What happened in NASCAR Late model stock racing between Landon Huffman and Annabeth Barnes Crum?

The NASCAR Late Model Stock race at Hickory Motor Speedway witnessed a dramatic battle between drivers Landon Huffman and Annabeth Barnes Crum on Saturday, May 20. The two late-model drivers ran into each other multiple times before wrecking out of the race.

Battling for the third position with three laps left in the second Twin 40 race, Barnes-Crum and Huffman came together on the backstretch as the latter got squeezed into the wall. Huffman in the #75 car retaliated in the next corner as he bumped into Barnes-Crum.

Moments after the incident took place, Annabeth Barnes Crum in the #12 car tried to crash into Huffman's car but failed to do so, spinning her car on the front stretch.

Frustrated by the incident Barnes-Crum drove around the track under caution to deliberately crash into Huffman. She succeeded in her second attempt as she wrecked Huffman's right rear destroying both cars in the process.

While the two drivers fought on track, an off-track scuffle between their spotters Robert Huffman and Jake Crum, delayed the race by half an hour. It was a violent altercation between the two spotters as Huffman's dad emerged from the fight with blood on his cheeks.

As the race ended, Landon Huffman was classified ninth and Annabeth Barnes Crum finished three places below in 12th position.

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3x Supercars champion Shane van Gisbergen confirms NASCAR debut

2022 Supercars champion Shane Van Gisbergen

Trackhouse Racing owner Justin Marks had previously hinted that the second entry for Project 91 Chevrolet this year. Three-time Supercars champion Shane van Gisbergen has confirmed his NASCAR debut at the Chicago street race, driving the #91 Chevrolet.

The two-time Bathurst winner expressed his excitement for his NASCAR debut as he said:

"To get an opportunity to be part of it and jump straight into the top level in America, it's unbelievable. Getting people from all around the world to come and try NASCAR, it's really cool. My family’s pretty excited, my father’s going to go over and watch."

The Supercars series is a tin-top racing series quite similar to stock car racing in America. Despite the similarities, NASCAR has its own quirks which the Kiwi driver has to adapt with.

Speaking about the differences Van Gisbergen said:

"You come in through the window, you don’t open the door. Obviously, you’re on the lefthand side of the car as well, but I’m used to that with rally and GT cars."

"It looks like a completely different way of racing - yellows, green-white-checkers, the way they run the pitstops," he added. "It's really different to anything I've done before. I really have to study and make sure I’m sharp when the time comes."

Gisbergen has plenty of time to prepare for his debut Cup Series race on July 2 on the streets of Chicago.