Riley Herbst and Michael McDowell wrecked in Turn 3 at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday, and the contact brought out the first caution of the Freeway Insurance 500.
Was it an accident? Several people watching live saw payback, and the history between the two drivers gives that reading a clear starting point.
Jeff Gluck was among the first to say so. “Crash!!! Herbst and McDowell! Revenge??” Gluck wrote, in his post on social media. A follow-up came moments later. “Sure looked like Herbst did that on purpose,” Gluck wrote in a second post.
How the Herbst and McDowell Crash Changes the Phoenix Race
The race effects are important. Ryan Blaney, who started on the pole, had led every lap before the yellow, with Penske teammate Joey Logano second. Christopher Bell ran third, Josh Berry fourth, Chase Briscoe fifth and Denny Hamlin sixth, according to Dustin Long of USA Sports.
But Logano ended up winning the stage over his teammate.
The caution ended that clean green-flag run and froze the field with the stage unfinished. Teams can pit for tires, fuel and adjustments, and the order for the stage finish and the Stage 2 restart will reshuffle. Blaney and Logano surrender some of their cushion. Mid-pack cars get an opening. With only about 16 laps left in the stage, every pit call matters more than it did a few minutes earlier.
McDowell started eighth and Herbst 19th. Both will lose track position and are unlikely to score meaningful stage points.
Playoff points leader Kyle Larson may gain the most. He started 22nd and was running around 17th, roughly 20 seconds behind the leader, and risked missing stage points entirely. The yellow gives him a free stop and a restart without losing further ground.
This is the only caution so far, with the race at Lap 44 of 312. Radio audio, video review and driver comments have yet to surface.
What Happened Between Riley Herbst and Michael McDowell at Phoenix
The crash came on Lap 44 of the 60-lap opening stage, with about 16 laps left, according to Kelly Crandall’s report. The two had already made contact earlier, near Turn 2 and the backstretch, while racing for position. Herbst then bumped McDowell entering Turn 3.
Both cars hit hard. Herbst’s No. 35 23XI Racing Toyota and McDowell’s No. 71 Spire Motorsports car came out of the wreck damaged.
Other observers described the same sequence, with one saying Herbst torpedoed McDowell on corner entry and wrecked his own car in the process.
So why would Herbst do it? The likeliest answer is New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Aug. 23.
Late in that race, McDowell ran Herbst wide and got into his door off Turn 2, according to Racing News. More contact followed into Turn 3, where McDowell climbed over the left rear of Herbst’s car and sent him backward into the wall. Connor Zilisch then locked his brakes and hit Herbst’s stopped car.
Herbst’s team had told him over the radio to stand up for himself, according to Racing News. McDowell offered his own view afterward.
“He tried to door me down the straightaway. That was a bad idea,” McDowell said, as quoted by Racing News‘ Shane Walters.
The toll was physical. Herbst was diagnosed with a concussion and missed the next race at Daytona, where Harrison Burton drove the No. 35 to a 12th-place finish. Herbst confirmed the concussion sidelined him and returned at Darlington after being cleared.
What Just Happened in NASCAR Phoenix Race? Wild Crash Upends First Stage