Ryan Preece survives another airborne crash at Daytona: ‘I’m lucky to walk away’

For the second time in two years, Ryan Preece went airborne in a terrifying crash on the backstretch at Daytona International Speedway.

Preece, who was making his Daytona 500 debut with Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing, caught air after his No. 60 Ford was hit on the right side on Lap 197.

His car caught air and traveled solely on its rear wheels for a few seconds before then flipping over and landing on its roof. His Mustang then turned over while sliding up the banking and slammed into the outside wall. After the rear-end contact, the car flipped back on its wheels.

After walking away from the crash, Preece was checked and released from the care center.

“Yeah I don’t know if it’s the diffuser or what that makes these cars like a sheet of plywood when you walk out on a windy day,” Preece told Fox Sports. “But when the car took off like that, it got real quiet. All I thought about was my daughter, so I’m lucky to walk away, but we’re getting really close to somebody not being able to, so I’m very grateful.

“That sucks. I mean this thing was fast. It’s frustrating when you end your day like this.”

Preece was hospitalized overnight for observation after a crash in the Aug. 26, 2023 race at Daytona International Speedway. His No. 41 Ford skidded over the Le Mans Chicane curbing and went tumbling violently through the backstretch grass, rolling 10 times before coming to a stop.

NASCAR, which owns the Daytona track, conducted a safety review that resulted in paving the backstretch grass after last year’s Daytona 500 and making alterations to the previous curbing and concrete pads.

Ryan Preece posts message on social media after savage crash at Daytona

Ryan Preece, kept overnight at a hospital, posts on social media: “I’m coming back.”