LAWRENCEBURG (AP)— Sprint car driver Justin Owen of Harrison, Ohio, died from injuries he suffered when his car crashed during a race in southeastern Indiana, the U.S. Auto Club announced.
Owen’s car struck the outside wall and flipped several times along the third turn in a qualifying race Saturday night for the AMSOIL Sprint Car National Championship at Lawrenceburg Speedway, USAC said.
USAC canceled the remainder of the event after the crash.
The 26-year-old Owen was the reigning track champion at Lawrenceburg Speedway with two feature wins and the title in 2022, USAC said. It was Owen’s first crown at the 3/8-mile dirt oval where he competed in the sprint car division for the past several seasons.
Among his top achievements was a victory in the season-closing Dick Gaines Memorial during his Lawrenceburg championship season in 2022, USAC said. In 2019, Owen had three victories, at the Buckeye Outlaw Sprint Series at Pennsylvania’s Lernerville Speedway, his second victory in the event after one in 2016; at Indiana’s Paragon Speedway; and at Lawrenceburg’s Night of Champions event.
With USAC, Owen made two feature starts, both at Lawrenceburg, in 2019 and 2021.
