50 Years to tragedy: Remembering Indianapolis Motor Speedway's deadly history as NASCAR heads to the Brickyard 

The NASCAR Cup Series gears up to head to the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend for the Verizon 200 at The Brickyard. The 2.5-mile-long rectangle-shaped oval track, situated in the aptly named town of Speedway, Indiana, is one of the most recognizable circuits in the world. Home to iconic races such as the Indy 500 and the former F1 US Grand Prix, The Brickyard has a steeped history in motor racing.

Built and opened in 1909, the track has endured more than a century's worth of drivers eyeing the big prize. Finishing first is the only goal for the men and women who decide to take on the third oldest permanent automobile racing track in the world. With the fastest stock cars planning to race on the track this Sunday, it only seems befitting to re-visit what has been one of the darkest chapters in the track's history.

49 years after the 1973 Indy 500 took place at The Brickyard, it is considered one of the grimmest weekends in motorsport to date. The 57th 500 Mile International Sweepstakes saw the demise of three personnel at the track, two drivers and one pit crew member. The weekend was delayed due to persistent rains over three days, and ultimately the winner was announced after only 332 of the 500 total miles were run. STP, a prominent sponsor that year, saw its CEO Andy Granatelli recall the year as 'empty' and said:

“To me, it was a horrible year, terrible, empty.”

The first incident took place on pole day (qualifying) of the race on May 12th, when driver Art Pollard crashed 37 minutes into the session in front of the record expecting to see the 200mph barrier broken. Pollard went wide into Turn 1, hitting the wall, and flipping over into a ball of flame. He was pronounced dead at the hospital an hour after the incident.

David Walther crashed during the race's start on Monday, May 28th, after Sunday's start was delayed due to persistent rain. The incident involved multiple cars. Walther suffered engine issues which caused him to slow down as the rest of the cars accelerated as he touched wheels with Jerry Grant, catapulting his car into the catch fencing, damaging its nose, and rupturing the fuel tanks. The burning fuel engulfed several cars, including several spectators. The race was red flagged.

The subsequent start of the race a day after the Walther incident saw driver David "Swede" Savage crash under the green flag when the Eagle-Offenhauser car twitched across the race track. Savage hit the inside wall of the track on the main straight, with flames engulfing his car. As a result of the impact, the 26-year-old was thrown across the track and laid on the tarmac in a pool of flames, alive. He was taken to the hospital where he succumbed to his injuries 33 days later.

Johnny Rutherford, who qualified on pole for the race, recalled his feelings and said:

“After the second day, you started thinking: ‘Who’s next?’”

Armando Teran, a crew member, ran to Savage's help when the former crashed. Teran was crossing the pit lane when he was hit by a safety truck going to attend to Savage, leading to his death. The never-ending weather issues, accidents, and overall gloomy mood led to the race being ended early. Gordon Johncock, driving for Gratanelli's team, was declared the winner.

Fortunately, with modern safety practices and developments almost fifty years from the weekend, NASCAR fans can expect a great race at The Brickyard this Sunday with no such horrors from the past.

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Safety practices in modern NASCAR stock car racing

The death of 7-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Dale Earnhardt Sr. was a wake-up call for the sport toward safety. The tragic death of Earnhardt Sr. in 2001 at Daytona Motor Speedway was caused by his car making contact with the outside retaining wall at the Superspeedway, which caused his unsupported neck to experience whiplash, causing a basilar skull fracture. The injury was the cause of instant death for the famous driver.

Whiplash is a force that acts on the driver's neck when the body comes to a sudden stop, causing fractures at the base of the skull, also known as basilar skull fracture. Ironically, Dale Earnhardt Sr. was one of the drivers who wasn't particularly happy with the introduction of the HANS device, calling it a 'moose' around his neck.

Since then, NASCAR has introduced various measures to protect lives at the race track. Mandating the HANS device, the introducing of SAFER barriers across tracks, and the opening of the NASCAR Research and Development Center in Concord, North Carolina work towards the singular goal of making the sport a safer place.

The inclusion of an Incident Data Recorder, which records crucial parameters in the case of an impact, is placed inside an overall safer racecar with better roll cages and impact structures. NASCAR also teamed up with American Medical Response (AMR) in 2017 to increase the track-side team's medical capabilities.

Watch NASCAR go live from Indianapolis Motor Speedway this Sunday for the Verizon 200 at 2:30 pm ET.