
On just the third lap of the 367-lap end-cap to the regular NASCAR Cup season, Martin Truex Jr. was racing to the inside of William Byron for the sixth position. He lost control, snapped back up the track, and slammed into Ryan Blaney in a shocking crash. Both cars were unable to continue. Despite sounding distressed on the radio, Blaney was checked and released from the infield care center.
Truex, the 2017 NASCAR Cup Series champion, immediately got on the radio to take the blame: "I'm an idiot," he said. He had a comfortable 58-point margin entering the race, but it was nearly erased in that single moment.