{"id":101867,"date":"2025-08-03T20:18:28","date_gmt":"2025-08-03T20:18:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/drag-racing\/uncategorized\/i-didnt-know-i-was-in-a-crash-shawn-reed-reflects-on-top-fuel-wreck-recovery-unexpected-gift-from-tony-stewart\/"},"modified":"2025-08-03T20:18:28","modified_gmt":"2025-08-03T20:18:28","slug":"i-didnt-know-i-was-in-a-crash-shawn-reed-reflects-on-top-fuel-wreck-recovery-unexpected-gift-from-tony-stewart","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/drag-racing\/uncategorized\/i-didnt-know-i-was-in-a-crash-shawn-reed-reflects-on-top-fuel-wreck-recovery-unexpected-gift-from-tony-stewart\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cI Didn\u2019t Know I Was in a Crash\u201d: Shawn Reed Reflects on Top Fuel Wreck, Recovery & Unexpected Gift from Tony Stewart"},"content":{"rendered":"

After surviving one of the most violent Top Fuel crashes in recent memory, Shawn Reed joined\u00a0The Freak Nation<\/em>\u00a0inside the Lucas Oil Studio for a candid and emotional interview that pulled no punches.<\/p>\n

The five-time drag boat champion-turned-NHRA Top Fuel driver detailed his high-speed blowover at the NHRA Northwest Nationals in Seattle, walking co-hosts Kenny and Crash through the wreck, the quiet moments that followed, and the pain that\u2019s still lingering.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt went totally quiet\u2026 I didn\u2019t know I was in a crash. I didn\u2019t know I won a race. I didn\u2019t know anything,\u201d said Reed. \u201cIt was almost soothing. Like, I was just in La La Land.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n
\n
<\/div>\n

<\/span>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

Reed recalls the initial moment his dragster started to drift left. He corrected. Then it moved again. What followed was a tire failure that triggered a chain reaction \u2014 destroying the rear wing and sending him into the wall in spectacular fashion.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was the moment all the holes in the Swiss cheese lined up,\u201d said Reed. \u201cThe tire starts to balloon, then flap, and then boom \u2013 the rear wing is gone, and you\u2019re just a passenger.\u201d<\/p>\n

Reed didn\u2019t lose consciousness, but he did lose something else: part of his finger. And still, he kept his signature sense of humor.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t like that digit anyway,\u201d he joked. \u201cI\u2019m right-handed \u2013 every time I tried to pick my nose with it, I ended up in my eye.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Despite the injury and intense impact, Reed says the scariest moment was trying to breathe.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe noises coming out of me\u2026 they said it sounded like a haunted house. You don\u2019t know if you\u2019re dying or living at that point.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since the accident, Reed has been resting and recovering \u2013 both physically and emotionally \u2013 while navigating a world of bruised ribs, deep muscle soreness, and fans on the internet offering armchair critiques. He isn\u2019t bitter, but he\u2019s honest.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou get these guys saying Antron or Doug saved theirs \u2013 well, this ain\u2019t the same situation,\u201d he explained. \u201cWe were just in different parts of the track at different times with different speeds. I don\u2019t need a lecture from someone in their mom\u2019s basement.\u201d<\/p>\n

One surprising bright spot? A visit from Tony Stewart.<\/p>\n

\u201cTony shows up with a Hello Kitty backpack full of coloring books and crayons \u2013 the big triangle ones so I can grip \u2018em better,\u201d Reed laughed. \u201cHe told me I had to color every one of them. I\u2019m working on it.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also plans to reach out to the fan injured by flying debris during the crash, offering a swag bag and tickets for next year\u2019s race.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know it\u2019s not my fault, but it still feels bad. Hopefully, me and her can walk out on that stage next year at driver intros together. We\u2019ll make it right.\u201d<\/p>\n

As for his return, Reed hopes to be back in the car for the NHRA Countdown to the Championship, eyeing a comeback by the first playoff race. If not, he\u2019s considering a temporary substitute to keep his team in the fight.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re like Maverick in\u00a0Top Gun<\/em>,\u201d said Reed. \u201cYou don\u2019t know what you\u2019re gonna get when you line up with us.\u201d<\/p>\n

And if you think losing a finger is going to stop him?<\/p>\n

\u201cTook 50 years to get me in that car,\u201d Reed fired off. \u201cOne finger ain\u2019t keeping me out.\u201d<\/p>\n

This story was originally published on August 3, 2025. \"Drag<\/p>\n

The post \u201cI Didn\u2019t Know I Was in a Crash\u201d: Shawn Reed Reflects on Top Fuel Wreck, Recovery & Unexpected Gift from Tony Stewart<\/a> first appeared on Drag Illustrated<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After surviving one of the most violent Top Fuel crashes in recent memory, Shawn Reed joined\u00a0The Freak Nation\u00a0inside the Lucas Oil Studio for a candid and emotional interview that pulled no punches. The five-time drag boat champion-turned-NHRA Top Fuel driver detailed his high-speed blowover at the NHRA Northwest Nationals in Seattle, walking co-hosts Kenny and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-101867","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101867","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=101867"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101867\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=101867"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=101867"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=101867"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}