Powered by On3

Nick Sanchez gets bloodied during postrace fight at Talladega

JHby:Jonathan Howard09/30/23

Jondean25

Nick Sanchez Truck Series
Mandatory Credit: Matthew O'Haren-USA TODAY Sports

After the race at Talladega, Craftsman Truck Series rookie Nick Sanchez got into a fight that left him bloodied on Saturday. Sanchez was involved in a late-race wreck with Matt Crafton and somewhere along the way, the NASCAR drivers got into it with one another.

Frontstretch was there in the garage area when the fight broke out. Nick Sanchez was being held back by someone else. When the video started, Sanchez had blood all over his face and was yelling out at whoever he was scrapping with.

One would assume he fought Matt Crafton. However, the video doesn’t clearly show who was involved in the altercation.

In a follow-up after being released from the care center, Nick Sanchez explained the situation. In the interview, it is Crafton who is the topic of discussion. That should let us know exactly who this fight was between.

So, Sanchez the rookie and Crafton the three-time champion – quite a scrap.

Nick Sanchez is one of the bright stars of the Truck Series. He is very young and has a lot to learn. This moment might backfire on him. While Sanchez is expected to return for 2024 in the Kyle Busch Motorsports system – that changes with the Spire purchase. Spire plans on running three trucks and likely won’t dump Sanchez.

However, moving forward in his career, is he going to be the driver that fights?

Nick Sanchez got sucker punched by Matt Crafton

According to Nick Sanchez, he didn’t start the issue with Matt Crafton. By the way he tells it, he was tapped on the shoulder, turned around and then got sucker punched. Crafton is a veteran of the sport, and that is surprising to hear.

Talladega end of the season, emotions can boil over and people can react irrationally. This all looked like a heated rookie testing out a wiley veteran, but that is the opposite of what went on here. A truly bizarre turn of events after this superspeedway race.

NASCAR fights are often talked about, even though they are rare. This one looks like it was a fight for the books. Nick Sanchez and his marketing team need to get those images of his bloody face on a t-shirt as soon as they can.