After a scary incident on Lap 7 of the 2018 ABC Supply 500 on Sunday, Beccy Hunter-Reay was left wondering where a mysterious “guardian angel” came from.
Her husband, Andretti Autosport driver Ryan Hunter-Reay, was involved in the crash that sent Robert Wickens’ car high into the catch fence. As it ricocheted off the fence, the bottom of Wickens’ No. 6 Lucas Oil SPM Honda came dangerously close to Hunter-Reay, knocking the camera from atop the roll hoop of his No. 28 DHL Honda.
While Wickens remains hospitalized with orthopedic injuries, the rest of the drivers were cleared from the Pocono Raceway medical center. As for Hunter-Reay, he said afterward he was “just lucky to get out of that one.” Perhaps the small token that appeared in his son Ryden’s pocket was why he walked away unscathed.
“Ryden came up to me after the crash & handed me this Guardian Angel,” Beccy tweeted. “I asked him where he got it & his reply, ‘I don’t know mommy, it was just in my pocket.’ 🙏🏼”
Wickens, a rookie, was awake and alert before being transported to Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest in Allentown, Pennsylvania. He was admitted to the hospital and is undergoing further evaluation.
The other involved drivers were Takuma Sato, Pietro Fittipaldi and Wickens’ Schmidt Peterson Motorsport teammate, James Hinchcliffe.
“Not the race day we were hoping for,” Hinchcliffe said. “I saw the accident happening in front of me. (Zach) Veach started sliding up, I tried to slow down and just kind of lost it in the fray. As I was going backwards, I think Pietro (Fittipaldi) had nowhere to go and came into me. Other than that, there was a bunch of stuff going on, I’m not sure exactly what happened. …
“Obviously, I’m just hoping Robbie’s all right. Never good to see a car go up (into the fence) like that, but I know he is in good hands. Hopefully, we’ll see him back in the car soon.”