NASCAR Driver Ryan Newman Reveals What He Told His Young Daughters Following His Daytona 500 Crash

Ryan Newman is continuing to open up about his terrifying Daytona 500 crash and how it not only impacted himself, but also his two young daughters, Brooklyn Sage and Ashlyn Olivia. Sitting down Wednesday morning for his first interview since that Feb. 17 crash, Newman revealed to the Today show hosts exactly what he told his daughters from his hospital bed.

Both Brooklyn and Ashlyn had been at the Daytona 500 track to watch their father race and witnessed the crash, which drew comparisons to the fatal 2001 crash involve Dale Earnhardt and the 2015 accident involving Austin Dillon.

In the lead during the final lap of the race, Newman’s No. 6 vehicle for Roush Fenway was bumped from behind by Ryan Blaney’s car, causing Newman’s car to spin out of control, go airborne, flip several times, and hit the wall before being hit on the driver’s side at full speed by driver Corey LaJoie’s vehicle. The vehicle then skidded down the track on its roof while on fire.

The scene was quickly covered with blinders as fans and viewers from home looked on horrified.

Newman was transported by stretcher to an ambulance, which then transported him to the Halifax Medical Center, where he was said to be in serious condition but not suffering from any life-threatening injuries.

Throughput his multi-day stay at the hospital, Newman’s wife, Krissie Newman, and their two daughters remained by his side, with both Brooklyn and Ashlyn appearing beside their father in his first post-crash photo.

The girls were also seen tightly clutching his hands as he walked out of the hospital less than 48 hours later.

Newman, who suffered a head injury in the crash, has not yet returned to racing, though he recently revealed that he is “looking forward to getting behind the wheel and battling for another race win in the Roush Fenway Ford.”