Collision Ruins Win at Homestead

© Dave Nickerson

Rum Bum racer Matt Plumb manages to drive 2 laps with his hood flipped inside out.

What looked like Rum Bum Racing’s second round of smooth sailing to the winner’s podium took a hair-pin turn for the worst Saturday at the Homestead Miami Speedway. The team’s qualifying times, practice sessions, and race performance put them in the fast lane for victory at the 2.5-hour Homestead 200 race, but interference beyond their control snatched the win from under their feet.

Gian Bacardi kicked off the race in 23^rd place (a position determined by Friday's qualifying time) and traversed the 2.3-mile laps of road and stadium track with efficiency and speed beyond his barely 20 years. In the Rum Bum BMW M3 E93, Bacardi passed over a dozen other pro racers before handing the car over to co-driver and pro-driving coach, Matt Plumb.

At lap 64 (of 91), Plumb managed to zoom into first place to lead not only the 40 cars in his Grand Sport class, but the additional 30 cars in the Street Tuner class as well. Rum Bum Racing looked like they could coast to the win as long as Plumb held his position. But with 70 racecars tearing through the speedway chances are high that something will go wrong.

With less than 10 minutes in the race, a collision at 90 mph in front of Plumb caused a multiple-car pileup on the course. Drivers defensively slammed their brakes in unison while controlling their flying vehicles with the calculated precision of professionals skilled in handling the worst on the road. 

Still, Plumb couldn’t escape the veritable crash. He hit the car in front of him causing the Bimmer’s hood to loosen and plaster itself on the windshield like a magnet (making it more of a door than a, well… you know). His vision completely impaired, Plumb was actually able to maneuver the next two laps under direction of his spotter via radio before hitting the pit lane barrier and eventually coming in 53^rd place.

“We went from sugar to s%*!,” Plumb explained. “The good part was that Gian did great, but I wish I had better news.” Collisions like this, any seasoned pro-racer would attest, are simply beyond your control.  But without Plumb’s impressive command of the racecar under extreme pressure, the situation could have gone much worse or resulted in grave injury. 

“We’ll have something better next time,” he said spiritedly.  Even though they’re not at the top of the winner’s podium this go around, the best news of the day is that the Rum Bum Race Team is still at the top of their game. More importantly, they are safe.