Race Weekend Central

Garrett Smithley Replacing Injured Austin Theriault at Kansas

Following a crash at Talladega Superspeedway  Monday (Oct. 14), Austin Theriault will not race this weekend (Oct. 20) at Kansas Speedway.

Theriault was involved in a multi-car crash on lap 163 of the 1000Bulbs.com 500 in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, competing for Rick Ware Racing. Following the crash, NASCAR’s medical team has not medically cleared Theriault to return to the track this weekend at Kansas.

The extent of Theriault’s injury was not disclosed.

Although he was originally scheduled to wheel the N0. 52 Rick Ware Racing entry at Kansas, Theriault will be replaced in the ride by Garrett Smithley. Smithley will still carry sponsorship backing from Bangor Savings Bank, an organization with strong ties to Theriault.

No stranger to RWR, Smithley’s five previous MENCS starts came for the team. Additionally, the Pennsylvania native has tallied a combined 10 starts this season, including a best finish of 28th at Indianapolis Motor Speedway while driving for RWR.

According to Theriault’s tweet, he still plans to compete in the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway for the team.

About the author

Never at a loss for words, Zach Gillispie is a young, talented marketing professional from North Carolina who talks and writes on the side about his first love: racing! Since joining Frontstretch in 2018, Zach has served in numerous roles where he currently pens the NASCAR 101 column, a weekly piece delving into the basic nuts and bolts of the sport. Additionally, his unabashedly bold takes meshed with that trademarked dry wit of his have made Zach a fan favorite on the weekly Friday Faceoff panel. In his free time, he can be found in the great outdoors, actively involved in his church, cheering on his beloved Atlanta Braves or ruthlessly pestering his colleagues with completely useless statistics about Delma Cowart.

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