Watch Josh Bilicki get launched into the air after slamming curb at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL
Back in August NASCAR visited the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. It was the first time we saw the NASCAR Cup Series machines on the track.
Watch the NASCAR crash video below.
Late in the race, constant impact with bolt in curbing caused the curb to come loose. The front splitter of William Byron went under the curb. It caused a huge crash as many other cars hit the same curb.
In that case, NASCAR was forced to unbolt the rest of the curb and tow the whole thing away to finish the race.
They also ran into a similar issue with a different curb in the Xfinity race at Indianapolis. It was becoming a trend…
Related: NASCAR curb breaks at Indianapolis; Multiple cars crash (Video)
Curb issue at Charlotte ROVAL
Fast forward to Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race. A similar curbing issue has occurred.
Josh Bilicki’s race weekend started off on the wrong foot. Yesterday, he flight out of Chicago was canceled. He jumped in the car and drove overnight to Charlotte, North Carolina.
“Crazy 36hrs! Had a charity event at Road America yesterday so booked a late fight to Charlotte. All flights ended up being canceled and had to drive overnight to Charlotte. Took a quick power nap and now ready to get after it in the #07! The things we do to drive racecars,” Bilicki explained before the race.
On lap 29 of 67, Josh Bilicki lost his brakes heading into the backstretch chicane. With two cars directly ahead, Bilicki was left little options.
He elected to turn and cut across the corner to avoid contact with the cars ahead. Doing so put him in direct path with taller curbs.
The taller curbs have been placed well outside the racing groove. They act as a deterrent for drivers to stay on the track. They’re significantly taller than the curbs placed directly next to the racing line.
Upon impact, the entire front nose was smashed and Bilicki was launched over a foot in the air.
The curbing also completely exploded. NASCAR was forced to throw a red flag due to debris.
Officials were sent out onto the track to remove the curb. They was used a blow torch to cut away the exposed bolts as the curbing was removed.
Related: NASCAR addresses curbing issue at Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Josh Bilicki comments
“No bueno,” Josh Bilicki opened on twitter after the race.
“Lost brakes going into the back stretch chicane. No signs of brake fade – pedal just went to the floor.”
“Super disappointing because SS Green Light Racing brought a great car. We went from 31st to 16th in stage 1 and felt we could have fought for a top 10 finish. Just not our day.”
Bilicki’s day ended in the garage.
Related: Charlotte ROVAL race results from October 9, 2021 (NASCAR Xfinity Series)
Update: NASCAR removes extra curbs
NASCAR has announced an update since Saturday’s Xfinity Series event:
“While the normal blue rumble strips around the track will remain, the six sets of striped rumble strips used to enforce track limits on the backstretch chicane will be taken out.”
NASCAR and Charlotte Motor Speedway entered discussion about removing the larger curbing. The six large curbs sit on the backstretch chicane.
The large curbs were designed to keep drivers from blowing right through the chicane. However, if a driver was to do that, they would serve a penalty.
“All sides came to the conclusion that track limits and enforcement can still take place in the absence of the extra rumble-strip placement while avoiding an incident similar to the one that occurred with Bilicki’s No. 07 car.”
The curbs have been removed ahead of Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series event. The race is an elimination race in the NASCAR Playoffs.
Related: Charlotte ROVAL TV Schedule: October 2021 (NASCAR Playoffs)
