A fight broke out between drivers at a late model stock car qualifying race for the Martinsville 300. One of the drivers, Andrew Grady, apparently thought he was wrecked by his competitor, Davey Callihan. That’s when the trouble really started, leading to Grady punching Callihan while Callihan was still suited up and strapped into his car.
According to Road & Track, Grady decided to go and have a word with Callihan and voice his… let’s say, displeasure. Well, the words didn’t last too long, and it quickly turned to Grady punching Callihan while the latter driver was still strapped into his car. He then started to kick the car for good measure, of course. That’s when he was physically carried away by a big fella. I can’t imagine punching someone wearing a helmet would do much, but hey, I’m not a NASCAR driver.
Watch the whole thing unfold here:
But wait, folks! There’s more. Grady alleges that Callihan flipped him off when he went over to his car. Callihan told a reporter that is when he chose to “Mike Tyson his head.” Again… Callihan was wearing a helmet, so I’m not sure what sort of Mike Tyson-ing could have really happened. At least his ears are still intact.
Grady later told Racing America’s Matt Weaver that he felt he and another competitor had been wrecked intentionally by Callihan, who was in position to transfer into the race itself after the crash.
…He continues to suggest that Callihan has “no business running a late model, much less a lawn mower.”
In response, Callihan notes that his move on track was for a transfer spot into the feature race at Martinsville adding that “you can’t give an inch for the transfer spot when there’s 95 cars and I had to take it.”
Callihan, as you can imagine, denies flipping off Grady, according to R&T. He ended up finishing 22nd in the 200 lap race. Grady was eliminated.