Brittany Force will remain in an area hospital overnight as a precaution after a hard crash in the first round of final eliminations at Sunday’s Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals at Pomona’s Auto Club Raceway.

Her Monster Energy dragster smoked the tires, made a sharp turn sideways over the center line in front of Terry Haddock and pancaked the left wall before careening across the track again and making another impact along the right wall before coming to rest past the finish line. She was responsive and talking to medical staff after the incident.

In a statement Sunday afternoon, John Force Racing confirmed Force suffered no major internal injuries but suffered some bruising of the lungs. A CT scan was negative and an MRI showed “subtle findings likely from previous injuries.”

Reigning World Champion @BrittanyForce experienced an unbelievable crash during eliminations at the #Winternats.

She was responsive, speaking with medical staff & was transported to the hospital for evaluation.

You won’t want to miss #NHRAonFOX! Tune into @FS1​ at 5p ET. pic.twitter.com/zQEkriPbmS

— #NHRA (@NHRA) February 11, 2018

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Brittany’s father John Force said: “You look at how these cars evolved over 40-50 years. We made a lot of changes after the loss of Eric (former JFR driver Eric Medlen, who was killed in a 2007 testing accident). A lot came out of that. Building better chassis, safer. Want to thank Simpson safety for building helmets, equipment and everything to keep our drivers safe.

“The car giving way when it hit the wall head on allowed it to take the impact and fold up. I want to thank Schumacher Racing for creating the canopy. When the car was upside down, you know that protects the driver’s head.

“I want to personally thank Don Schumacher for his investment [in the canopy program]. Very important. Thanks, Don. Safety Safari was right on top of it, as always, that’s why they’re the best in the business. Finally, John Medlen, was one of the first to come to me, and want to know if she was okay. I didn’t have an answer at the time. But he’s lived it. He knows what all of us go through: owners, friends, parents and sponsors. End of the day, we keep addressing it to get it better.”