Ben Waddell has become an Internet sensation since his Mazda Miata went up in flames on Saturday at Virginia International Raceway. Invited to drive alongside a group of drivers, the young racer was the in the best and worst position when the Miata turned into a rolling barbecue.
Thanks to his experience racing sedans in IMSA's Continental Tire Series, Waddell put that professional background to good use on Saturday and crafted an exit plan that prevented a bad situation from turning tragic.
Here's video of the incident that Waddell put on Twitter:"We were doing the 13-hour at VIR, it was my first stint, I went out, reported some vibrations, and then I noticed I was smelling a lot more fumes than usual and reported that, too, and they asked if I could keep going," he told RoadandTrack.com
"Eventually the car got a lot louder—super loud—so I pulled into the pits and half the exhaust fell off, so they pulled the back half off from the rear bumper, put it behind the wall and sent me out. Two laps later I was exiting Oak Tree, heard a loud pop, thought it was a tire blowing, and then I noticed fuel. My body clenched up, closed off my esophagus, and my body wouldn't let me breathe because of the fumes."
Despite the lack of incoming oxygen, Waddell calmed himself and started to pull off the track.
"Then I saw the fuel visually starting to pour, pulled off into the grass—I heading towards a concrete wall but couldn't really wait much longer to get out. I started trying to take off the steering wheel while headed at the wall, and got it slowed enough to where it was a light bump to stop the car.
"Once I was halfway out, it lit, then I started running and noticed both my ankles were on fire, saw my right ankle went out, then saw the left went for about 30 second, cupped it with both hands until it went out, and by that point my heart was going about a million miles an hour."

It might sound like a series of routine sponsor mentions, but in light of the minor injuries he sustained, Waddell has good reason to offer praise.
"I need to thank Sparco for my suit, Arai for my helmet, and Oakley for my gloves because they helped me to survive in one piece," he said. "I talked to the team and they don't know what happened yet. There was so much fuel in the my seat I have a chemical burn just from sitting in it for however many seconds. It was hot enough to make the [metal] buckle on the helmet chin strap stick to my skin…"
Waddell's attention soon turned to the footage of the incident.
"I was in the ambulance and was asking them to get the GoPro, but they said it was melted," he said. "When I got back from the infield care center, we pulled it out and found the SD card was fine. That's amazing, and it has been a lot more popular online than I expected."

The crazy experience has also left Waddell with some lingering injuries, and has made sleeping peacefully somewhat hard, but it's to be expected. Sticking to his schedule has also been a priority since Saturday's fire.
"Yeah, I still went to school today because I need to," he said. "I have blisters on my left ankle and on the bottom of my chin, and it singed my eyebrows, but you have to move on."
Looking to the future, Waddell tested a Global Rallycross car the day before the VIR enduro and is hoping to join a junior open-wheel racing series in 2017. He's also willing to confirm his short-term plans.
"I'm not going to a gas station anytime soon," he said with a laugh. "I'll let my car run out before I get anywhere near fuel right now…"

Top of the fuel tank popped open, spewing fuel upwards. The sheet metal covering above that is not completely sealed, and with the interior removed leaves a lot of little holes and slits. Also note that removing the seatbelts leaves a "corridor" along each side for fuel to get into the passenger compartment from the trunk (go take a peak at an SM). Short of taping and covering over EVERYTHING back there, a fuel leak in the trunk will result in fuel getting into the cabin.

Coupled to the supposition/rumor that the rear exhaust was removed from the car, the implication is that the exhaust heated up the tank, the cap and rollover valve allowed the tank to pressurize, and the seals around the fuel sender/pump a the top of the tank (or one of the worm-clamped hoses) gave up in a blaze of glory...

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