NHRA Funny Cars Collide; Racers Dale Creasy, Dave Richards Okay, Weekend Done

Funny Car owner-drivers Dale Creasy and Dave Richards were shaken but uninjured Friday after they collided during the opening qualifying session of the Texas FallNationals at Texas Motorplex in Ennis, Tex.

Something evidently broke in Creasy’s Tek Pak Dodge Charger at about half-track on the 1,000-foot Ennis, Texas, course. He already was off the throttle when his car shot to the right across the center line in front of Richards’s Versatran Ford. The left front of Richards’ car struck the right rear of Creasy’s, sending them both across the track into the left wall.

Both drivers exited their cars on their own power and were checked out by trackside medical personnel.

Richards, clearly unnerved by the incident, said immediately afterward, “I’m all right. I’m just a little shook up. I’ve got a few bruises. That was a scary deal.”

CLICK HERE TO SEE OFFICIAL NHRA VIDEO OF THE INCIDENT

Later he told Competition Plus, "We're a hundred percent done. The car's destroyed. We don't have a back-up car. And honestly, the way I'm feeling now, as sore as I am, I don't know if I'd want to get in the car and feel comfortable just now. Like I said, when you first get out, I felt a 100-percent fine, but I can feel [it]—I know I'm going to be a hurting dog tomorrow. I’m getting sore by the minute."