Ryan Newman slams Watkins Glen after NASCAR Sprint Cup crash

The race was red-flagged for nearly an hour and a half so that barrier damage from the accident could be repaired.

Both Newman's Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet and Michael McDowell's Leavine Family Ford had violent impacts on the straight between Turns 5 and 6, after Newman spun into the barrier and then rebounded into McDowell. Several other cars received damage.

"The SAFER barrier doesn't exist there, there are Armco walls and no concrete walls, it's a very antiquated racetrack and the safety is not at all up to NASCAR standards," said Newman.

"It's a shame that we have to have accidents like that to prove it.

"Hopefully something will change the next time we come back here."

NASCAR's vice president of competition Robin Pemberton said the series would review the incident and see if any changes were required, but underlined that Watkins Glen had to consider multiple forms of motorsport in its safety planning.

"We're only here one weekend a year. And it's busy throughout the rest of the year. We're not the only series that races here," he said.

"Watkins Glen has made great advancements in Turns 1 and 2, moved grandstands and added SAFER barriers, and that's worked quite well for us.

"But not all places are places for SAFER Barriers. Different types of systems help slow the cars down.

"As you can see the incident with Cole Whitt earlier in the race down in Turn 1, it was good that the tyre barrier was there.

"We do work year in and year out on all of these facilities. Every race, pre-race and post-race, we do a lot of inspections and look at places that need improvement.

"There's a priority list as far as what turns and straights and things like that that you need to work on. It's an ongoing process."

VIDEO: NEWMAN AND McDOWELL CRASH HARD AT WATKINS GLEN