BREAKING: NASCAR Racer Jason Leffler Killed in Sprint Car Wreck

Jason Leffler, 37, was killed Wednesday night in a dirt track race in New Jersey

Tragedy struck the NASCAR community Wednesday night when Jason Leffler was taken from us much too soon following a frightening wreck in a 410 Sprint car at the Bridgeport Speedway in Bridgeport, New Jersey. Leffler was running second in a heat race at the time of the accident, which was reportedly a result of a faulty part that caused the car to make contact with the outside wall. The former USAC champion was rushed to Crozer-Chester Medical Center where he later succumbed to his injuries. New Jersey State Police declared him dead shortly after 9 p.m. Leffler was just 37 years old.

 

Known among drivers and fans for his familiar faux hawk and the "LefTurn" decal that graced the roof rails of his Leffler began his career in 1999 and made 423 starts across NASCAR's three national touring series, the most recent one coming just this past Sunday at Pocono when he ran just eight laps in a start-and-park effort. But despite his many starts, he only managed just two Nationwide Series wins and a Camping World Truck Series victory. He also made three Indycar  Series starts, and finished 17th in the 2000 Indianapolis 500 Mile Race.

 

While he never truly made it at the Cup Series level, Leffler did drive for a couple of established organizations while on the Sprint Cup tour. After running a full Nationwide Series season with Joe Gibbs Racing in 2000, Leffler got his first break in 2001 with Chip Ganassi Racing in the No. 01 Cingular Wireless Dodge, running the full schedule and scoring a pole at Kansas Speedway and 10th at Homestead-Miami Speedway. It would be the only top ten of his Cup career. His ride went away at season's end after failing to qualify for five of the 36 races on the schedule.

 

The mangled remains of Jason Leffler's sprint car

After losing his first chance at NASCAR's top level, Leffler went down to the Truck Series and scored a win at Dover in 2003. He also ran a 10 Cup races for Haas-CNC Racing that same year. The 2004 season brought more success for Leffler, with the Long Beach Calif. native scoring one win and 17 top tens in 27 Nationwide Series starts for Haas-CNC. This opened up another path to the Cup Series, with Joe Gibbs Racing signing Leffler to drive their No. 11 Monte Carlo with sponsorship from FedEx. But just like his first Cup ride with Ganassi, Leffler lost the ride after just 21 races, during which time he missed the Coca-Cola 600 and was ranked 35th in the standings. The rest of the schedule was filled out by drivers like Terry Labonte, J.J. Yeley and, the team's current wheelman, Denny Hamlin.



Leffler returned to the Nationwide Series, running the tour on a full-time basis from 2006 until 2011. He found success racing cars for Braun Racing, which would later become Turner-Scott Motorsports, scoring what would be his final NASCAR win in 2007 at Indianapolis Raceway with a late pass of David Reutimann, and finishing a career best third in points that same season.



But despite spending over a decade in NASCAR, Leffler's bread and butter was dirt track racing. He was inducted into the National Midget Hall of Fame in 2003 after a career that had seen him win four USAC championships, three of which were consecutive from 1997 to 1999. He also won a USAC Silver Crown title in 1998. After not being able to find a stable, competitive NASCAR ride, Leffler spent much of this year running on dirt.

 

A devoted racer, Leffler was also a devoted father. Professionals within the racing industry and fans alike mentioned the profound effect this tragedy will have on Leffler's five-year-old son, Charlie Dean, who graduated from Kindergarten just a few weeks ago.



Jason Leffler and his son, Charlie  Dean