Michael McDowell (racing driver)
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Michael Christopher McDowell (born December 21, 1984 in Glendale, Arizona)[1] is an American race car driver. He currently drives the No. 98 Ford Fusion for Phil Parsons Racing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and the #18 Pizza Ranch Toyota Camry part-time for Joe Gibbs Racing in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. He is married to Jami and they have two children, Trace (born 2009) and daughter Emma James (born 2012).[2]
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Crash at Texas Motor Speedway
While performing a qualifying attempt for the 2008 Samsung 500 at Texas Motor Speedway on April 4, 2008 McDowell had an accident that was strikingly similar to that of another racer with a road-racing background; Gordon Smiley (who died in a crash during time trials in 1982). McDowell's right front sway bar broke entering Turn 1, which caused the car to hit the SAFER barrier almost head on at approximately 165 miles per hour (266 km/h), according to data obtained and reported by SPEED channel (165 mph to zero mph in one foot, as reported by SPEED's Bob Dillner, before reaccelerating the other direction). The car spun around once while tipping onto its roof, and then barrel-rolled eight times with fire coming out of the engine compartment, shedding debris in all directions, until coming to a stop back onto its tires.[6] A huge dark mark was seen on the SAFER barrier, which showed how hard the car hit the barrier, which had to be repaired (the barrier moved inward when the car hit it), and as a result, qualifying for the race was delayed by an hour. The safety features of the barrier, the HANS device and the Car of Tomorrow racecar protected him.[6] Because of this, he walked away from the crash without injury, and waved to the stunned crowd.[6] Since his old car was destroyed, he had to switch to a backup, and ended up starting at the back of the pack in the race.