NYLON – Three-time NASCAR champion driver Tony Stewart is under investigation for the untimely death of a young driver on the racetrack at Canandaigua Motorsports Park on Saturday night.
A video taken from the stands and posted to a Facebook page clearly shows 20-year-old Kevin Ward Jr. of Port Leyden, N.Y. losing control of his racecar during the sprint race event, then climbing out and gesticulating angrily from the racetrack. Suddenly he is struck by another car, driven by 43 year-old Stewart. According to the BuffaloNews.com, the Ontario County Coroner reported that the cause of death was “blunt force trauma.”
WARNING GRAPHIC: Watch video from the crowd of the incident.
WFMY News says that Ontario County sheriff Philip Povero is not considering charges against Stewart on Monday, though many like Ward’s friend and fellow racer Tyler Graves think that Stewart should be sent to prison for murder, according to Syracuse.com News.
According to 13WHAM News, Ward’s parents were in the crowd and watched the incident occur and still need time to wrap their heads around what happened.
According to USA Today, the ramifications of Ward’s death could have enormous ripple effects for Stewart and the future of motorsports. Zak Brown, founder of Just Marketing, which has represented sponsors in NASCAR, IndyCar and Formula One, has called for an end to drivers walking onto the racetrack during races. There could be major consequences in the future for motorsports safety regulations, and sponsor decisions in the next few years.
WFMY News says that Stewart also caused a crash at the Canandaigua Motorsports track in July 2013 that involved 15 cars and fractured the spine of 19-year-old fellow racer Alysha Ruggles.
According to USA Today, Stewart said at first that his racing schedule would continue, saying it was “business as usual,” but he later backtracked and announced that he will not be racing at the Watkins Glen, N.Y. International later this month.
NYLON West is New York Local Online News, a section of the GeneseeSun.com dedicated to uniting communities outside of Livingston County.
PHOTO CAPTION: Kevin Ward Jr., 1994-2014. Photo from Facebook.com