The last time I saw Tommy was in 2003 at the first St. Pete Grand Prix. I yelled out "Tommy!" and he looked up at me lol. He had a noticible limp then.
Almost the same thing that happened to JD McDuffie in the same corner a few weeks later... He also lost a wheel... Guess something struck JD's head, that's what killed him (RIP JD)... Glad it didn't happen here.
Man, I forgot how ACUTE of an angle he struck and absolutely no tire barrier to speak of. Lucky man to still be with us today, let alone even competitively drive again and dominate Trans-Am racing.
@MrSockery Yeah, he drove for Dan Gurney for quite a while, even ran CART in the first years of Gurney's effort in the series in the 90s. I believe he may have been an IMSA Camel GT champ sometime in the early 90s and ran IROC the next year.
Tommy works for AMG Mercedes now incase any of you were wondering, I talked to him for a while when I was up at Pebble Beach, he has some awesome stories and he's super modest too, like he wasn't the one to bring up he used to be a pro racing driver, one of his friends told me
I was at that corner when it happened. I was amazed that he survived it! Very scarey crash. That's why they put the chicane in on the back straight for '92. As much as safety is important, I wish they hadn't.
@jpbuczala I agree, but then again from the exit of turn 2 to the entrance to turn 5 is almost a mile, and by the 90's cars were accelerating faster than they were in the 70's and 80's. The GTP's of this era could easily reach 200mph on that section when just 5 to 10 years earlier they may only reach 140 to 150.
Its unfortunate that Tommy Kendall is 6'6. he was a great GT and GTP driver and would have been a GREAT indycar driver but was too tall for them. That Intrepid GTP made LOADS of downforce!!! Its an incredible car, unfortunately powered by a chevy
Don't forget he Won 11 consecutive races, breaking Mark Donohues nearly 30 year old record of 8 consecutive wins. This streak is unofficially termed the longest in any form of auto-racing worldwide.
Just saw Tommy today. He's still a great guy and doing fine. He has a little limp but is doing great. He sure drove the hell out of our car this weekend as a special guest driver.
I went to High School with Tommy and he broke near every bone in his body with this crash. When he recovered they had to strap his leg in and rig a slider under the gas peddle for future races.
I remember watching this race, and the one that killed JD McDuffie. As a result they added the "bus stop" chicane. I loved watching those old IMSA race; GTP, GTO, GTU. Some great races. Loved the Geoff Brabham Nissan. What a dominator it was.
I think Tom had already passed braking zone for turn 5. With his speed at a reduced level, the hit was likely to be less serious. JD, on the other hand, did NOT yet reach the braking zone for that corner, and therefore had little chance of scrubbing off enough speed.
It was these two crashes that led to the Inner Loop chicane being installed before turn 5 the following year.
These cars were called "Grand Touring Prototype" or just GTP's. They were sanctioned by the "International Motor Sports Assocation" or IMSA. They ran from the early 1980" until the mid 1990"s
Thank you for the info. My family thinks I am morbid for looking at these crashes, along with the fatal's, but I can't control myself, Its really true you can't look away.
I was at that race......when I was 11 years old with my family.....and actually I was down the track and felt the bang in my chest from the collision nearly a football feild away....still gave me a chill watching the video again many years past
I saw him at Road America in 95 when he was doing Trans Am and the poor guy was hobbling out of his trailer. Nice guy though. Meet him on the trail on the back straight or Moraine Sweep during CART qualifying.
It stinks Kendall got in this wreck; he did really well in the NASCAR race at Sears Point that year and would've been strong in the NASCAR race at the Glen that year as well.
According to the book that I own, Prototypes: The History of the IMSA GTP Series, had it not been for the carbon composite chassis, that crash would had killed him
I knew Kendall was tall but I didn't realise he was as tall as 6' 6" - that really does disdvatage a race driver in many classes. An open wheeler would virtualy have to be scratch built for him. This was a horrible accident and sports cars were a bit behind the main open wheeler class cars in safety. I think that is his left leg you see flail around after the car rebounds off the wall.
....and they're still doing their lap-by-lap analysis on F1WC -i,e Grand Prix- races on SPEED,alongside Steve Matchett and roving pit reporter Peter Windsor; they even cover the race hi-lites on "Formula 1 Debrief",also on SPEED,so that's a souning "YES,they're still in business"
Tommy was still one of the best road racers in the Trans Am series a few years later for Jack Roush. I remember seeing an interview probably 5 years after this accident where Tommy spoke about the injuries to his legs affected his driving and he did not feel like he was as an effective driver as before the injuries. I wonder where his career would have ended up if not for this accident...
I can tell you exactly where he would have ended up. Tommy wanted into CART really bad and came close, even with his foot injury. The problem was his height. They would have had to do some fancy modifications to make it so he could get out of the car fast enough for the rules. The other series he was looking at was DTM.
@MOliscous Le Mans was an obvious option... I mean, when you are in a championship like IMSA, which been replace by ALMS and Grand-am nowadays, it is just an option that is right at the door.
After his horrific wreck at the Glen, I remember watching an IMSA race on tv and Kendall was showing some straps or braces for his leg for the gas and brake pedals. Yeah, he had to drive differently for the rest of his racing career.
IIRC the damage to his legs was so severe that he can't bend his ankles very well to push the pedals, so he has to use his leg and knees more to push the pedals. That would absolutely cause you to drive differently, you basically have to train your nerves and muscles totally different than they were before. Think of it like having to use your elbows instead of your wrists to use your hands.
same year, same corner, same cause as J. D. McDuffie
toma23rulz 3 months ago
Mercedes amg academy
brentsflyingv 3 months ago
I just took a lap with Tommy on 12-2-2011 at laguna seca. I am not worthy. My fastest is his slow. All I can say is mommy.
brentsflyingv 3 months ago
As Hobbs would say "Kablamo"!
SlamDuncDrummer 5 months ago in playlist Non-Fatal Racing Crashes
If anyone is intrested Tommy was on Adam Carolla's Car Cast Podcast in late Aug.
Bwana3015 7 months ago
@Bwana3015 just listened too it!
AcXr50 6 months ago
I know it's offtopic, but who the hell is Juan Fangio II ????
2:46
hjjubnh 8 months ago
@hjjubnh Probably the son of the F1 legend Juan Manuel Fangio. Or at least a descendant of him.
playingbass45 7 months ago
@hjjubnh He's Juan Manuel Fangio's nephew.
PatPatrick01 1 month ago
i know you skatingghost what injuries did he get
cypro003 11 months ago
my uncle
xXSkatingGhostXx 11 months ago
The last time I saw Tommy was in 2003 at the first St. Pete Grand Prix. I yelled out "Tommy!" and he looked up at me lol. He had a noticible limp then.
BadErnest 11 months ago
Video of this wreck gives me phantom leg pains whenever I see it... damn.
Makes his Trans-Am dominance of the mid-to-late 90's even more impressive, if he never really recovered 100%!
kornnut43 1 year ago
Almost the same thing that happened to JD McDuffie in the same corner a few weeks later... He also lost a wheel... Guess something struck JD's head, that's what killed him (RIP JD)... Glad it didn't happen here.
PhilipTheBigOne 1 year ago
Man, I forgot how ACUTE of an angle he struck and absolutely no tire barrier to speak of. Lucky man to still be with us today, let alone even competitively drive again and dominate Trans-Am racing.
jonnyspa27 1 year ago
There was a Juan Fangio II?!
MrSockery 1 year ago
@MrSockery There IS, he is not dead.
Myrvold 1 year ago
@MrSockery Yeah, he drove for Dan Gurney for quite a while, even ran CART in the first years of Gurney's effort in the series in the 90s. I believe he may have been an IMSA Camel GT champ sometime in the early 90s and ran IROC the next year.
JoeytheHDK 1 year ago
Tommy works for AMG Mercedes now incase any of you were wondering, I talked to him for a while when I was up at Pebble Beach, he has some awesome stories and he's super modest too, like he wasn't the one to bring up he used to be a pro racing driver, one of his friends told me
carfreak805 1 year ago
Sometimes you just cant tell how fast these fuckers are going untill they crash!
JJMetalMad999 1 year ago
Wasn't this the crash they talked about when JD McDuffy fataly crashed in that corner?
fastfortress 1 year ago
@fastfortress Yes McDuffie's crash was a few weeks after Kendall's
bagonmyhip 1 year ago
@bagonmyhip After both serious accidents at turn 5. The track operator put in the bus stop to slow the cars down.
DC322 1 year ago
I saw Tommy at RA in 95, hobbling out of his trailer before the trans am race.
PeterMayer 1 year ago
Is it just me, or can you really see Kendall's legs at 0:27 ?
btw, heavy impact, lucky to be alive!
goodwilltubing 2 years ago
I was at that corner when it happened. I was amazed that he survived it! Very scarey crash. That's why they put the chicane in on the back straight for '92. As much as safety is important, I wish they hadn't.
jpbuczala 2 years ago
@jpbuczala I agree, but then again from the exit of turn 2 to the entrance to turn 5 is almost a mile, and by the 90's cars were accelerating faster than they were in the 70's and 80's. The GTP's of this era could easily reach 200mph on that section when just 5 to 10 years earlier they may only reach 140 to 150.
kallsop 1 year ago
Its unfortunate that Tommy Kendall is 6'6. he was a great GT and GTP driver and would have been a GREAT indycar driver but was too tall for them. That Intrepid GTP made LOADS of downforce!!! Its an incredible car, unfortunately powered by a chevy
supersevenn 2 years ago
Don't forget he Won 11 consecutive races, breaking Mark Donohues nearly 30 year old record of 8 consecutive wins. This streak is unofficially termed the longest in any form of auto-racing worldwide.
nikkowinter 2 years ago
Just saw Tommy today. He's still a great guy and doing fine. He has a little limp but is doing great. He sure drove the hell out of our car this weekend as a special guest driver.
cptdraco13 2 years ago
Was that the SLS demo weekend and Laguna Seca?
nikkowinter 2 years ago
I went to High School with Tommy and he broke near every bone in his body with this crash. When he recovered they had to strap his leg in and rig a slider under the gas peddle for future races.
nikkowinter 2 years ago
I remember watching this race, and the one that killed JD McDuffie. As a result they added the "bus stop" chicane. I loved watching those old IMSA race; GTP, GTO, GTU. Some great races. Loved the Geoff Brabham Nissan. What a dominator it was.
rossbmarvin3rd 2 years ago
Yes indeed its too bad that IMSA went away. It was my favorite sanction to watch in those days. Brabham was indeed a dominator.
SwanKong11 2 years ago
I think Tom had already passed braking zone for turn 5. With his speed at a reduced level, the hit was likely to be less serious. JD, on the other hand, did NOT yet reach the braking zone for that corner, and therefore had little chance of scrubbing off enough speed.
It was these two crashes that led to the Inner Loop chicane being installed before turn 5 the following year.
playingbass45 2 years ago
What type of race cars are these?
copperhead29 2 years ago
These cars were called "Grand Touring Prototype" or just GTP's. They were sanctioned by the "International Motor Sports Assocation" or IMSA. They ran from the early 1980" until the mid 1990"s
m12shooter 2 years ago
Thank you for the info. My family thinks I am morbid for looking at these crashes, along with the fatal's, but I can't control myself, Its really true you can't look away.
Omnibot87 2 years ago
I hate that this moment was the start of the end for the Chevy team.
deezomaxima 2 years ago
I was at that race......when I was 11 years old with my family.....and actually I was down the track and felt the bang in my chest from the collision nearly a football feild away....still gave me a chill watching the video again many years past
mrexon 2 years ago
I saw him at Road America in 95 when he was doing Trans Am and the poor guy was hobbling out of his trailer. Nice guy though. Meet him on the trail on the back straight or Moraine Sweep during CART qualifying.
PeterMayer 2 years ago 2
It stinks Kendall got in this wreck; he did really well in the NASCAR race at Sears Point that year and would've been strong in the NASCAR race at the Glen that year as well.
nadeau1064 3 years ago 2
According to the book that I own, Prototypes: The History of the IMSA GTP Series, had it not been for the carbon composite chassis, that crash would had killed him
WLLRNNN 3 years ago
I knew Kendall was tall but I didn't realise he was as tall as 6' 6" - that really does disdvatage a race driver in many classes. An open wheeler would virtualy have to be scratch built for him. This was a horrible accident and sports cars were a bit behind the main open wheeler class cars in safety. I think that is his left leg you see flail around after the car rebounds off the wall.
gcmc2 3 years ago
I had no idea Bob Varsha and David Hobbs had been announcing together for so long.
ballsthatclank 3 years ago 20
....and they're still doing their lap-by-lap analysis on F1WC -i,e Grand Prix- races on SPEED,alongside Steve Matchett and roving pit reporter Peter Windsor; they even cover the race hi-lites on "Formula 1 Debrief",also on SPEED,so that's a souning "YES,they're still in business"
ma55aracin9 2 years ago
@ballsthatclank Bob Varsha and David Hobbs are some of the BEST in the business!
maynardwaltrip 1 year ago 2
Tommy is tough. Based on modern day crash data, that was probably a 75G shunt into the tires.
You see him doing the smiley car reviews and you forget he was in the real job.
crowdedHereEh 3 years ago
wow terrible impact.
e521soediv 3 years ago 2
Tommy was still one of the best road racers in the Trans Am series a few years later for Jack Roush. I remember seeing an interview probably 5 years after this accident where Tommy spoke about the injuries to his legs affected his driving and he did not feel like he was as an effective driver as before the injuries. I wonder where his career would have ended up if not for this accident...
ck7813 3 years ago
I can tell you exactly where he would have ended up. Tommy wanted into CART really bad and came close, even with his foot injury. The problem was his height. They would have had to do some fancy modifications to make it so he could get out of the car fast enough for the rules. The other series he was looking at was DTM.
MOliscous 3 years ago
@MOliscous Le Mans was an obvious option... I mean, when you are in a championship like IMSA, which been replace by ALMS and Grand-am nowadays, it is just an option that is right at the door.
therrydicule 1 year ago
After his horrific wreck at the Glen, I remember watching an IMSA race on tv and Kendall was showing some straps or braces for his leg for the gas and brake pedals. Yeah, he had to drive differently for the rest of his racing career.
DC322 3 years ago
IIRC the damage to his legs was so severe that he can't bend his ankles very well to push the pedals, so he has to use his leg and knees more to push the pedals. That would absolutely cause you to drive differently, you basically have to train your nerves and muscles totally different than they were before. Think of it like having to use your elbows instead of your wrists to use your hands.
azbobbybooshay10 3 years ago
I've been looking for this for 15 years, thanks!
jaw5083 4 years ago 5
thanx for posting...glad to see he was more fortunate than J.D. McDuffie...R.I.P man
wawwwaaa 4 years ago
This crash, as well as J.D. McDuffie's fatal crash there that same year brought the introduction of the 'bus stop' chicane.
tompow 4 years ago 3