I was in the paddock area at the St. Pete Grand Prix in 2009, and my brother and I were looking around enjoying the scenes. Dan sped walked past us looking very worried and busy, but I wanted a picture. Never had gotten one with a driver before in my life and he was the closest I had ever been to one. I was too scared to say anything but my brother shouted "hey can my brother get a quick picture?" He stopped, turned around, gave that big fulfilling smile of his, looked at just me and said "Anything for a fan." That picture has been on my desk since that day and it won't ever be taken off.
What if you got rid of the desk? What plans do you have for it if/when that happens? Serious question, not written for laughs. Also, you're extremely lucky to get that photo. Cherish it.
I think it’s unfair that Bernard was made a scapegoat by the media and the owners. A promoter’s job is to promote and he did that well. Those in charge of rules packages should be the determining factor for these kinds of safety related decisions, and those decisions shouldn’t be made by the people doing the promoting if they’re not well-engrossed in the technical and engineering aspects of the sport.
Thing is, everything about that event could have been good if they'd have run the old Vegas Street circuit, Champ Car had in 2007 that was actually really good.
I'm far from a CEO fanboy; but you're right. The guy's job was to get eyes on the sport; not become a technical expert in every aspect of it. The team owners and IRL staff were supposed to be the experts, and have issues like race safety in hand. They would've had the language + credibility to work with Bruton Smith about resolving as many issues as possible before this race went on. They did not, and when the worst happened they let Bernard take the fall.
This race changed my life. My dad was in 22 dreyer&reinbold car filling in for Justin Wilson. I was 8yrs old and I remember watching this race with my grandfather and not realizing that I had just watched a family friend lose his life. It wasn’t until I matured and realized what had happened that day. I am thankful to have known DW and watch him win the 500 months before this race. Lionheart 4ever
Jaxon- i was 27 when this race happened and there was a lot of bad judgement calls from the people that manage the racing organization that your dad runs. Hopefully your dad is doing well.
I am so sorry. I am new to the racing fandom, but I have only heard good things about Mr. Wheldon: I can’t imagine your loss. You were blessed to meet him, and cursed to lose him: the cruel irony of life…
I still can't believe it's been 10 years since Dan Wheldon passed away... He will never ever be forgotten and will always be in our hearts. On a side note, this documentary is very amazing and well made.
Everyone will eventually be forgotten. It is just a reality of life. The longer back you go, the less names survive history. Even Cesar, and Napoleon will in the end be over shadowed by those yet to come.
Will Power is the most important man in the sport when it comes to his interviews. When he sees a problem he does not hesitate to speak his mind. I will always appreciate him for that.
Jackie Stewart's opinions were not always appreciated either, but someone has to speak up. Someone needs to be the asshole if it means no one dies during the race.
Thank you nascarman, Brock. Its like ripping off a bandaid, but something we shouldn’t forget. Everything related to this event makes me immensely sad. Dan Wheldon winning the 500 that year though, im not a religious man but that really feels like something special happened. Thank you again,
@@jefferyrobertson7520 I was a Goodyear fan too. I managed to win an eBay bid last July 2020 of a Gil De Ferran 1:18 scale Superspeedway trimmed Valovline ChampCar and its like my fav top 5 or 6. I can still hear those screaming single sided V8 turbo going 245+ on the Superspeedway with that diecast. It just puts a smile in my face. 🙂
16 year old me was shattered, felt empty after this. Dan was one of my favorites growing up and to be old enough to understand what it was that I saw nearly killed my love for Motorsports completely. Vegas doesn’t really haunt me as a fan or anything, but hearing Amazing Grace on bagpipes will forever make me think of this moment and will always produce tears.
Empty is the perfect word to describe the feeling after this. I was 17 watching it, hadn’t really seen death in racing even though I had watched it all through my childhood. I was super excited for this race too, not knowing the danger. I’ve never felt the way I felt after seeing the first image of Wheldon’s roll hoop sheered off and immediately knowing it was unsurvivable. Turned me off of motorsport for a solid two or three years afterwards.
This was one of the most well-produced documentaries - amateur or otherwise - I’ve ever seen. Difficult subject, but you’ve handled it with factual observations, eloquence, and grace. Bravo.
I was looking for the excitement that led up to the race. In my opinion this race was equivalent to the excitement that led up to the 2001 Daytona 500. I dont need to go into anymore detail that occurred in that race.
I watched the race live, I was 12 and it forever changed my view on motorsports. I had never witnessed a tragedy like this live and I will forever remember it. I'll miss you Dan, I'll never forget how cool you were and the times I got to meet you and get your autograph.
Same, it was my first live race, so excited to see them in person. The racing was awesome. But on that 12th lap, I new it was bad. Definitely an emotional day.
Anyone notice how prior to Dale’s death, Dale had said “you’re gonna see something you ain’t never seen on fox before,” and then Dan said “this is a great way to go out”…?
Randy was a good CEO. He wanted the best for everybody and cared for his fans. Would've been the most fantastic year for Indycar had Dan not died. Everybody's words now seem more and more scary.
@@lordshankracing4724 Yeah. He had very good intentions & really tried his hardest to get Indycar out there. Just unfortunate & flawed execution that ended up in the worst way possible. Had Wheldon survived or better yet not happen at all & the race ended smoothly, i think the direction they would've been pushed towards would be through the roof, but unfortunately it went the opposite way.
It's sad that we've seen it happen enough that we know exactly what it means... The only positive is that at least we learn from these tragedies as a sport and have made huge leaps forward In driver safety from what these accidents taught us
1. The DW12 could go to Texas because it was harder to drive and less prone to pack racing. This makes me wonder if they could have gotten away with this race if Firestone had brought a much harder, less grippy tire compound. Of course, that would have required enough foresight to know there was a problem. Was there any testing at Vegas that year? I don’t remember. 2. After the way he treated Rockingham and North Wilkesboro, we already knew that empathy wasn’t part of Bruton Smith’s character, but trying to force IndyCar to keep racing at Las Vegas after what happened there… That was a new low, even for Bruton Smith.
tire choice might help a little bit , but if everyone is on the same compound its not really going to split the field up that much . plus you have the problem of people pushing the tires and setups and risking blistering blow outs. probably best to play it safe with tires on a fast oval and go with the most durable and usable option you have.
@@AlistairMaxwell77 if tyres are less grippy, drivers will have a harder time going full throttle in the wake of the car ahead. That alone disrupts pack racing. BTW, it would have helped if the engines were a bit more powerful... 650hp was a joke. If the engine doesn't push the car to the limit on a big oval, pack racing is what you get.
I used to hate Will Power’s bitching and moaning about pack racing but this provides some great context and I actually agree with him now, thank you for this video
He speaks up a lot and it can be very annoying but if you really pay attention to him he always seems to have a good point, especially when he is concerned for the safety of the racing.
I remember this race quite vividly. I think anyone who was around Motorsports, understood that Dan Weldon did not survive immediately. It's hard to believe it's been 10 years. I commend you nascarman HISTORY for another brilliant documentary.
Bernard was a critical force in pushing for what became the DW12 car. The DW12 fixed the issues the original Dallara Crapwagon had. Overall the DW12 is more suited to oval racing than the Crapwagon was because it simply was safer, and outside of Fontana 2015 (which in itself was a bonkers race) hasn't seen the pack racing replicated since. Yes the DW12 had problems out of the gate, but any car will. The new version of the DW12, which is essentially what they run now, is probably the safest/best racing producer the series has had. One can't fault Bernard for that. Bernard's main downfall was the fact that he was an outsider, and while he did his research, he didn't know enough about the sport. Bernard also wanted to drastically increase the profile of IndyCar far quicker than I think the sport could have. Had Vegas had gone down without a hitch, the race still would have been seen as a failure because the crowds didn't show up. Bernard had a marketing mindset that I don't think Indycar was ready for. Heck, they may not ever be ready for that kind of marketing. IndyCar now (with more ovals) is what I think Bernard wanted way back in 2012. But the writing was on the wall that the viewership wasn't going to grow that fast.
The moment I realized he was the $5 million challenger... My heart sunk man. I know the story and watched countless videos but that detail somehow slipped me. You've done a beautiful job the first 23 minutes and I'm sure this only gets better.
I’ve never seen a car like Dan’s after the crash. The entire top, roll hoop down to most of the engine, was completely gone. All that remained was his helmet. Unsurvivable crash. Such a sad day. Miss him greatly. One of the most underrated drivers ever
Last time something like this happened, it was with helmutt koenigg, and years later after dan's death it was Jules Bianchi, and it almost happened with Grosjean recently, thankfully the halo saved his life.
@@Bitterman5868 Greg Moores roll bar was completely torn off his car in his fatal crash at Fontana ten years earlier. He went top side first into the infield wall after his car flipped when his wing dug into the infield grass, the wall tore the roll bar off his car and his head hit the wall. Moore's crash also happened at the last race of the season, early in the race, with a championship on the line, only difference was it was a CART sanctioned IndyCar race and they finished the race announcing his death to the fans during the waning laps. Montoya would win the championship, in the post race interview you can see his smile completely disappear when his crew chief whispered into his ear that Greg had died.
@@chrish931 I was at that race. When they announced Greg’s death, it took the energy out of the crowd. I actually got up and left. Wasn’t fun anymore. I just wasn’t in the mood anymore. Sad day.
@@chrish931 I wouldn’t call the hoop on Moore’s car torn off, but it was certainly deformed. In the end, it didn’t matter, hoop or aeroscreen. If Moore’s wreck were to happen today, it would still be fatal and it’s not even a question.
I attended this race back when I was 11, I remember seeing 2 fireballs and the helicopter taking Dan Wheldon. When it was announced that Dan passed everyone could not believed it. When they did the 5 lap salute, everyone was silent. It was my first and only IndyCar I have ever been to.
@@rareapple3 mine as well go on back to another race... may be exciting and safer now. i almost went to one this year at laguna seca ... but i got covid and couldnt do anything =(
Wheldon was one of my favorites I had turned 18 the week before he got killed when it happened i almost walked away as a fan but during that off-season I gave it a lot of thought and decided it would be wrong to not watch or go to a race again it would be dishonoring him so I've still stuck it out and watched every race from then to present go to the 500 every year and have been to Texas the last few years still hard to believe we're coming up on the 12 year anniversary of this
Thank you nascarman and Brock for this beautifully done documentary on one of the ugliest days in our sport's history. And here's another haunting tidbit: At 54:02, I believe the gentleman Dario was hugging was Ric Moore, father of Greg Moore. I recall reading or hearing that this was the first open wheel race Ric attended since his son was killed at Fontana almost exactly 12 years earlier. Needless to say, he couldn't have picked a worse one for his return.
Just when I didn't think that day could have been any sadder. I can't imagine what that was like for Ric. I quit watching open-wheel racing after Robert Wickens was paralyzed. It's the same crash again and again. They can make everything else as safe as they want, but if there is open-wheel racing, there will be open-wheel launches, the most dangerous crashes in racing.
Thank you this was excellent. As an IndyCar fan, I remember thinking that 2011 was going to be their breakout year. The 2011 fight between Power, and Franchitti for the championship was one of the most epic battles in all of racing. Dan Wheldon winning the Indy 500 and Randy Bernard only added to the massive drama that was going on that year. It was also good to see video clips of Bob Jenkins and Robin Miller who we lost just this year. If Robin Miller were still alive today, he would be proud of the work you did on this video. Rest in Peace Dan Wheldon Bob Jenkins Robin Miller
Excellent video on a very sad subject. I must admit I hadn't realised the full story behind the $5 million challenge that put Wheldon in the race, or the amount of hype and publicity surrounding the event. It feels a particularly cruel irony that, after developing a car to prevent airborne accidents, the final race using the old car would produce a fatality in exactly those circumstances.
The 2011 Indycar season finale at Las Vegas still feels like it was yesterday. It is one of those races where you remember where you were and what you were doing. Watching the practice sessions and 11 laps still bring the same level of anxiousness that I felt watching it live. The few seconds of Dan Wheldon's onboard (just before and as he went airborne) that weren't shown live and or in replays were extremely tough to watch. A devastating day for so many. I thought I knew a lot about this race but this documentary put everything into perspective as to how we got there. This was incredibly well done and I thank everyone who helped make this video. R.I.P. Dan Wheldon.
Something I just realized today was that Justin Wilson was the driver who won the first IndyCar 1.5 mile oval race held since Wheldon's death (June 2012 at Texas) and he was also the next driver to die in an on-track accident in the series (Pocono 2015, hit in the head by flying debris)
I think that's what happened to Darrell Russell in 2004. I don't know if his autopsy ever was made public. His accident didn't seem very bad. It was hard to imagine that he was killed. But they immediately made changes and it wasn't hard to figure out from those changes what must have happened.
@@brendanschuett I didn't remember that's who he was racing.Blaine Johnson's was tough. He was leading the points and he gets killed. Lee Sheppard. How different is Bob Glidden's career with Lee Sheppard around. Darryl Gwynn ending up in a chair. When he came up to TF it was the start of the season. His dragster wasn't even painted. It was bare metal. First round, he does his burnout, and waves to the fans as he's backing up! Kind of odd different cool. Then he proceeds to whip everybody's ass.
@@brendanschuett Eric Medlin, who actually had a lot of similarities to Darrell Russell, was the next NHRA driver to lose his life in a crash after Darrell after a testing crash in 2007. Scott Kalitta's crash was the following year.
It’s pretty fucked up what happened to randy after all this too. He was bold and did his job well, and earned the respect of all the drivers and teams. He had big ideas for Indycar and what it should be and I believe he could have propelled it to the world stage. It’s a truly beautiful, diverse, and brave sport and he was going to show it to the world. The accident was not his fault but I guess someone has to take the blame. Shame.
Well done piece. Looking back, Bernard may not have been out on the track, but he still made the decision to go fly fighter jets in a gymnasium (as Jeff Hammond would say). I remember at the time the 5M challenge was issued, people questioned the safety aspect of an inexperienced open wheel driver being on track. Could you have imagined someone like Pastrana or James Stewart out there in an IndyCar in those conditions? Bernard couldnt allow the race to restart because one fatality was enough for the day. Its such a shame it was Wheldon. His TV work that year was incredible, such a breath of fresh air to the booth. I was looking forward to the day Wheldon made TV his full time job for good. Thats what happens when you put a bull riding businessman in charge of Indycar. If its too dangerous for the cars to all practice at the same time, its too dangerous for them to race at the same time. Seeing how they split the cars at practice, Im shocked the raceday program wasnt converted into smaller heat races. Once these cars started surpassing 230 at Indy the sanctioning bodies have worked to slow them down, yet 220 at Vegas was ok? When that oval was flat, open wheel was much safer to run there.
I was nearing 10 years old when I watched the race. I reacted to the wreck as naively as anyone that age would. However, as time passed, then they send Jamie Little to the hospital to check on Dan, then the drivers started crying, it seemed like said naïveté withered little by little until it was brought to its knees by Marty Reid’s very words: “Dan Wheldon… killed today here at Las Vegas Motor Speedway…” I remember not sleeping well that night.
In retrospect, with so many cars crammed into the field at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, it was like an accident waiting to happen. As a Brit, it especially hurt that Dan was the driver who paid the ultimate price. It was a nice touch that Dellara gave the car Dan tested extensively the type number "DW12" in his honour. Most of the time, in the UK anyway, Motorsport in the US doesn't get mentioned on TV, but when Dan died, it was headline news
My first proper exposure to IndyCar was the BBC report that night. In 2012, I was watching the series. Pretty morbid way to come into the series but it's a good 11 years.
At the end of the day Randy Bernard is a promoter and businessmen, like Bernie Ecclestone was in F1, not an engineer. Where was the IndyCar chef stewart in all this? He should of gotten most of the blame since they are responsible for the technical aspects of the sport, not Randy Bernard. That’s why you had Wally Dallenbach Sr. in CART. This was just very sad and I cannot believe that this happened over ten years ago. May Dan Wheldon continue to Rest In Peace.
I just remember such an eerie feeling during pre race. The national anthem was one of the best i ever heard, and very unique and it has just stuck with me. Then lap 11....... It is so odd how you could just feel something was off about this event just minutes before it began. Rest in Peace Dan Wheldon
Exactly one month after this race I traveled to Vegas to visit a friend of mine. He’s in the military so they let us drive inside the track and sat on pit road watching the Richard Petty driving experience. After a while we visited turn 2 and it was beyond upsetting looking at the skid marks/crash scene. It will be something I will never forget I guess we’ll never understand why amazing people are taken so soon
Between Earnhardt in 2001 and this in 2011, it was heartbreaking watching these live as a kid. My family grew up sprintcar racing on the west coast, and I personally knew alot of the World of Outlaw drivers at the time. I grew up in a racecar, but never went on to pursue any professional career out of it because I had seen too many bad crashes that it honestly made me fear for my life the first time I tested a big motor car on a big track. I did about 5 laps, pulled in and told my parents I'm not doing this anymore, and to be competitive you can't be afraid. My mother was good friends with Bryan Clauson and his family and after his death that was a big blow to everyone in our racing community. I love racing, and will continue to support all types of racing, but safety always has to come before anything else. Too many great drivers have lost their lives or had their careers cut short because safety was either overlooked or ignored completely. Honestly, with how these younger drivers in NASCAR race now, I'm surprised we haven't seen another death (though Newman at Daytona really did scare me watching that race live)
My condolences first to you and your family for your loss. I can tell you that a coworker and I both were in our office watching that Daytona 500 with Newman’s wreck at the end. We both saw Newman’s crash live and when LaJoie hit Newman like that, I thought for sure he was gone. It did not look survivable, and the way Mike Joy, Jeff Gordon and Clint Bowyer were sounding in the booth sounded eerily similar to the way that the Fox trio in 2001 sounded after Dale Earnhardt’s fatal crash. It was beyond a relief when I heard about two hours later that Newman was gonna be alright.
You can see and hear the tension, the anxiety and even the fear in the drivers faces and voices in those interviews before the race. They knew it was way too dangerous. Seems like they were more worried about the consequences of the race then in the results itself. In a way, it reminds me the Formula 1 race in Imola 1994, when the legendary Ayrton Senna passed away. Everyone knew the danger, but money talks and the show had to go on, regardless how unsafe it could be. And we know what happened in both cases: two champions gone (but not forgotten)... Anyway, great documentary. Congratulations and thank you for posting this.
@@mrkipling2201 There were concerns about track dynamics, unevenly matched cars and part-time drivers. Add to that the $5 million dollar incentive for Wheldon to race from last to first.
Yep I remember that whole weekend at Imola in 94’ being a complete disaster. Barrichello was lucky to survive his crash in practice and Ratzenberger had his fatal crash in qualifying. That race should’ve never happened.
Way I felt after the crash. Earliest memory for me was 2001 Daytona 500. Looking back at that race when I watch. It’s eerie. This race on the twelfth anniversary it’s still eerie. If only the Aeroscreen was on 77 that day in 2011.
This video never ceases to amaze me. The racing was so dangerous that the race director was on the radio the whole time telling the drivers to take it easy. They only made it 10 laps before someone was killed. This event never should’ve happened. Blaming the drivers for being too aggressive over the people that put together despite the risk of danger is ridiculous. Everyone knew the risk, everyone knew someone would get hurt. They needed ratings. Randy was right to be let go after this happened. It was a failure on all accounts
There is no driver that doesn't think "they're talking to everyone else about taking it easy, not me, I know what I'm doing". If the racing or track and cars allowed that much aggression and speed then the drivers were going to give it everything up to the razors edge. That's absolutely racing.
@@tractorback76 yep you can't put it on the drivers because they're out there to race and have careers and goals to meet. It is the series that has the responsibility to account for safety especially when the drivers themselves are all concerned. I don't think Bernard was purposely negligent. He doesn't strike me as that type of person although I don't know much about the man. What I do think is that he took on a difficult challenge after a difficult period for open wheel racing in the US and I think the pressure on him to succeed blinded him to the inherent realities of the sport. Couple that with his own lack of knowledge about the sport and disaster was imminent. The series should have had a retired panel of drivers to approve his decisions.
33 cars at Indy is one thing. The cars get spread out going 220mph+ now. 34 cars at The Vegas with these cars. To quote Cheever. Pure lunacy. It’s a bowl as Robin Miller said once.
That "Wind Tunnel" segment with Robin Miller is also a symbol of things and people no longer with us...SPEED Channel got turned into FS1 (aka Dollar Store ESPN), and Miller passed away this year...
I was watching the race on May 1, 1994 from the Imola circuit. That was the track that took one of the greatest F1 drivers life. His name was Aryton Senna. I was also watching this race on October 16 2011 where Dan Wheldon lost his life. In both instances we had drivers lose their live. The crash at Imola the curve was removed and turned into a chicane, whereas Indy car took a bit of time off from the 1.5 mile Ovals but went back. Please remember loss of life should ot be repeated for idiotic reasons, like going back to dangerous tracks. God Bless the Wheldon and Senna families.
The DW12/IR18 is a legacy that Dan Wheldon could be proud of if he were still with us today, as there has only been one death in the car's lifetime and that one death was actually no fault of the car itself (Justin Wilson at Pocono when a piece of debris struck him in the head)
I mean one could argue why did the piece come off, or why did it hit him on the head. The aero screen was partially built to stop that from happening again.
@@michaelsorber7859 exactly, I doubt that anyone could have predicted a piece of bodywork to come out of the sky and just happen to strike a driver in the head.. Wilson's death was rather similar to Felipe Massa's accident in Hungary in 2009, a total freak accident that couldn't have been prevented, it's not the fault of Pocono Raceway, IndyCar, Chevrolet, Honda or Dallara
I remember that race. Since there was no NASCAR Race that day. My brother and I decided to tune in to watch the Indycar race. Hard to believe its almost 11 years. RIP Dan Wheldon. You are truly missed.
Let’s not forget the other Motorsports tragedy that day… the plane crash that killed off-road racer Rick Huseman and 2 others on their way home from this race.
I remember Jacques Villeneuve telling he’s going to step down of that race because it was crazy to get all those cars in that track or something like this
The day my childhood ended. That wreck scarred 13 year old me it took a few years just for me to watch an Indycar race again. I remember sitting downstairs in my moms old apartment in tears. The emotion and pain I felt on that day I will never forget
This gave me a new light on this race. The officials were definitely trying to calm things down but it’s still no excuse for all the red flags way beforehand. The new halo could put ovals into consideration again, provided the halo is incredibly strong. The Indycar upload of the 2012 St. Pete race also had testimonials from the drivers. Wheldon apparently passed on the helicopter and TK drove with part of Dan’s seatbelt on the parade laps.
Great documentary of a sad day. This vid captures that era of IndyCar so well, with Randy, Dan, Wind Tunnel and Dave Despain and of course Robin Miler. Such a tragedy.
In that entire clip the best and most remember-able words came from Wheldon himself. "When your time is up it's up". Is not a callous take on things and NO he didn't want to die. It's what he did for a living and he loved it. He went out the way a lot of great drivers go out. Be thankful for all the time you got to watch him drive. He was VERY special in his form of motorsport.
23:10 what Dan says here hits me hard. I started watching in 2004 and I chose Wheldon as my favourite driver because I’m also English like he was. I miss him a lot, RIP Dan
I didnt see the race live, I was working that day but when I heard the news it made me immediately think of Greg Moore's fatal crash at Fontana ten years earlier, because of the similarities of being the last race of the season with the championship on the line. Say what you will about the job Randy did but at least he didn't make the same mistake CART officials made and called off the race. I will never forgot the look on Montoya's face when he went from smiling over winning the CART title to being told by his crew chief that Greg had died.
I remember watching that race live and feeling really anxious after the green flag dropped. The racing was just insane. And when the crash happened... I had never seen a fatal racing accident live before. That was a sad, sad day. RIP Lionheart.
Was there in the Petty terrace. Didn’t go to a race again until I moved to Texas again this year. And I had been to darn near ever Vegas race for 11 years in NASCAR. My parents back home are getting the fridge replaced. We’ve had it for 11 years. Found my RIP Dan Lionheart shirt in the bag still. I stashed it because I didn’t want to see it damaged. My first and only Indy Race ever. And to learn he was taken to the same hospital I was born in. It’s just devastating.
@@nolancain8792 that is true. I speculate though if he would’ve been killed in today’s car. The windscreen might have saved him. It was such a violent impact and there was intrusion into the cockpit, specifically his head that I doubt he would have survived. We’ll never know. I’m sure glad they have the windscreen because I believe it has already saved lives and significant injury. The HANS device has definitely saved lives although it’s unprovable but logic tells me it has. I don’t think there have been any injuries or deaths from brain stem trauma since it was started. The SAFER barrier has been a huge help. I don’t know how much more safety they can build into the cars but they’ll keep looking. Unfortunately it takes a death or critical injury for some weak points to appear. I still think the current catch fence designs are dangerous but I don’t know the alternatives.
i used to change tires for my uncle that used to drive dirt stock cars, and saw one driver die in a wreck and saw a pit member from another team die buy being run over in the pits i was near where that happened it was the worst thing i have ever seen, later that year i saw dale earnhardt die at daytona, and i also watched this race on tv had a feeling weldon was dead i still love racing but its dangerous no matter what type of car
Well, first off, I can't believe it's been 10 years since this senseless tragedy happened. I remember watching this and being totally stunned by Dan Wheldon's death. However, my most vivid memories of that extremely sad day occurred after Marty Reid's closing words to the original ABC Broadcast. 1. I remember almost immediately after the telecast was over, I turn on my PlayStation 3, and all of my PlayStation Network friends at the time that were all racing fans all had the exact same thIng written on their info blurb thing on the PSN square (I forgot what it was called): "RIP Dan Wheldon". All down my friend list, "RIP Dan Wheldon, RIP Dan Wheldon, RIP Dan Wheldon". I still get chills just thinking about it. 2. When I had to go back to work the day after it happened, one of my co-workers who was a huge racing fan watched the race and watched the whole thing, including Dan Wheldon's death. Needless to say, he was Devastated, and he carried around all day the local newspaper that had the story of the tragedy on the front page. But the most poignant thing that he did was when he wrote a section for the newsletter that my workplace used to do every month. (I never participated in that because I was usually off of work on the day that they put together the newsletter). Obviously he wrote about Dan Wheldon's death, and I never forgot what he wrote about it. "I am a huge sports fan, and I watch all the races. I watched the IndyCar season Finale at Las Vegas where Dan Wheldon was killed. I saw the accident happen on TV, I was totally stunned; He was like a friend to me. Wheldon was an excellent race car driver. He won two Indy 500s, including (the 2011 race)." RIP Lionheart, you will never be forgotten.
I remember watching it live, I was a freshman in college and my parents had just left from visiting for a weekend that morning. I called them in tears explaining what had happened. I wasn’t even a big indycar fan at the time but it was just devastating
10 years already huh? Man, time really does get away from us. It's a damn shame everything turned out the way it did that horrible weekend and unfortunately Wheldon wasn't the last IndyCar driver to die during the race. Hopefully with all the effort that's been put into safety, we'll never see another death in open-wheel racing. R.I.P. Dan Wheldon.
2007. Kansas Speedway my first ever race of any series with my dad. Dan Weldon won. We said that was our guy. Fast forward to Vegas 2011, I could not believe what happened. I'll never forget Dan.
I remember watching this, seeing the crash, and just had that bad feeling. When it was announced Dan had passed, like most I was just in shock. That turned to sadness and even tears after seeing Dario crying in his cockpit before the tribute laps. God speed, Dan.
I've been watching motorsports since I was in diapers and this day has stuck with me for 10 years. Absolutely horrific. I was certain we lost multiple drivers that day... RIP, Dan. You are missed.
I was 10 when this happened. I was a month old for Dale, so this was the motorsport tragedy of my childhood. It's hard to believe it was half my life ago.
Incredibile production! I remembering watching this race live, I didn't follow so much back in those days and still today I can't watch all the races (I'm in Italy, so bad timezone), so I didn't know all the backstory behind this event. Anyway, I heard about DW because of the Indy Codemasters' game, and I was in complete shock watching these image live, like I am today rewatching them. And a week after we had Simoncelli, for me those 7 days are probably one of the darkest weeks of Motorsport history
As someone who isnt into IndyCar, never really watched it or knew much about it. However this infamous race crossed continents, crossed series/type preference barriers so I was curious about this documentary. I was totally hooked, so well edited and produced that not being a fan didn't matter as it was just so interesting and well made.
I was there, with my nephew. All we could see from the stands was smoke on the back stretch. The paddock area just after the crash was littered with broken bodywork. I saw a front wing in a trash bin. It was so quiet down there. We didn’t know that Dan had been killed. The parade laps at the end were hard to watch.
It seems like a cycle with motorsports in recent decades. The sport gets a tad stale so the individual series creates a jaw dropping excitement filled event or style of racing to attract viewers. Then a driver either gets killed or badly hurt and the series makes significant changes to make things safer and more stale again. Earnhardt's death in 2001, Wheldon in this video, even Jules Bianchi in F1 when they tried to race in the impending dark and heavy rain for the first time in years to keep the show going.
You could even argue that about NASCAR currently. There's a sense of complacency when it comes to safety (both in the cars and the officiating/safety crew response). It parallels the 2000 season somewhat.
@@TheRyan597 yes that was exactly the series I was referring to the most with my comment. They are caring less about safety because it's been so long since a bad accident.
@@jamesburroughs3813 Well we had Newman’s wreck in 2020 but he ended up ok. It’s easy to become complacent after seeing these drivers walk away and get lucky time after time. If Newman got hit a little more in the roof rather than directly on the B-pillar, I don’t think he makes it. It’s certainly encouraging to see the cars become safer though but the danger of serious injury is often forgotten.
I attended this race as a guest of the track president. A bunch of us went onto the rooftop of the suite to observe the opening laps. Most were NASCAR fans who hadn’t attended an IndyCar race before. A woman next to me commented how much faster these cars were and how closely together they were running. It’s easy to say this in hindsight but you just knew something bad was going to happen. The crash was horrific. It looked like an action scene in a movie. This was an incredibly well put together documentary. It definitely doesn’t feel like 10 years ago.
It’s so hard to believe that this was already almost 11 years ago, but it still feels like it just happened yesterday. I watched this race live. Dan was one of my favorite drivers and I was so excited to watch him try to win the $5 million prize and have another high moment after he had won the Indy 500 that year. When the crash happened, I was in shock unlike anything I had ever experienced before. I remember seeing all the footage of Dan’s car and I felt very shaken up. The second I saw the yellow tarp on his car, I broke down because I knew right then that the news we were about to get was not going to be good. I remember that day very well, but at the same time it also feels like such a blur. It was a rough couple days for me.
God, I can remember everything about this day. I was watching the race and had an anxious, awful feeling about the way the cars were bunching together and unable to get any kind of separation, and knowing that at those speeds, the inevitable mistake was going to lead to something catastrophically bad. And that it did. Call it a product of watching racing for long enough (25 years at that point) but when it happened, when they mentioned Wheldon getting airborne, I just had that nauseous feeling that he was gone. I hoped I was wrong, kept checking Twitter to see if there was a positive update, but I was lying to myself. I’d seen enough of these at this point to know it was just a matter of time before the announcement came. Same feeling I got watching Daytona 2001, and numerous other races with fatal crashes. The way the medics/safety crews approach the car, the vibe of the other drivers, etc. What I remember the most is that when they interviewed the older Cart/IRL hands like Paul Tracy and Davey Hamilton. The younger drivers were still hopeful of a good outcome. Those guys knew, and you could tell from the distant and resigned way they looked and sounded. These guys, who had seen a fair few drivers die by that point, they knew. I think Tracy even said something to the effect of “a lot of these younger drivers, they’ve never had to deal with this before.” That’s when I knew, even though the actual announcement didn’t come for at least a couple of hours. RIP
I remember watching this live. I knew at the conclusion of lap one this wouldn't end well. I recall the race being stopped for an hour maybe two (?) before the announcement. The 5 lap in Honor part was chilling and Incredible. Had actually forgot about that until watching this video.
I’ve been watching IndyCar since 1972 as a seven year old however, I would only watch the Indy 500 and none of the other races. That all changed in 2011 with that year’s 500 and the absolute madness, excitement and disappointment of that race….I found myself needing more and not being able to wait a full year for the next time I watched an IndyCar race so I did tune into the next week’s race at Belle Isle fully expecting to be bored but I was hooked and have watched every race since then. The final race of my new found love of the entire series in that year was shattering. After the coverage was over I just shut the tv off and felt completely numb. And this extremely well done doc took me back to maybe the darkest day in my fandom of any sport. I almost think it was more difficult watching Dan Wheldon promote this race than seeing the actual crash again. Just the hindsight sense of foreboding is horrible.
My son and I were there. Track was so slight. Cant look at that turn without remembering. So sad I really liked Dan too. Hooe his family got through today.🙏🙏🙏 RIP DAN. 🏆🏆Always a champion
I remember that 500 well, I was moving out of my apt that day. Listened to the broadcast and heard the call for Dan. Never would have thought he'd be gone a few months later
Classic case of an event where the old adage, "hindsight is 20/20" comes into play. Hard to blame this all on Randy Bernard, like many have, when other parties failed to speak up or speak louder. If drivers were that overly concerned, they should have boycotted or gone on strike. Driver strikes have happened before. Nothing bad ever results from them.
You really think any of them had the stomach to recreate the 1969 Talladega 500 shitshow? There would’ve been a tiny amount of IndyCar drivers with underpowered Indy Lights cars as field fillers.
Everyone says "we were anxious and worried" after a disaster happens. Fact is, no one was speaking up prior to the race. People knew it was going to be tight racing, dangerous and there would probably be crashes, but they all went out there 110% aware of the risks. They all made the decision to race that day, in a sport where they definitely did not have to. Out of all the racing series, Indycar is and always has been by far the easiest to say "you know what, I don't want to race today, I just don't think it's worth it". Basically every single team at the track that day could have found a replacement driver for anyone who didn't want to compete. No one would've gotten in trouble, someone else just would've gotten in that car and raced instead, and they'd be the one that got paid. You wouldn't get fired, or chewed out. People went out there knowing exactly what the risk was. Dan Wheldon knew the risk. "If it's your time, it's your time". He knew he could die, it was a reality every time he drove onto a track, and his death wouldn't have shocked him one bit. Racing has always been dangerous. Death in Indycar wasn't even particularly rare compared to other series. Everyone suddenly had 20/20 hindsight the second the race was over. If they were actually aware of the risk and opposed it prior to the race, then that death is on them for not speaking up and trying to stop the race at any point prior to the day. Racing will never be as exciting again. You might think safety is better, but the fact is, open-wheel racing and oval racing is dying a slow death because of safety. And maybe that's okay. But being unwilling to lose a driver once or twice a decade means that the truest forms of car racing have been dead for a decade now, and they will never, ever recover. Car racing has been killed forever by safety. Thankfully, Rally and Motorcycle still accept that every time you race, you risk death. When people die at the Isle of Man TT, or in the Dakar, they don't cancel everything. They don't demand safety changes. They don't kill the sport. And they have atleast 1 death every single year. Indycar was having one every 5 or more. They mourn, and then they go back out and race. They do what they love. People in the Isle of Man aren't even racing for huge winnings. There's not millions on the table. Yet they risk their lives and die for the love of the sport. That's what racing is. Risking everything for the thrill, for the show, for the fame. If there's no risk, there's no entertainment. It's just a weird form of a running race.
I thought they did speak up beforehand. I remember there being quite a controversy before this race concerning driver safety and the suitability of the Vegas track for Indycar racing.
I remember watching this and instantly getting the same feeling I did watching Greg Moore's crash in 99, I knew straight away it wasn't good Rip lionheart
I was in the paddock area at the St. Pete Grand Prix in 2009, and my brother and I were looking around enjoying the scenes. Dan sped walked past us looking very worried and busy, but I wanted a picture. Never had gotten one with a driver before in my life and he was the closest I had ever been to one. I was too scared to say anything but my brother shouted "hey can my brother get a quick picture?" He stopped, turned around, gave that big fulfilling smile of his, looked at just me and said "Anything for a fan."
That picture has been on my desk since that day and it won't ever be taken off.
😥
That's the worst part about this whole video. Dan seemed like such a charismatic and genuine dude...
This hits different.
Jesus...
What if you got rid of the desk? What plans do you have for it if/when that happens? Serious question, not written for laughs.
Also, you're extremely lucky to get that photo. Cherish it.
I think it’s unfair that Bernard was made a scapegoat by the media and the owners. A promoter’s job is to promote and he did that well. Those in charge of rules packages should be the determining factor for these kinds of safety related decisions, and those decisions shouldn’t be made by the people doing the promoting if they’re not well-engrossed in the technical and engineering aspects of the sport.
Thing is, everything about that event could have been good if they'd have run the old Vegas Street circuit, Champ Car had in 2007 that was actually really good.
@Rob F 34 cars on a street circuit... I don't think so
I'm far from a CEO fanboy; but you're right. The guy's job was to get eyes on the sport; not become a technical expert in every aspect of it. The team owners and IRL staff were supposed to be the experts, and have issues like race safety in hand. They would've had the language + credibility to work with Bruton Smith about resolving as many issues as possible before this race went on. They did not, and when the worst happened they let Bernard take the fall.
@@dsnodgrass4843the sport is a disgrace. Las Vegas is a dump and should be nuked.
@@jacobmassey3897 [citation needed].
This race changed my life. My dad was in 22 dreyer&reinbold car filling in for Justin Wilson. I was 8yrs old and I remember watching this race with my grandfather and not realizing that I had just watched a family friend lose his life. It wasn’t until I matured and realized what had happened that day. I am thankful to have known DW and watch him win the 500 months before this race. Lionheart 4ever
Is your Dad Townsend Bell?
@@DepravedCoTApologist yeah
Jaxon- i was 27 when this race happened and there was a lot of bad judgement calls from the people that manage the racing organization that your dad runs.
Hopefully your dad is doing well.
Wasnt your dad one of the upside down cars after the crash?
I am so sorry. I am new to the racing fandom, but I have only heard good things about Mr. Wheldon: I can’t imagine your loss. You were blessed to meet him, and cursed to lose him: the cruel irony of life…
I still can't believe it's been 10 years since Dan Wheldon passed away... He will never ever be forgotten and will always be in our hearts.
On a side note, this documentary is very amazing and well made.
Everyone will eventually be forgotten. It is just a reality of life. The longer back you go, the less names survive history. Even Cesar, and Napoleon will in the end be over shadowed by those yet to come.
@@alltheusernameswastaken8936 Okay and?
nice Rimi Ushigome profile avatar!
@@alltheusernameswastaken8936 can you just shut up PLEASE you don't know him I know him and you dont
Will Power is the most important man in the sport when it comes to his interviews. When he sees a problem he does not hesitate to speak his mind. I will always appreciate him for that.
I cannot stand Will Power as a driver since he wrecked my favorite #9 at Baltimore in 2013. However I strongly agree with your statements.
This Aussie is proud of that Aussie
41:25
Jackie Stewart's opinions were not always appreciated either, but someone has to speak up. Someone needs to be the asshole if it means no one dies during the race.
Thank you nascarman, Brock. Its like ripping off a bandaid, but something we shouldn’t forget. Everything related to this event makes me immensely sad. Dan Wheldon winning the 500 that year though, im not a religious man but that really feels like something special happened. Thank you again,
Greatest Decade In IndyCar History The Early 90s ☺
@@jefferyrobertson7520 CART Indycar racing throughout the whole decade (90s) was just perfect.
@@ariansmovies My Favorite Tire Brand IndyCar Is Goodyear From The 70s 80s And Early 90s
@@jefferyrobertson7520 I was a Goodyear fan too. I managed to win an eBay bid last July 2020 of a Gil De Ferran 1:18 scale Superspeedway trimmed Valovline ChampCar and its like my fav top 5 or 6. I can still hear those screaming single sided V8 turbo going 245+ on the Superspeedway with that diecast. It just puts a smile in my face. 🙂
@@ariansmovies That Was Amazing
16 year old me was shattered, felt empty after this. Dan was one of my favorites growing up and to be old enough to understand what it was that I saw nearly killed my love for Motorsports completely. Vegas doesn’t really haunt me as a fan or anything, but hearing Amazing Grace on bagpipes will forever make me think of this moment and will always produce tears.
Empty is the perfect word to describe the feeling after this. I was 17 watching it, hadn’t really seen death in racing even though I had watched it all through my childhood. I was super excited for this race too, not knowing the danger. I’ve never felt the way I felt after seeing the first image of Wheldon’s roll hoop sheered off and immediately knowing it was unsurvivable. Turned me off of motorsport for a solid two or three years afterwards.
I also saw this live, and was crying so hard I could hardly see the tribute lap; also haunts me as was so unnecessary . . . now we have the Halo
Dude exact same story right here bro I feel you
I felt the same in 2001 as a 21 year old Earnhardt fan and then to see this race when I was 31 bad nightmare. I could relate
The bagpipes. I can keep it -cool- *under control* until the bloody bagpipes..
This was one of the most well-produced documentaries - amateur or otherwise - I’ve ever seen. Difficult subject, but you’ve handled it with factual observations, eloquence, and grace. Bravo.
Agree 100%
I agree, I knew nothing before this video and now I am kinda into racing cars!
Agreed!
I was looking for the excitement that led up to the race. In my opinion this race was equivalent to the excitement that led up to the 2001 Daytona 500. I dont need to go into anymore detail that occurred in that race.
23:10 the irony in his statement here is actually heartbreaking.
Wow yeah
Exactly what I was thinking
That is scary.
Slapped my head, didnt remember him saying this,but in canada here we only got the qualify and races on speed network. Hated how it ended.
My heart broke when he said that.
I watched the race live, I was 12 and it forever changed my view on motorsports. I had never witnessed a tragedy like this live and I will forever remember it. I'll miss you Dan, I'll never forget how cool you were and the times I got to meet you and get your autograph.
That was a rough day...
I was 12 too.
I was once 12... not on that day though
Same, it was my first live race, so excited to see them in person. The racing was awesome. But on that 12th lap, I new it was bad. Definitely an emotional day.
I was 11 when I saw Greg Moore crash and pass away, those things change you.
Anyone notice how prior to Dale’s death, Dale had said “you’re gonna see something you ain’t never seen on fox before,” and then Dan said “this is a great way to go out”…?
yeah
out for the indycar champion ship, you say this as he wanted that big one
@@robertomorais187 not what I’m implying. Same with Dale. Simply just morbid irony
@@nathanwichman5114 ohh sorry man
Randy was a good CEO. He wanted the best for everybody and cared for his fans.
Would've been the most fantastic year for Indycar had Dan not died.
Everybody's words now seem more and more scary.
Wheldon's quote at 23:09 is the most disturbing one to hear considering what happened imo
@@jeffgordonfan2462 there is a thing I notice when a driver dies, most of their pre race interviews all seem to be so eery
He would have been a success as a CEO, I believe, but the Las Vegas disaster permanently damaged his reputation.
@@philipdawson7800 and he was very shaken after it
@@lordshankracing4724 Yeah. He had very good intentions & really tried his hardest to get Indycar out there. Just unfortunate & flawed execution that ended up in the worst way possible.
Had Wheldon survived or better yet not happen at all & the race ended smoothly, i think the direction they would've been pushed towards would be through the roof, but unfortunately it went the opposite way.
51:35 tarp, something that you *NEVER* want to see at an auto race
Its for bloods yeah
@@sandordomonkos8351correct
It makes it actually interesting plus it’s pretty hilarious 😂
@@sandordomonkos8351or death and an investigation?
It's sad that we've seen it happen enough that we know exactly what it means... The only positive is that at least we learn from these tragedies as a sport and have made huge leaps forward In driver safety from what these accidents taught us
1. The DW12 could go to Texas because it was harder to drive and less prone to pack racing. This makes me wonder if they could have gotten away with this race if Firestone had brought a much harder, less grippy tire compound. Of course, that would have required enough foresight to know there was a problem. Was there any testing at Vegas that year? I don’t remember.
2. After the way he treated Rockingham and North Wilkesboro, we already knew that empathy wasn’t part of Bruton Smith’s character, but trying to force IndyCar to keep racing at Las Vegas after what happened there… That was a new low, even for Bruton Smith.
there was testing but it did not indicate these speeds. Briscoe and Dixons test speeds were way below what the field was running.
tire choice might help a little bit , but if everyone is on the same compound its not really going to split the field up that much . plus you have the problem of people pushing the tires and setups and risking blistering blow outs. probably best to play it safe with tires on a fast oval and go with the most durable and usable option you have.
@@AlistairMaxwell77 if tyres are less grippy, drivers will have a harder time going full throttle in the wake of the car ahead. That alone disrupts pack racing. BTW, it would have helped if the engines were a bit more powerful... 650hp was a joke. If the engine doesn't push the car to the limit on a big oval, pack racing is what you get.
Bruton has no soul only money see the shit he pull to get his drag strip at charlotte
Basically, they did the same mistake CART did in 2001 with Texas.
Will Power's body language before the race throughout the weekend was very telling. He looks incredibly anxious and not happy in every interview
Yeah you're right, he looks incredibly anxious.. Sadly we know it was for good reason.
It’s still hilarious
I used to hate Will Power’s bitching and moaning about pack racing but this provides some great context and I actually agree with him now, thank you for this video
He speaks up a lot and it can be very annoying but if you really pay attention to him he always seems to have a good point, especially when he is concerned for the safety of the racing.
23:08 that's just haunting to hear that back
Yea..
The irony there
So true :(
Lmfao
Hard to believe how things can change in an instant… Hard to believe that instant has been 10 years…
RIP Dan, you’re still deeply missed. 🙏
Randy Bernard did a heck of a lot of good for INDYCAR. If not for Vegas, he’d probably still be there and revered as open wheel’s savior.
Doing what exactly?
I remember this race quite vividly. I think anyone who was around Motorsports, understood that Dan Weldon did not survive immediately. It's hard to believe it's been 10 years. I commend you nascarman HISTORY for another brilliant documentary.
Grew up 12 minutes from LVMS. Oct 16th is a day local race fans won't forget...
23:14 "I'm gonna keep it on all four."
Man that sent me chills!
He didn’t do a very good job of it 😂
Bernard was a critical force in pushing for what became the DW12 car. The DW12 fixed the issues the original Dallara Crapwagon had. Overall the DW12 is more suited to oval racing than the Crapwagon was because it simply was safer, and outside of Fontana 2015 (which in itself was a bonkers race) hasn't seen the pack racing replicated since. Yes the DW12 had problems out of the gate, but any car will.
The new version of the DW12, which is essentially what they run now, is probably the safest/best racing producer the series has had. One can't fault Bernard for that.
Bernard's main downfall was the fact that he was an outsider, and while he did his research, he didn't know enough about the sport. Bernard also wanted to drastically increase the profile of IndyCar far quicker than I think the sport could have. Had Vegas had gone down without a hitch, the race still would have been seen as a failure because the crowds didn't show up.
Bernard had a marketing mindset that I don't think Indycar was ready for. Heck, they may not ever be ready for that kind of marketing. IndyCar now (with more ovals) is what I think Bernard wanted way back in 2012. But the writing was on the wall that the viewership wasn't going to grow that fast.
17:57 I bet that guy filming the finish never amounted to much lol
The moment I realized he was the $5 million challenger... My heart sunk man. I know the story and watched countless videos but that detail somehow slipped me. You've done a beautiful job the first 23 minutes and I'm sure this only gets better.
I’ve never seen a car like Dan’s after the crash. The entire top, roll hoop down to most of the engine, was completely gone. All that remained was his helmet. Unsurvivable crash. Such a sad day. Miss him greatly. One of the most underrated drivers ever
Last time something like this happened, it was with helmutt koenigg, and years later after dan's death it was Jules Bianchi, and it almost happened with Grosjean recently, thankfully the halo saved his life.
@@Bitterman5868 now he’s nearly won in Indycar, can’t wait to see him finally win in an open wheel car.
@@Bitterman5868 Greg Moores roll bar was completely torn off his car in his fatal crash at Fontana ten years earlier. He went top side first into the infield wall after his car flipped when his wing dug into the infield grass, the wall tore the roll bar off his car and his head hit the wall. Moore's crash also happened at the last race of the season, early in the race, with a championship on the line, only difference was it was a CART sanctioned IndyCar race and they finished the race announcing his death to the fans during the waning laps. Montoya would win the championship, in the post race interview you can see his smile completely disappear when his crew chief whispered into his ear that Greg had died.
@@chrish931 I was at that race. When they announced Greg’s death, it took the energy out of the crowd. I actually got up and left. Wasn’t fun anymore. I just wasn’t in the mood anymore. Sad day.
@@chrish931 I wouldn’t call the hoop on Moore’s car torn off, but it was certainly deformed. In the end, it didn’t matter, hoop or aeroscreen. If Moore’s wreck were to happen today, it would still be fatal and it’s not even a question.
I attended this race back when I was 11, I remember seeing 2 fireballs and the helicopter taking Dan Wheldon. When it was announced that Dan passed everyone could not believed it. When they did the 5 lap salute, everyone was silent. It was my first and only IndyCar I have ever been to.
You're about 22 now,I bet you will remember this when you're 82.
@@richardmorris7063 Definitely.
@@rareapple3 mine as well go on back to another race... may be exciting and safer now. i almost went to one this year at laguna seca ... but i got covid and couldnt do anything =(
Wheldon was one of my favorites I had turned 18 the week before he got killed when it happened i almost walked away as a fan but during that off-season I gave it a lot of thought and decided it would be wrong to not watch or go to a race again it would be dishonoring him so I've still stuck it out and watched every race from then to present go to the 500 every year and have been to Texas the last few years still hard to believe we're coming up on the 12 year anniversary of this
Thank you nascarman and Brock for this beautifully done documentary on one of the ugliest days in our sport's history.
And here's another haunting tidbit: At 54:02, I believe the gentleman Dario was hugging was Ric Moore, father of Greg Moore. I recall reading or hearing that this was the first open wheel race Ric attended since his son was killed at Fontana almost exactly 12 years earlier. Needless to say, he couldn't have picked a worse one for his return.
Geez! What a horrible circumstance for Rick Moore to return to a track. Thanks for the detail.
#99
Just when I didn't think that day could have been any sadder. I can't imagine what that was like for Ric. I quit watching open-wheel racing after Robert Wickens was paralyzed. It's the same crash again and again. They can make everything else as safe as they want, but if there is open-wheel racing, there will be open-wheel launches, the most dangerous crashes in racing.
Thank you this was excellent. As an IndyCar fan, I remember thinking that 2011 was going to be their breakout year. The 2011 fight between Power, and Franchitti for the championship was one of the most epic battles in all of racing. Dan Wheldon winning the Indy 500 and Randy Bernard only added to the massive drama that was going on that year. It was also good to see video clips of Bob Jenkins and Robin Miller who we lost just this year.
If Robin Miller were still alive today, he would be proud of the work you did on this video.
Rest in Peace
Dan Wheldon
Bob Jenkins
Robin Miller
Excellent video on a very sad subject. I must admit I hadn't realised the full story behind the $5 million challenge that put Wheldon in the race, or the amount of hype and publicity surrounding the event. It feels a particularly cruel irony that, after developing a car to prevent airborne accidents, the final race using the old car would produce a fatality in exactly those circumstances.
The 2011 Indycar season finale at Las Vegas still feels like it was yesterday. It is one of those races where you remember where you were and what you were doing. Watching the practice sessions and 11 laps still bring the same level of anxiousness that I felt watching it live. The few seconds of Dan Wheldon's onboard (just before and as he went airborne) that weren't shown live and or in replays were extremely tough to watch. A devastating day for so many. I thought I knew a lot about this race but this documentary put everything into perspective as to how we got there. This was incredibly well done and I thank everyone who helped make this video.
R.I.P. Dan Wheldon.
Something I just realized today was that Justin Wilson was the driver who won the first IndyCar 1.5 mile oval race held since Wheldon's death (June 2012 at Texas) and he was also the next driver to die in an on-track accident in the series (Pocono 2015, hit in the head by flying debris)
I think that's what happened to Darrell Russell in 2004. I don't know if his autopsy ever was made public. His accident didn't seem very bad. It was hard to imagine that he was killed. But they immediately made changes and it wasn't hard to figure out from those changes what must have happened.
@@bbigjohnson069 And... the driver racing against him was Scott Kalitta... who also died (I think he was the next to die) in 2007.
@@brendanschuett I didn't remember that's who he was racing.Blaine Johnson's was tough. He was leading the points and he gets killed. Lee Sheppard. How different is Bob Glidden's career with Lee Sheppard around. Darryl Gwynn ending up in a chair. When he came up to TF it was the start of the season. His dragster wasn't even painted. It was bare metal. First round, he does his burnout, and waves to the fans as he's backing up! Kind of odd different cool. Then he proceeds to whip everybody's ass.
@@brendanschuett Eric Medlin, who actually had a lot of similarities to Darrell Russell, was the next NHRA driver to lose his life in a crash after Darrell after a testing crash in 2007. Scott Kalitta's crash was the following year.
Hard to believe this was 10 years ago
RIP Dan Wheldon 🙏
It’s pretty fucked up what happened to randy after all this too. He was bold and did his job well, and earned the respect of all the drivers and teams. He had big ideas for Indycar and what it should be and I believe he could have propelled it to the world stage. It’s a truly beautiful, diverse, and brave sport and he was going to show it to the world. The accident was not his fault but I guess someone has to take the blame. Shame.
Dan and Robin back running the pit road in heaven! RIP guys we miss you.
Well done piece. Looking back, Bernard may not have been out on the track, but he still made the decision to go fly fighter jets in a gymnasium (as Jeff Hammond would say). I remember at the time the 5M challenge was issued, people questioned the safety aspect of an inexperienced open wheel driver being on track. Could you have imagined someone like Pastrana or James Stewart out there in an IndyCar in those conditions? Bernard couldnt allow the race to restart because one fatality was enough for the day. Its such a shame it was Wheldon. His TV work that year was incredible, such a breath of fresh air to the booth. I was looking forward to the day Wheldon made TV his full time job for good. Thats what happens when you put a bull riding businessman in charge of Indycar. If its too dangerous for the cars to all practice at the same time, its too dangerous for them to race at the same time. Seeing how they split the cars at practice, Im shocked the raceday program wasnt converted into smaller heat races. Once these cars started surpassing 230 at Indy the sanctioning bodies have worked to slow them down, yet 220 at Vegas was ok? When that oval was flat, open wheel was much safer to run there.
Race probably should’ve been called like CART Texas race in 2001.
Then the drivers felt uneasy about it.
Plug should’ve been pulled here.
I was nearing 10 years old when I watched the race. I reacted to the wreck as naively as anyone that age would. However, as time passed, then they send Jamie Little to the hospital to check on Dan, then the drivers started crying, it seemed like said naïveté withered little by little until it was brought to its knees by Marty Reid’s very words: “Dan Wheldon… killed today here at Las Vegas Motor Speedway…” I remember not sleeping well that night.
In retrospect, with so many cars crammed into the field at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, it was like an accident waiting to happen. As a Brit, it especially hurt that Dan was the driver who paid the ultimate price. It was a nice touch that Dellara gave the car Dan tested extensively the type number "DW12" in his honour.
Most of the time, in the UK anyway, Motorsport in the US doesn't get mentioned on TV, but when Dan died, it was headline news
My first proper exposure to IndyCar was the BBC report that night. In 2012, I was watching the series. Pretty morbid way to come into the series but it's a good 11 years.
At the end of the day Randy Bernard is a promoter and businessmen, like Bernie Ecclestone was in F1, not an engineer. Where was the IndyCar chef stewart in all this? He should of gotten most of the blame since they are responsible for the technical aspects of the sport, not Randy Bernard. That’s why you had Wally Dallenbach Sr. in CART. This was just very sad and I cannot believe that this happened over ten years ago. May Dan Wheldon continue to Rest In Peace.
When Amazing Grace started playing in this video, I started sobbing like I did on that day in 2011. We miss you, Dan.
I just remember such an eerie feeling during pre race. The national anthem was one of the best i ever heard, and very unique and it has just stuck with me. Then lap 11....... It is so odd how you could just feel something was off about this event just minutes before it began.
Rest in Peace Dan Wheldon
The aero screen would have saved Justin Wilson, too.
Exactly one month after this race I traveled to Vegas to visit a friend of mine. He’s in the military so they let us drive inside the track and sat on pit road watching the Richard Petty driving experience. After a while we visited turn 2 and it was beyond upsetting looking at the skid marks/crash scene. It will be something I will never forget I guess we’ll never understand why amazing people are taken so soon
Between Earnhardt in 2001 and this in 2011, it was heartbreaking watching these live as a kid. My family grew up sprintcar racing on the west coast, and I personally knew alot of the World of Outlaw drivers at the time. I grew up in a racecar, but never went on to pursue any professional career out of it because I had seen too many bad crashes that it honestly made me fear for my life the first time I tested a big motor car on a big track. I did about 5 laps, pulled in and told my parents I'm not doing this anymore, and to be competitive you can't be afraid. My mother was good friends with Bryan Clauson and his family and after his death that was a big blow to everyone in our racing community. I love racing, and will continue to support all types of racing, but safety always has to come before anything else. Too many great drivers have lost their lives or had their careers cut short because safety was either overlooked or ignored completely. Honestly, with how these younger drivers in NASCAR race now, I'm surprised we haven't seen another death (though Newman at Daytona really did scare me watching that race live)
My condolences first to you and your family for your loss.
I can tell you that a coworker and I both were in our office watching that Daytona 500 with Newman’s wreck at the end. We both saw Newman’s crash live and when LaJoie hit Newman like that, I thought for sure he was gone. It did not look survivable, and the way Mike Joy, Jeff Gordon and Clint Bowyer were sounding in the booth sounded eerily similar to the way that the Fox trio in 2001 sounded after Dale Earnhardt’s fatal crash. It was beyond a relief when I heard about two hours later that Newman was gonna be alright.
You can see and hear the tension, the anxiety and even the fear in the drivers faces and voices in those interviews before the race. They knew it was way too dangerous. Seems like they were more worried about the consequences of the race then in the results itself.
In a way, it reminds me the Formula 1 race in Imola 1994, when the legendary Ayrton Senna passed away. Everyone knew the danger, but money talks and the show had to go on, regardless how unsafe it could be. And we know what happened in both cases: two champions gone (but not forgotten)...
Anyway, great documentary. Congratulations and thank you for posting this.
What was the apprehension regarding the race in Las Vegas??
@@mrkipling2201 There were concerns about track dynamics, unevenly matched cars and part-time drivers. Add to that the $5 million dollar incentive for Wheldon to race from last to first.
Yep I remember that whole weekend at Imola in 94’ being a complete disaster. Barrichello was lucky to survive his crash in practice and Ratzenberger had his fatal crash in qualifying. That race should’ve never happened.
Way I felt after the crash.
Earliest memory for me was 2001 Daytona 500.
Looking back at that race when I watch.
It’s eerie.
This race on the twelfth anniversary it’s still eerie.
If only the Aeroscreen was on 77 that day in 2011.
This video never ceases to amaze me. The racing was so dangerous that the race director was on the radio the whole time telling the drivers to take it easy. They only made it 10 laps before someone was killed. This event never should’ve happened.
Blaming the drivers for being too aggressive over the people that put together despite the risk of danger is ridiculous. Everyone knew the risk, everyone knew someone would get hurt. They needed ratings. Randy was right to be let go after this happened. It was a failure on all accounts
There is no driver that doesn't think "they're talking to everyone else about taking it easy, not me, I know what I'm doing". If the racing or track and cars allowed that much aggression and speed then the drivers were going to give it everything up to the razors edge. That's absolutely racing.
@@tractorback76 yep you can't put it on the drivers because they're out there to race and have careers and goals to meet. It is the series that has the responsibility to account for safety especially when the drivers themselves are all concerned.
I don't think Bernard was purposely negligent. He doesn't strike me as that type of person although I don't know much about the man. What I do think is that he took on a difficult challenge after a difficult period for open wheel racing in the US and I think the pressure on him to succeed blinded him to the inherent realities of the sport. Couple that with his own lack of knowledge about the sport and disaster was imminent. The series should have had a retired panel of drivers to approve his decisions.
33 cars at Indy is one thing.
The cars get spread out going 220mph+ now.
34 cars at The Vegas with these cars.
To quote Cheever.
Pure lunacy.
It’s a bowl as Robin Miller said once.
Could've been IndyCar Series, best season in years....
Do You Like Stanton Barrett
I have no idea, that dude is
@@Ryeblue Stanton Barrett Was NASCAR Drivers Hollywood Actor and Stunt maker ☺
It still was
@@PointNemo9 Oh Yeah
That "Wind Tunnel" segment with Robin Miller is also a symbol of things and people no longer with us...SPEED Channel got turned into FS1 (aka Dollar Store ESPN), and Miller passed away this year...
I was watching the race on May 1, 1994 from the Imola circuit. That was the track that took one of the greatest F1 drivers life. His name was Aryton Senna. I was also watching this race on October 16 2011 where Dan Wheldon lost his life. In both instances we had drivers lose their live. The crash at Imola the curve was removed and turned into a chicane, whereas Indy car took a bit of time off from the 1.5 mile Ovals but went back. Please remember loss of life should ot be repeated for idiotic reasons, like going back to dangerous tracks. God Bless the Wheldon and Senna families.
Danger is an unfortunate reality of motorsport, the legendary Imola circuit should not have had it's most iconic corner removed.
@@PointNemo9 Sadly it already has been removed. It was done before they went back in 1995. there is not a trace of it now.
The only 1.5 mile they've run since is Texas.
50:10 trying to get as much out of that last draw as possible before running off towards disaster is immediately relatable
Kept it together like a boss til 55:14 epic piece of content
Thanks bud
Cymotorsport makes some hard hitting F1 shit. Between the both of you, now I know everything
I was 6 when this happened, and I just remembered watching that on tv and not understanding what happened
I'm not crying your crying
@@TheFoyer13 I’m crying, you’re crying. I was there when it happened. I was crying then. I’m crying now.
I remember watching this race and being shocked by the death of Dan Wheldon! It felt like when Dale Sr. Died all over again cuz Wheldon was so loved!
The DW12/IR18 is a legacy that Dan Wheldon could be proud of if he were still with us today, as there has only been one death in the car's lifetime and that one death was actually no fault of the car itself (Justin Wilson at Pocono when a piece of debris struck him in the head)
I mean one could argue why did the piece come off, or why did it hit him on the head. The aero screen was partially built to stop that from happening again.
T.b.f. wilson was just a very weird freak accident that I'm sure even when the DW12 was in development no one would have thought would ever happen
@@michaelsorber7859 exactly, I doubt that anyone could have predicted a piece of bodywork to come out of the sky and just happen to strike a driver in the head.. Wilson's death was rather similar to Felipe Massa's accident in Hungary in 2009, a total freak accident that couldn't have been prevented, it's not the fault of Pocono Raceway, IndyCar, Chevrolet, Honda or Dallara
@@gregsalisbury9783 I mean, IndyCars are designed to have their bodywork come off during a crash to dissipate energy
@@patrickracer43 I understand that, just I thought that was one of the pieces less likely to fall off, but that's my mistake.
I remember that race. Since there was no NASCAR Race that day. My brother and I decided to tune in to watch the Indycar race. Hard to believe its almost 11 years. RIP Dan Wheldon. You are truly missed.
Let’s not forget the other Motorsports tragedy that day… the plane crash that killed off-road racer Rick Huseman and 2 others on their way home from this race.
I remember Jacques Villeneuve telling he’s going to step down of that race because it was crazy to get all those cars in that track or something like this
Saw this live and instantly knew he was gone. My eyes were instantly drawn to the car with no roll hoop and I knew it was bad news.
The day my childhood ended. That wreck scarred 13 year old me it took a few years just for me to watch an Indycar race again. I remember sitting downstairs in my moms old apartment in tears. The emotion and pain I felt on that day I will never forget
This gave me a new light on this race. The officials were definitely trying to calm things down but it’s still no excuse for all the red flags way beforehand.
The new halo could put ovals into consideration again, provided the halo is incredibly strong.
The Indycar upload of the 2012 St. Pete race also had testimonials from the drivers. Wheldon apparently passed on the helicopter and TK drove with part of Dan’s seatbelt on the parade laps.
Great documentary of a sad day. This vid captures that era of IndyCar so well, with Randy, Dan, Wind Tunnel and Dave Despain and of course Robin Miler. Such a tragedy.
I was able to hold it together for 55 minutes and 10 seconds. But when the bagpipes starting playing I couldn't hold back the tears. Incredible video.
In that entire clip the best and most remember-able words came from Wheldon himself. "When your time is up it's up". Is not a callous take on things and NO he didn't want to die. It's what he did for a living and he loved it. He went out the way a lot of great drivers go out. Be thankful for all the time you got to watch him drive. He was VERY special in his form of motorsport.
11 years ago today wow…Had the pleasure to meet him in Toronto back in 09. Still have his autograph up on my wall. R.i.p Dan
23:10 what Dan says here hits me hard. I started watching in 2004 and I chose Wheldon as my favourite driver because I’m also English like he was. I miss him a lot, RIP Dan
Thanks for making this. At 16 it was one of the first Indy car races I watched and never really looked back into this race after it happened
I didnt see the race live, I was working that day but when I heard the news it made me immediately think of Greg Moore's fatal crash at Fontana ten years earlier, because of the similarities of being the last race of the season with the championship on the line. Say what you will about the job Randy did but at least he didn't make the same mistake CART officials made and called off the race. I will never forgot the look on Montoya's face when he went from smiling over winning the CART title to being told by his crew chief that Greg had died.
My whole family watched this race, and we all knew it was inevitable... but never thought that it would have been that bad. RiP Dan You were awesome
I remember watching that race live and feeling really anxious after the green flag dropped. The racing was just insane. And when the crash happened... I had never seen a fatal racing accident live before. That was a sad, sad day. RIP Lionheart.
Was there in the Petty terrace. Didn’t go to a race again until I moved to Texas again this year. And I had been to darn near ever Vegas race for 11 years in NASCAR. My parents back home are getting the fridge replaced. We’ve had it for 11 years. Found my RIP Dan Lionheart shirt in the bag still. I stashed it because I didn’t want to see it damaged. My first and only Indy Race ever. And to learn he was taken to the same hospital I was born in. It’s just devastating.
@@natereg9747 thankfully the cars are so much safer now.
@@nolancain8792 that is true. I speculate though if he would’ve been killed in today’s car. The windscreen might have saved him. It was such a violent impact and there was intrusion into the cockpit, specifically his head that I doubt he would have survived. We’ll never know. I’m sure glad they have the windscreen because I believe it has already saved lives and significant injury. The HANS device has definitely saved lives although it’s unprovable but logic tells me it has. I don’t think there have been any injuries or deaths from brain stem trauma since it was started. The SAFER barrier has been a huge help. I don’t know how much more safety they can build into the cars but they’ll keep looking. Unfortunately it takes a death or critical injury for some weak points to appear. I still think the current catch fence designs are dangerous but I don’t know the alternatives.
i used to change tires for my uncle that used to drive dirt stock cars, and saw one driver die in a wreck and saw a pit member from another team die buy being run over in the pits i was near where that happened it was the worst thing i have ever seen, later that year i saw dale earnhardt die at daytona, and i also watched this race on tv had a feeling weldon was dead i still love racing but its dangerous no matter what type of car
This is definitely one of the best videos that you guys have produced. RIP Dan, IndyCar hasn’t been the same without you.
Well, first off, I can't believe it's been 10 years since this senseless tragedy happened. I remember watching this and being totally stunned by Dan Wheldon's death. However, my most vivid memories of that extremely sad day occurred after Marty Reid's closing words to the original ABC Broadcast.
1. I remember almost immediately after the telecast was over, I turn on my PlayStation 3, and all of my PlayStation Network friends at the time that were all racing fans all had the exact same thIng written on their info blurb thing on the PSN square (I forgot what it was called): "RIP Dan Wheldon". All down my friend list, "RIP Dan Wheldon, RIP Dan Wheldon, RIP Dan Wheldon". I still get chills just thinking about it.
2. When I had to go back to work the day after it happened, one of my co-workers who was a huge racing fan watched the race and watched the whole thing, including Dan Wheldon's death. Needless to say, he was Devastated, and he carried around all day the local newspaper that had the story of the tragedy on the front page. But the most poignant thing that he did was when he wrote a section for the newsletter that my workplace used to do every month. (I never participated in that because I was usually off of work on the day that they put together the newsletter). Obviously he wrote about Dan Wheldon's death, and I never forgot what he wrote about it.
"I am a huge sports fan, and I watch all the races. I watched the IndyCar season Finale at Las Vegas where Dan Wheldon was killed. I saw the accident happen on TV, I was totally stunned; He was like a friend to me. Wheldon was an excellent race car driver. He won two Indy 500s, including (the 2011 race)."
RIP Lionheart, you will never be forgotten.
I remember watching it live, I was a freshman in college and my parents had just left from visiting for a weekend that morning. I called them in tears explaining what had happened. I wasn’t even a big indycar fan at the time but it was just devastating
10 years already huh? Man, time really does get away from us.
It's a damn shame everything turned out the way it did that horrible weekend and unfortunately Wheldon wasn't the last IndyCar driver to die during the race.
Hopefully with all the effort that's been put into safety, we'll never see another death in open-wheel racing.
R.I.P. Dan Wheldon.
This is the second Dan Wheldon doc I saw posted today. Keep em coming everyone. Can never get enough Dan.
2007. Kansas Speedway my first ever race of any series with my dad. Dan Weldon won. We said that was our guy. Fast forward to Vegas 2011, I could not believe what happened. I'll never forget Dan.
I remember watching this, seeing the crash, and just had that bad feeling. When it was announced Dan had passed, like most I was just in shock. That turned to sadness and even tears after seeing Dario crying in his cockpit before the tribute laps. God speed, Dan.
I've been watching motorsports since I was in diapers and this day has stuck with me for 10 years. Absolutely horrific. I was certain we lost multiple drivers that day...
RIP, Dan. You are missed.
I was 10 when this happened. I was a month old for Dale, so this was the motorsport tragedy of my childhood. It's hard to believe it was half my life ago.
Just found this man. 7 year old me was sobbing my eyes out and hearing amazing Grace made me ball the same way I did 10 years when DW passed
I met him the day before his passing. He was so cool and personable.
Even 10 years later, it still hurts... 😢
RIP Dan
Incredibile production!
I remembering watching this race live, I didn't follow so much back in those days and still today I can't watch all the races (I'm in Italy, so bad timezone), so I didn't know all the backstory behind this event. Anyway, I heard about DW because of the Indy Codemasters' game, and I was in complete shock watching these image live, like I am today rewatching them.
And a week after we had Simoncelli, for me those 7 days are probably one of the darkest weeks of Motorsport history
Second darkest, after the death of Dale Earnhardt
As someone who isnt into IndyCar, never really watched it or knew much about it. However this infamous race crossed continents, crossed series/type preference barriers so I was curious about this documentary.
I was totally hooked, so well edited and produced that not being a fan didn't matter as it was just so interesting and well made.
I was there, with my nephew. All we could see from the stands was smoke on the back stretch. The paddock area just after the crash was littered with broken bodywork. I saw a front wing in a trash bin. It was so quiet down there. We didn’t know that Dan had been killed. The parade laps at the end were hard to watch.
This is the definitive document to this event that still seems like yesterday. Great job.
It seems like a cycle with motorsports in recent decades. The sport gets a tad stale so the individual series creates a jaw dropping excitement filled event or style of racing to attract viewers. Then a driver either gets killed or badly hurt and the series makes significant changes to make things safer and more stale again. Earnhardt's death in 2001, Wheldon in this video, even Jules Bianchi in F1 when they tried to race in the impending dark and heavy rain for the first time in years to keep the show going.
You could even argue that about NASCAR currently. There's a sense of complacency when it comes to safety (both in the cars and the officiating/safety crew response). It parallels the 2000 season somewhat.
@@TheRyan597 yes that was exactly the series I was referring to the most with my comment. They are caring less about safety because it's been so long since a bad accident.
@@jamesburroughs3813 Well we had Newman’s wreck in 2020 but he ended up ok. It’s easy to become complacent after seeing these drivers walk away and get lucky time after time. If Newman got hit a little more in the roof rather than directly on the B-pillar, I don’t think he makes it. It’s certainly encouraging to see the cars become safer though but the danger of serious injury is often forgotten.
I attended this race as a guest of the track president. A bunch of us went onto the rooftop of the suite to observe the opening laps. Most were NASCAR fans who hadn’t attended an IndyCar race before. A woman next to me commented how much faster these cars were and how closely together they were running. It’s easy to say this in hindsight but you just knew something bad was going to happen. The crash was horrific. It looked like an action scene in a movie. This was an incredibly well put together documentary. It definitely doesn’t feel like 10 years ago.
Excellent, thank you so much for making this. Can’t believe it’s already been 10 years. Miss you, Dan
23:11 that quote is haunting
It’s so hard to believe that this was already almost 11 years ago, but it still feels like it just happened yesterday.
I watched this race live. Dan was one of my favorite drivers and I was so excited to watch him try to win the $5 million prize and have another high moment after he had won the Indy 500 that year. When the crash happened, I was in shock unlike anything I had ever experienced before. I remember seeing all the footage of Dan’s car and I felt very shaken up. The second I saw the yellow tarp on his car, I broke down because I knew right then that the news we were about to get was not going to be good. I remember that day very well, but at the same time it also feels like such a blur. It was a rough couple days for me.
Even 10 years on I still get choked up watching the press announcement and car salute. We lost a legend that day
God, I can remember everything about this day. I was watching the race and had an anxious, awful feeling about the way the cars were bunching together and unable to get any kind of separation, and knowing that at those speeds, the inevitable mistake was going to lead to something catastrophically bad. And that it did.
Call it a product of watching racing for long enough (25 years at that point) but when it happened, when they mentioned Wheldon getting airborne, I just had that nauseous feeling that he was gone. I hoped I was wrong, kept checking Twitter to see if there was a positive update, but I was lying to myself. I’d seen enough of these at this point to know it was just a matter of time before the announcement came. Same feeling I got watching Daytona 2001, and numerous other races with fatal crashes. The way the medics/safety crews approach the car, the vibe of the other drivers, etc.
What I remember the most is that when they interviewed the older Cart/IRL hands like Paul Tracy and Davey Hamilton. The younger drivers were still hopeful of a good outcome. Those guys knew, and you could tell from the distant and resigned way they looked and sounded. These guys, who had seen a fair few drivers die by that point, they knew. I think Tracy even said something to the effect of “a lot of these younger drivers, they’ve never had to deal with this before.” That’s when I knew, even though the actual announcement didn’t come for at least a couple of hours. RIP
Great work, man. This film you've made is absolutely professional quality.
I remember watching this live.
I knew at the conclusion of lap one this wouldn't end well.
I recall the race being stopped for an hour maybe two (?) before the announcement.
The 5 lap in Honor part was chilling and Incredible.
Had actually forgot about that until watching this video.
I’ve been watching IndyCar since 1972 as a seven year old however, I would only watch the Indy 500 and none of the other races. That all changed in 2011 with that year’s 500 and the absolute madness, excitement and disappointment of that race….I found myself needing more and not being able to wait a full year for the next time I watched an IndyCar race so I did tune into the next week’s race at Belle Isle fully expecting to be bored but I was hooked and have watched every race since then.
The final race of my new found love of the entire series in that year was shattering. After the coverage was over I just shut the tv off and felt completely numb. And this extremely well done doc took me back to maybe the darkest day in my fandom of any sport. I almost think it was more difficult watching Dan Wheldon promote this race than seeing the actual crash again. Just the hindsight sense of foreboding is horrible.
My son and I were there. Track was so slight. Cant look at that turn without remembering. So sad I really liked Dan too. Hooe his family got through today.🙏🙏🙏 RIP DAN. 🏆🏆Always a champion
I remember that 500 well, I was moving out of my apt that day. Listened to the broadcast and heard the call for Dan. Never would have thought he'd be gone a few months later
Classic case of an event where the old adage, "hindsight is 20/20" comes into play. Hard to blame this all on Randy Bernard, like many have, when other parties failed to speak up or speak louder. If drivers were that overly concerned, they should have boycotted or gone on strike. Driver strikes have happened before. Nothing bad ever results from them.
You really think any of them had the stomach to recreate the 1969 Talladega 500 shitshow? There would’ve been a tiny amount of IndyCar drivers with underpowered Indy Lights cars as field fillers.
Everyone says "we were anxious and worried" after a disaster happens. Fact is, no one was speaking up prior to the race. People knew it was going to be tight racing, dangerous and there would probably be crashes, but they all went out there 110% aware of the risks. They all made the decision to race that day, in a sport where they definitely did not have to. Out of all the racing series, Indycar is and always has been by far the easiest to say "you know what, I don't want to race today, I just don't think it's worth it". Basically every single team at the track that day could have found a replacement driver for anyone who didn't want to compete. No one would've gotten in trouble, someone else just would've gotten in that car and raced instead, and they'd be the one that got paid. You wouldn't get fired, or chewed out. People went out there knowing exactly what the risk was. Dan Wheldon knew the risk. "If it's your time, it's your time". He knew he could die, it was a reality every time he drove onto a track, and his death wouldn't have shocked him one bit. Racing has always been dangerous. Death in Indycar wasn't even particularly rare compared to other series. Everyone suddenly had 20/20 hindsight the second the race was over. If they were actually aware of the risk and opposed it prior to the race, then that death is on them for not speaking up and trying to stop the race at any point prior to the day.
Racing will never be as exciting again. You might think safety is better, but the fact is, open-wheel racing and oval racing is dying a slow death because of safety. And maybe that's okay. But being unwilling to lose a driver once or twice a decade means that the truest forms of car racing have been dead for a decade now, and they will never, ever recover. Car racing has been killed forever by safety. Thankfully, Rally and Motorcycle still accept that every time you race, you risk death. When people die at the Isle of Man TT, or in the Dakar, they don't cancel everything. They don't demand safety changes. They don't kill the sport. And they have atleast 1 death every single year. Indycar was having one every 5 or more. They mourn, and then they go back out and race. They do what they love. People in the Isle of Man aren't even racing for huge winnings. There's not millions on the table. Yet they risk their lives and die for the love of the sport. That's what racing is. Risking everything for the thrill, for the show, for the fame. If there's no risk, there's no entertainment. It's just a weird form of a running race.
I thought they did speak up beforehand. I remember there being quite a controversy before this race concerning driver safety and the suitability of the Vegas track for Indycar racing.
@@Trainlover1995By 2011 There was legislation, also Bernard wasn't a Republican, so he wasn't anti-Union, since I believe the PBR has a union.
its like watching a tragedy unfold. Its almost painful to watch it all happen through this documentary. Excellent job
"Give Rahal a call" 19:40
Legendary line from Letterman in future context.
Pppp
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Pppp
Pppp
I remember watching this and instantly getting the same feeling I did watching Greg Moore's crash in 99, I knew straight away it wasn't good
Rip lionheart