Daryn Pittman
Daryn Pittman suffered a broken collarbone in Wednesday's World of Outlaws feature at Placerville Speedway. He will undergo surgery Friday. Cody Darrah will drive the car in his absence. (Jeremy Elliott | jelliott@pennlive.com)
A familiar face will be back in a Sprint Car for Kasey Kahne Racing this weekend at Calistoga Speedway.
Cody Darrah will fly KKR colors with the World of Outlaws -- at least for this week -- in a substitute role. He takes over for Daryn Pittman, who suffered a broken collarbone during Wednesday's WoO event Placerville Speedway.
"We believe in Cody," said Justin Adams, a spokesman for KKR. "It's unfortunate we didn't have the funding to keep him in a third car, but this is another chance for Cody to do great things for us and keep the No. 9 up front.
"We hired him because we believe Cody is capable of running up front and winning in the car. If we didn't, we would let the car sit for the weekend. We are not going out to cruise around."
Continued Adams, "It's an unfortunate situation. Nobody wants to get a ride or drive someone's car under these circumstances. No one likes when someone gets hurt, but it's part of the sport."
The accident in which Pittman was injured occurred on lap 21 of the A-Main. Jason Johnson got upside down after contact with another car, and Pittman was left with nowhere to go, hit Johnson's car and flipped.
Johnson, reportedly, was flown to a nearby hospital. He suffered a fracture in his back. Pittman walked back to the pit area but was later driven to the hospital by a friend where he was diagnosed with his injury.
The 2013 World of Outlaws champion flew back to Indianapolis Thursday. According to Adams, Pittman will meet with doctors Friday morning and undergo surgery.
Once the surgery is complete, it will be up to Pittman as to when he climbs behind the wheel of a Sprint Car.
"He is on a race-by-race basis," Adams said. "When Daryn feels comfortable in getting back in the car, it's his car to drive.
"It's up to Daryn. Knowing the racecar driver's mentality and this is how he puts food on the table, he will be back next weekend. But he also knows he has to get healed up. Only Daryn knows the answer as far as when he can come back."
After two races at Calistoga Saturday and Sunday, the World of Outlaws wrap up the California swing April 17 and 18 at Kings Speedway and Perris Auto Speedway.
If Pittman can deal with the pain, he could be back by next week. But he will likely take a hit in the point standings this week, which would put him way behind in his quest for a second World of Outlaws title.
"We looked at it today, and we figure he will give up 100 points," Adams said. "The chance to win championship is out the door, but Kasey and I feel quite confident that he can come back and get second.
"Daryn needs to get healthy. If he can get healthy, he can still finish second in the points and be good for all the big races."
As for Johnson, he will miss significant time. There is no official word as to whether or not a substitute driver will fill in until he returns.