PDRA Pro Nitrous heavy hitter Jay Cox was uninjured in a high-speed accident during eliminations for the North-South Shootout at the Maryland International Raceway on Sunday when he lost control of his 1969 Chevrolet Camaro and made heavy contact with the concrete retaining barrier.
Cox, from Smithfield, North Carolina, was racing opposite of Steve Jackson in a pair of bright orange first-generation Camaros in the second round of eliminations when the accident occurred. Cox, the No. 6 qualifier, had defeated John Camp in the opening stanza, setting up the matchup with the former class champion. Cox’s machine can be seen hazing the right rear tire at the 330-foot mark, causing the left rear to pitch the car abruptly into the wall.
Fortunately, the guardrail did it’s job in retaining the car, which was already traveling at speeds nearing 150 mph as it took a glancing blow, shedding the carbon fiber front end, the right front wheel, and various other part and pieces. Cox was unhurt, but the same certainly can’t be said for his Rick Jones Race Cars-built Camaro, which will require some extensive TLC before the series returns to action in mid-August.
The track’s safety response deserves some recognition for its effort in the melee of Cox’s accident, as the first official on the scene can already be seen in this clip from TheRacingVids rolling in the shutdown area within four seconds of the impact and well before the car came to a stop.