A bad week for Trevor Bayne ended with additional disappointment in Sunday’s GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway.
Four days after learning he would have to share driving duties in his No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing Ford with returning veteran Matt Kenseth, Bayne was the innocent victim of a wreck that began when Erik Jones washed up the track on the backstretch, turned across the nose of Jamie McMurray’s Chevrolet and knocked Bayne’s Ford into the outside wall.
The wreck sidelined the cars of Jones, Bayne and Kyle Larson.
“I believe I got down on the apron there a little bit, and after that it took off on me, and I got up into the 1 (McMurray), and that was kind of it from there,” Jones said. “I feel bad that I ruined everybody’s day that was around me and also for our day.
“These cars are just really challenging to drive now, and I think that’s why you’re not seeing a ton of racing early on. Unfortunately, I just pushed it to the limit a little too much and got up in an accident that took us out.”
With something extra to prove at Talladega, Bayne didn’t get the result he wanted.
“I went to the top to keep my run going, and coming off the corner (Turn 2) I didn’t see what happened,” Bayne said. “But watching the replay, it looks like the 20 (Jones) got turned and turned up into us.
“It stinks. You try to manage your highs and lows, though. We will move on and go to Dover next weekend. It’s frustrating because Talladega is one of the ones you know you can win at, and we wanted to do that today.”
Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.
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