NASCAR: DiBenedetto to undergo concussion evaluation

BK Racing driver Matt DiBenedetto hopes to find out today whether he will be cleared to race at Phoenix this weekend after being ruled out of Sunday's Texas race through NASCAR's concussion protocol.

DiBenedetto, who was sidelined after crashing heavily during the Xfinity Series race on Saturday, is scheduled to visit specialists in North Carolina today.

The 25-year-old said that he felt fine after the accident and expressed his bitter disappointment at being ruled out of the race, although he conceded that the concussion rules exist for a reason.

"I'm definitely discouraged, but we'll go through this, go through their protocol," he told NASCAR.com on Sunday. "I have to, even though I feel fine, but they have a protocol and things set in place that I have to follow, whether I like it or not. I will do it, get it done and look forward to Phoenix.

"[I didn't feel] the slightest bit [hurt], not even two seconds after the crash. If I could redo the situation knowing now how it turned out I would have sprinted down [the banking], maybe done jumping jacks. But everything happens for a reason. At this time I need to remain calm and remember they are doing their jobs."

NASCAR Executive Vice President and Chief Racing Development Officer, Steve O'Donnell, said that the series is continuing to develop its response to concussions as it learns more about those types of injuries.

"We never want to see a driver not be able to compete, but obviously safety comes first," he told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. "We rely on outside experts to make that call, and in this case Matt was diagnosed with a concussion. The road back for him would be, first, to see a board-certified neurologist, and if he's cleared he'll be back in the car as early as this weekend at Phoenix, which we're obviously all hoping for.

"This is certainly an emerging science that we continue to look at and we learn something new in this area almost every day, as do a lot of other sports. So we try to keep safety first and foremost for the drivers. We're in a dangerous sport and we're going to make sure that everybody is at their best going out there in each and every race."

Jeffrey Earnhardt received a late call-up to drive the No.83 Toyota in DiBenedetto's place on Sunday, and was classified 34th.