What Was The Greatest fight In Racing?
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08/26/2015 Jeremiah Thalheimer |
In the racing world, the one thing most fans enjoy is a good, old-fashioned dustup. From the famous fight after the 1979 Daytona 500 that put our beloved sport on the map to the melees at the end of last season that seemed to involve everyone against Brad Keselowski, fights are often talked about, dissected, and played on highlight reels for many years to come. However, as epic as the above-mentioned fights were, the greatest fight in racing occurred during a truck series race at Houston Motorsports Park in 2013. This one was started with a glove and even involved a jack handle before all was said and done.
Flashback to August 31, 2013. Our truck series had been dominated by Rick Pollaro but Zack Knowles was constantly nipping on his heels. On the night in question, Zack wasn’t winning but was ahead of Rick for most of the night. Rick finally got around Zack, and Zack had had enough. Maybe he was tired of playing second fiddle to Rick’s dominance. Maybe he was sick of once again being passed by Rick. Whatever the reason, Zack dumped Rick heading into turn three.
As the race resumed, Rick lagged back to the point that it was obvious he was out to get revenge. In fact, even our track announcer, Bobby Chaffee stated over the loudspeaker that Rick’s truck probably wouldn’t work right until he found Zack. I tried to work with Rick’s spotter and was curtly (and conveniently I might add) informed that the team had lost radio communication. Rick finally managed to find Zack on the front stretch and dumped him with a hard left turn in front of a packed grandstand, but the real battle was just beginning.
As both trucks sat parked on pit road for repairs, Rick exited his truck and began walking toward the area where Zack’s was pitted just as Zack was heading back toward the track. As Zack whizzed by, Rick tossed a glove in the direction of Zack’s truck. Crew members from both teams came together toward the center of pit road and exchanged words and ultimately blows. There is no exact count of the number of people who were fighting, but one person did use a jack handle as a weapon before the fight was finally broken up in what can truly be described as the greatest fight in racing. (Note: I’ve included the Youtube video of both the race and the fight. Fast forward to around 7:55 if you want to skip straight to where things get interesting. The trucks to keep an eye on are the 96 of Rick Pollaro and the 51 of Zack Knowles).
Now, for this week’s comments, I would like you to share your favorite memory of a racetrack confrontation. It doesn’t matter what series, but I would prefer it to be one that you were able to witness in person as opposed to on television. Enjoy!