Daniel Suárez’s pit crew faced a heart-stopping moment during the Food City 500 on Sunday, April 13, at Bristol Motor Speedway when a rogue tire careened toward them at high speed. The incident, captured in chilling detail, highlighted the razor-thin margins between routine stops and catastrophes in NASCAR’s high-pressure pit lane.
While Suárez finished a dismal 33rd, the near-miss, involving a loose wheel from John Hunter Nemechek’s car, overshadowed his on-track struggles. The harrowing scene reignited debates about pit road safety amid a season plagued by similar close calls.
Daniel Suárez’s Pit Crew Escapes Nightmare Tire Incident at Bristol
The chaos unfolded on the second stage during a caution when Nemechek’s left front wheel detached after a botched pit stop. The tire rocketed down pit road, clipping the rear of Suárez’s Chevrolet as crew members serviced the No. 99 car.
Fueler Milan Rudanovic and rear changer Seth Gajdorus leaped clear as the tire ricocheted off the fuel can Rudanovic was holding.
“After a race like today’s, this video puts everything into perspective!” Suárez posted on X, sharing footage of the incident.
“So glad none of my guys got hurt by that tire, especially Seth and Milan.”
Broadcaster Kevin Harvick echoed the relief.
“That was really, really lucky that tire did not hit that crew member,” he said during FS1’s coverage. The crew’s composure stood out, and they completed the stop seamlessly despite the chaos.
Pit Road Perils Mirror Suárez’s 2025 Season Struggles
The scare compounded a brutal day for Suárez, who received a penalty for equipment interference and finished 33rd, six laps down. It marked his fourth straight race without a top 10 and his worst result since a COTA DNF earlier this year.
Nemechek wasn’t spared repercussions, as NASCAR penalized him for the loose wheel. While he finished 21st, his team now faces potential fines or suspensions under NASCAR’s stringent pit safety protocols.
The incident underscored a troubling 2025 trend. Kyle Busch and Chase Briscoe suffered similar wheel-related issues in Las Vegas, with Busch crashing out entirely. Bristol’s concrete surface, known for chewing tires, ironically saw minimal wear on Sunday, shifting focus to human error over track conditions.
Suárez’s ordeal contrasted sharply with Kyle Larson’s dominance. The Hendrick Motorsports driver led 411 laps en route to his second Cup Series win this season, tying Martin Truex Jr.’s stage-win record.
“I just couldn’t navigate the traffic quite as good as he [Larson] could,” admitted runner-up Denny Hamlin.
As Suárez heads to Talladega — a track where he’s 0-for-16 on top-five finishes in his NASCAR Cup Series career — the near-disaster serves as a grim reminder of pit lane chaos.