The NASCAR championship race was briefly interrupted after the pace car crashed into sand barrels

The NASCAR Cup Series championship race in Phoenix was stopped on lap 69 due to a not-so-nice incident with the pace car.

When the pace car led the field to restart on green after the first stage break, it waited a little too long to duck onto the pit lane. And as it headed toward Pit Street, it crashed into the sand barrels that protect the end of the Pit Street wall.

Seriously. We’re not making this up. See for yourself.

Apart from a dent on the right rear of the car, the pace car was largely spared from major damage. The barrels weren’t so lucky. The race had to be stopped so that track workers could put the barrels back in place and clean up the sand that had scattered all over the track at the entrance to pit road.

Chase Elliott was classified as the leader at the time of the red flag, ahead of Christopher Bell. All four drivers fighting for the championship were in the top 10 at the time of the red flag. William Byron led them in third place, Ryan Blaney in fourth, Joey Logano in sixth and Tyler Reddick in seventh.

Luckily, the delay lasted less than 10 minutes and the race was able to restart as the pace car safely reached the pit lane.