Aric Almirola sat trapped in his car for nearly 15 minutes following a wreck that was started when Joey Logano made contact with Danica Patrick at Kansas. Emergency personnel eventually cut the roof off the No. 43 car to remove Almirola from the mangled machine.When Almirola was finally stripped from his car, he was taken to an ambulance on a stretcher and over to the infield care center. He was then airlifted from the track to the University of Kansas hospital for further evaluation.It was discovered on Sunday that Almirola suffered a compression fracture to his T5 vertebra, located in the middle of his back. Almirola is mobile and was released from the hospital on Sunday morning.
Big crash! Heavy damage for @joeylogano, @DanicaPatrick and @aric_almirola.#NASCARonFS1 @kansasspeedway https://t.co/59gb2LCSH0 FOX SPORTS: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) May 14, 2017
“Aric Almirola, driver of the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford, has been released from a local Kansas hospital and will fly back to his home in Mooresville, N.C. today,” Richard Petty Motorsports said in a statement. “Almirola suffered a compression fracture to his T5 Vertebra after a multi-car accident at Kansas Speedway Saturday night. Almirola is mobile and will follow-up with his doctors in Charlotte. Richard Petty Motorsports will provide further updates when available.”The wreck all started when Logano reportedly had a brake rotor blow, sending him down into Patrick’s rear quarter panel. With Patrick and Logano log jammed at the top of the track, Almirola had nowhere to go and slammed into both cars.”Yeah, I’m okay,” Logano said. “Just saying a lot of prayers for Aric [Almirola] right now. A lot of us took a hard hit. Something broke on my car, I don’t know what it was. I noticed it as I was trying to go in. I tried to back it off but you’re going 215 (mph) and it’s hard to check up. The car just took a bit step sideways into the corner and I hooked Danica (Patrick).”I just hope everyone is okay. I hope Aric is alright. That’s the last thing you want to see, a big hit like that for anyone. It’s unfortunate for everyone. Let’s hope that Aric is alright.”While Patrick and Logano quickly checked out of the infield care center following the wreck, the same could not be said for Almirola. But that didn’t keep Patrick from focusing on, well, mostly herself despite the terrifying sight of Almirola being stripped from a car after the fiery collision.”Unfortunately there were two of us that got collected and while I am okay, one of these times one if these really big accidents someone is not going to be okay,” Patrick said. “Aric (Almirola) is not okay and his car looked the best of everybody. You never know when it is going to be the wrong hit. I have a team that works hard and put another car on the track and I hope we are saving up for a really good run of good luck.”Patrick may be concerned with her own rash of bad luck, but Richard Petty Motorsports could be in a tough spot if Almirola misses any time off the track. With two races in Charlotte coming up and the team already reduced to a single-car program, the next several weeks could be trying for Almirola and RPM as a whole.
