Chase Elliott Wins Rain-Marred NASCAR Race at COTA

NASCAR's plan for racing in the rain proved incredibly inadequate in today's shortened race at the Circuit of the Americas.

The rains started early, but the series broke from the spirit of their rules on rain tires to allow teams to switch to slicks before the beginning of the race. Most drivers switched, only to switch back to rain tires within three laps as the weather picked up. Austin Cindric pulled away early on dry tires, showing incredible pace on the wrong tires for the conditions, but even he eventually had to pit. Drivers seemed to be able to handle the wet conditions on their own, and the race seemed like it might settle into a rhythm. Cindric faded on wet tires, allowing Penske Racing teammate Joey Logano to grab a stage win.

Then, over the next 15 laps, concerns about traction took a backseat to concerns about visibility. The first massive crash came just four laps into the second stage. It was a direct result of visibility issues on the track's long backstretch, where water was not draining properly and drivers could not see anything but the mist being kicked up by the cars in front of them. NASCAR on FOX cameras failed to capture most of the actual wreck, but their GPS tracking technology appears to show two separate instances of a driver checking up to avoid something in front of them, only to be hit from behind at full speed by a driver with no possible way of knowing that the car immediately in front of them had slowed. These cars do not have brake lights, so in low visibility conditions there is no real indication of a change of speed outside of a braking zone.

The next one was much worse.

Joe Gibbs Racing driver Martin Truex Jr. made a similar mistake after the re-start, catching Michael McDowell in a braking zone and damaging his own car. While he had slowed with damage, the cars behind him did not. No caution is thrown and Cole Custer flies into frame at full speed, hitting the significantly slowed Truex and throwing his car into the air. Both Truex and Custer were unhurt, but the danger of a car hitting another car with such a difference of speed is very real and readily apparent to all drivers involved.