifying lap. But Marlin will attempt to make the
field Saturday in second-round qualifying.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with Kenny's family and his teammates," said a statement from Irwin's BellSouth Racing Team.
Irwin, an Indianapolis native, was single. He is survived by his
mother and father, and three sisters. Funeral services were not
announced.
"We are deeply saddened at today's passing of Kenny Irwin," NASCAR president Bill France said in a prepared statement. "On behalf of all of us at NASCAR and the entire NASCAR community, our deepest sympathies, all our thoughts and prayers
are with Kenny's family, friends and everyone at Team SABCO. Kenny was a fine competitor and will be missed very much by the
entire NASCAR community."
Irwin was in his third full season of Winston Cup. He spent the first two years of his career with Robert Yates Racing. In addition to winning the Winston Cup rookie honors, Irwin was Craftsman Truck Series rookie of the year in 1997. But his Winston
Cup career never took off, and he was fired last year by Robert Yates Racing after failing to produce in the vaunted No. 28 Ford.
Irwin went winless in 87 career starts. He had three poles and four top-five finishes.
His death was the first in Winston Cup since Neil Bonnett and rookie Rodney Orr were killed after separate crashes in practice
for the 1994 Daytona 500.
This year, Irwin moved to Felix Sabates' Team SABCO. Ironically, Irwin replaced Joe Nemechek in the No. 42. Nemecheck won the fall race last year at New Hampshire. Irwin was 28th in points this season with one top-five and one top-10 finish in 17 starts.
Irwin finshed 10th last fall at Loudon and was 26th in this race last year. In 1998, he was 11th in the fall race at New Hampshire and 32nd in the spring event.
A star in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, Irwin enjoyed his best season in 1999 when he was 19th in points with a pair of top-fives and six top-10 finishes. Irwin also won two poles driving for Yates.
Irwin, who is from racing-rich Indianapolis, proved himself as one of the top racers in the open-wheel ranks of the United States Auto Club. In five full seasons with the USAC Skoal National Midget Series, Irwin earned eight wins, 20 second-place, 59 top-five and 87 top-10 finishes, as well as the 1996 championship.
In 1997, his only full season with the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, Irwin once again was named Rookie of the Year. He won twice and finished 10th in the series point standings.
Irwin grabbed the Winston Cup spotlight in September of '97 at Richmond by qualifying his Ford on the outside pole in his first series race. He finished eighth, becoming the only driver in NASCAR's modern history to start on the front row and finish in the top-10 in his first race.
Although Richard Petty was at the track, Adam's father, Kyle, decided it was too soon to return to the place where his son was
killed.
"He just didn't feel comfortable," said Jeff Dennison, a spokesman for Petty Enterprises. "They decided it would be better
just to take a week off."
Veteran driver Steve Grissom will drive Petty's Pontiac. | |
ALSO SEE
Drivers hope New Hamphire tragedies bring change
Weber: A tragic encore takes Irwin's life
Kenny Irwin bio
User mail: Fans remember Kenny Irwin
Professional driver deaths
Wallace wins 7th pole in wake of Irwin's death
AUDIO/VIDEO
 RPM 2Night takes a look at the career of Kenny Irwin.
RealVideo: | 28.8
Benny Parsons and John Kernan examine the tragic loss of Kenny Irwin.
RealVideo: | 28.8
 Rusty Wallace hopes his family never has to experience such a tragedy.
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RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Dale Jarrett discusses the loss of a teammate and a friend.
wav: 115 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Jeff Gordon's prayers are with Kenny Irwin's family.
wav: 104 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Darrell Waltrip says something has to be done concerning safety.
wav: 269 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Mike Bliss is frustrated by the entire experience.
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RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
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