- NASCAR driver Ryan Newman is awake and has spoken to members of his family after suffering a horrific crash during Monday night's Daytona 500.
- The 42-year-old spun out in the final lap and collided with the wall, before his car flipped into the air, landed on its roof, and set alight.
- "Ryan Newman remains under the care of doctors at Halifax Medical Centre in Daytona Beach, Florida," a team statement said. "He is awake and speaking with family and doctors."
- Denny Hamlin, who won the race, has apologized for his controversial "burn out" celebration, claiming he was unaware of the severity of Newman's crash.
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NASCAR driver Ryan Newman is awake and has spoken to members of his family after suffering a horrific crash during Monday night's Daytona 500, his team said.
In a statement released Tuesday night, Newman's team Roush Fenway said: "Ryan Newman remains under the care of doctors at Halifax Medical Centre in Daytona Beach, Florida. He is awake and speaking with family and doctors."
On the final lap of the Daytona 500 Monday evening, Newman - who was leading the race - was spun out, hitting the wall hard and then flipping into the air before his car caught fire.
After initial fears about his safety, it was confirmed that Newman suffered serious but not life threatening injuries.
"Ryan and his family have expressed their appreciation for concern and heartfelt messages from across the country. They are grateful for the unwavering support of the NASCAR community and beyond," Roush Fenway's statement concluded.
The race on Monday was won by Denny Hamlin, who scooped his second consecutive Daytona 500.
The 39-year-old Joe Gibbs Racing driver celebrated victory by performing a burnout on the grass in front of the stands, after which he apologized, saying he had already disconnected his radio and hence was unaware of the severity of Newman's crash.
"First a foremost I want to give well wishes and prayers to @RyanJNewman," Hamlin said on Twitter. "I had absolutely NO IDEA of the severity of the crash until I got to victory lane. There's very little communication after the finish and I had already unhooked my radio. It's not anyone's fault."
Chris Lambert, Hamlin's spotter, however, insisted he should take the blame for the inappropriate celebration for not communicating properly about the incident.
"For those hammering @dennyhamlin for his donuts,put the blame on me if [you] must blame anyone," he tweeted. "I told him to slow down on backstretch [and] give the emergency staff time to roll, that we had a bad wreck. I saw DH get in line for lug nut check & assumed he was going straight to [Victory Lane]."
A second tweet added: "I then made a beeline down to Jason Jarrett to check on the status of Ryan. I did not communicate any more info to DH after that, because I was only concerned with finding out info on Ryan.
"That is 100% on me, and I'M EXTREMELY SORRY."
Read more:
Photos show how Ryan Newman's devastating, fiery 190 mph crash at the Daytona 500 unfolded
Update on Ryan Newman: pic.twitter.com/TdJHDZ3O7O
- Roush Fenway (@roushfenway) February 18, 2020First a foremost I want to give well wishes and prayers to @RyanJNewman. I had absolutely NO IDEA of the severity of the crash until I got to victory lane. There's very little communication after the finish and i had already unhooked my radio. It's not anyone's fault. 🙏Rocket
- Denny Hamlin (@dennyhamlin) February 18, 2020