Rest In Peace Jason Leffler

              I never expected to hear what I heard tonight. I received the horrible news that Jason Leffler had passed away from injuries sustained in a crash during a heat race at the Bridgeport Speedway in New Jersey. I couldn't believe it. When you see a driver racing on the track on Sunday, you don't expect him to lose his life during the next week. Last Sunday, he made a start in the #19 Toyota for Humphrey-Smith Racing at Pocono. Today, he lost his life in a fatal crash racing a sprint car. It hurts the most because I grew up watching Jason in the #38 Great Clips car for Todd Braun and Steve Turner in the NASCAR Busch, now Nationwide, Series. I remember his stint with Chip Ganassi in the #01 Cingular Wireless Dodge and with Joe Gibbs in the #11 FedEx Chevrolet in the NASCAR Sprint, previously Winston and Nextel, Cup Series. He did not have much success in his Cup rides, but he was pretty good in the Nationwide Series. He had two wins, forty two top 5s, one hundred and seven top 10s, and eight poles in the series. He also had one win, twenty top 5s, thirty five top 10s, and ten poles in the Craftsman, now Camping World, Truck Series. Jason was known for his charisma. He sported a mohawk that many reporters joked with him about. His small frame of 5 foot 3 inches and 130 pounds, made him tiny among the drivers, but he made up for that in his colorful personality and his prowess among his peers. I will certainly miss his humbleness and his willingness to drive a racecar just so he was racing. Nothing can take away the effect he had on the sport and I wish he was still here. Rest in peace, Jason Leffler, and you will never be forgotten.







Credits:
-Image: 
http://a.espncdn.com/media/motion/2013/0612/dm_130612_NASCAR_Driver_Leffler_Has_Died/dm_130612_NASCAR_Driver_Leffler_Has_Died.jpg
-Articles:
http://racing.ap.org/article/leffler-dies-after-accident-dirt-car-event
http://www.sportingnews.com/nascar/story/2013-06-12/jason-leffler-crash-injury-nationwide-series-airlifted-bridgeport-speedway?modid=recommended_3_5
-Statistics:
http://racing-reference.info/driver/Jason_Leffler