Dan Wheldon Death: Family Pays Tribute Following Horror Indy 300 Horror Crash (VIDEO)
Dan Wheldon's family has spoken out today, paying tribute to their son who died in a crash at the Las Vegas Indy 300.
The driver's father, Clive Wheldon, said in a statement Tuesday that his son "was born to be a racer and yesterday he left us doing he loved, he was a true gentleman on and off the track."
“Words cannot describe how much our family will miss him. He touched so many and the world is a better place for him having been in it. We want to thank everyone for allowing us time to grieve in private," Clive Wheldon said.
Wheldon was involved in a fiery 15-car pile-up on Sunday when his car flew over 220 miles per hour into a turn and climbed the back of another car bursting into flames.
His car eventually flipped end over end until it slammed into a crash fence above a retaining wall just outside turn two.
He was quickly rushed off to the University Medical Hospital where he was pronounced dead. Three other drivers involved in the crash were hospitalized as well.
Prior to the race, the 33-year-old racecar champion expressed in a blog that he was concerned that he and his team were not going to be able to climb to the speed needed to capture the race.
He wrote, “So far, things haven’t been going very well as we’ve started our pursuit of the GoDaddy IndyCar Challenge this weekend … but I’m confident in the ability of the guys as Sam Schmidt Motorsports to find the problem and get it fixed.”
Just before the race Wheldon wrote on his blog on USA Today, “This is going to be amazing show.”
He added, “As long as I can find some speed and keep up with the pack, I’ll do everything I can to put on a show.”
Wheldon leaves behind a wife and two young sons.
Dan Wheldon Dies in Massive Crash at Indy 300 in Las Vegas (WARNING: STRONG CONTENT):
