NASCAR driver Ryan Preece, whose car rolled about a dozen times during a terrifying crash at Daytona International Speedway, was on his way home about 12 hours later after being discharged from a hospital Sunday.
Stewart-Haas Racing said Preece was headed back to North Carolina after getting clearance from doctors at Halifax Health Medical Center. The team earlier said Preece was “awake, alert and mobile” and “had been communicating with family and friends.”
Preece, 32, was able to climb out of his mangled No. 41 Ford on Saturday night with help before emergency workers put him on a gurney and into an ambulance. He initially went to the track’s infield care center before being transported to Halifax Health for overnight observation.
Preece and SHR teammate Chase Briscoe made contact coming out of Turn 4, and Preece’s car turned hard left and then went into an uncontrollable barrel roll as soon as it slid from the asphalt to the infield grass. The car came to a halt on all four tires, with some minor damage to the roll cage.
Preece being able to climb out with help was a testament to NASCAR’s Next Gen car, which is considered the safest iteration in its 75-year history.