While we all try to second guess just what went wrong, the driver running behind Sterwart said that he did everything possible to avoid Ward. The video showing the accident has been slowed down and it appears that Ward was upright and hanging onto or hooked on the wing of the car (video is so poor you can't really see what is going on so call it speculation) until right before he drops to the track. Could he have gotten snagged when he went to beat on the wing? Your guess is as good as mine, but that's all we are doing at this point.

Could TS see Ward on that track? If he knew where to look, I'm sure he could. But since Ward wasn't stationary, how would anyone know where to look on a dark and poorly lit track for an irate driver dressed in black? If you watch the video, Ward points and runs toward the car ahead of Stewart, who had to swerve to avoid him. Couldn't Ward see which car he was going towards?

I also don't think TS tired to mud the kid. There probably wasn't much mud left in the racing groove by the time they ran. The track was fast and hard. But as another driver pointed out, the Sprint cars have a spool in the rear end, they don't steer at lower speeds, they simply push straight ahead unless you give them some throttle. They also have a bias dialed in to kick the rear end around. It's a fine line between enough throttle to get the car to turn and too much so the rear end kicks out even a bit. But no matter what I think or what any of us think for that matter, it was a tragic loss that could have been avoided. Motorsports should have a stay in the car rule unless the car is on fire, exigent circumstances, or safety crews direct you to exit the car. And then they should have a rule where after exiting the car, the driver must exit the track by the shortest route and not cross the racing line unless being escorted by the safety crew. Any driver violating these rules should be suspended for several races or longer. This is a senseless loss and a real blow to the sport.