Pit This Time may earn a commission when you buy through links on this page. It never affects our coverage. Learn more.
Riley Herbst avoided surgery on the forearm he hurt in last week’s crash at Talladega Superspeedway, and he has been medically cleared to race in Sunday’s Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway.
Harrison Burton will be at the track as a backup in case Herbst cannot finish the race in the No. 35 23XI Racing Toyota, Auto Racing Daily reported.
Herbst: ‘I got lucky’
Herbst said he tore part of a ligament in his left forearm, but not the part that would have needed surgery. A tear in the other part would have meant a 12-week recovery and ended his season.
“We did around 115 laps today, plus two for qualifying. I’m stiff, sore and definitely feeling it. It’s all going to be about pain mitigation,” Herbst said Saturday. “I’ve talked to a bunch of hand surgeons across the country, and they all have the same conclusion.”
“I got lucky in that sense. I got lucky in every sense to walk away from that,” he said.
https://x.com/bobpockrass/status/2116599924129480800
‘Two and a half seconds looking at the wall’
Herbst’s car was collected in the 15-car crash on Lap 183, the one in which Joey Logano flipped. After the first hit, his car crossed the track toward the inside wall. He said neither the brakes nor the transmission worked, so he could not slow down.
“That’s how the first hit was. I didn’t even know it had happened by the time it happened,” Herbst said. “But with the second one, I think I calculated two and a half seconds looking at the wall and staring at it. That’s the most uneventful, worst part of the whole ordeal.”
The car
NASCAR took Herbst’s car to its Research and Development Center after the race, as Pit This Time reported. Asked what he thought after seeing it, Herbst said the cockpit was “rough” but that the safety equipment worked.
“I haven’t been told not to comment on it, but I’m just going to comment on it. It doesn’t look appealing. I don’t really want to get in trouble or get anybody in trouble, but visually, it’s rough inside the cockpit. I think everything did its job,” Herbst said.
NASCAR’s Mike Forde said this week that officials could have reached Herbst sooner after the crash, as Pit This Time reported.
Burton subbed for him before
Herbst missed the August race at Daytona with a concussion from a crash at New Hampshire, and Burton drove the No. 35 in his place. Team co-owner Denny Hamlin said earlier this week that Herbst’s wrist was “not great,” as Pit This Time reported.
Herbst qualified 27th for Sunday’s race. He will move to Legacy Motor Club in 2027.
The Xfinity 500 starts at 2 p.m. ET Sunday, November 1, on NBC.
Pit This Time wishes Riley Herbst a full and speedy recovery.
Leave a Reply