Jim Laurita escaped serious injury after a major crash during the first round of Pro Nitrous eliminations during Saturday’s Summer Drags VIII at U.S. 131 Motorsports Park.
Racing against Aaron Hodges in the first round, Laurita shook almost immediately and got loose. He tried to pedal through, but the car darted right and crashed hard into the wall. It tried to climb the wall before flipping over on its roof, and then the ’70 Camaro caught on fire before coming to a stop.
Laurita was quickly able to get out of the car under his own power and the ADRL safety team quickly extinguished the fire.
Laurita also suffered no major injuries during the crash, though it was a discouraging turn of events after he had qualified No. 2 with a 3.84.
“I’m fine. I just made a stupid mistake. The car started shaking and I started pedaling,†Laurita said. “It was eliminations and I pedaled it. I should have known better.
“When I pedaled it, the car took a hard right. It went hard right pretty fast.â€
Laurita said his Tim McAmis Race Cars ’70 Camaro will need a new front end clip, but he also praised the safety of the car, as well as the safety equipment that was installed in the car.
“It was really good to have all that safety equipment and all of it did its job. I didn’t even feel the impact,†Laurita said. “We will learn from this and move on.â€
(Photos by ADRL/Richards)
