MADERA – A Clovis man died Saturday evening following a crash in the 21st lap of the 360 Super Modified at the Madera Speedway. Donnie Large Sr. was leading the four car race while coming down the front straightaway it appeared as though his car lost power.
Large coasted around turns one and two as the car slowed down and hit the turn two wall and turned left to slowly came down the track until it stopped against the inside retaining wall after making contact with third place driver Lance Jackson.
Large was rushed to a local hospital where he expired a few hours after the crash. His family believes he was unconscious while entering turn one and likely suffered a medical emergency while in the race car leading the race.
Nobody held more track records at the Madera Speedway than Donnie Large Sr.; he also won races in more divisions than anyone else at the speedway. More than a winning driver he was a huge personality that will be badly missed.
“The California racing community has been knocked to its knees in recent times losing some of its best driver’s, owners, crew members, fans and officials our sport has ever known. The big race track in the sky got another great one yesterday”, Kenny Shepherd, the President of Madera Speedway.
