'Thanks for thinking of our family when you decided to be a d**k': Grief-stricken relatives of Kevin Ward Jr lash out at Tony Stewart as it emerges NASCAR star badly injured Ward's pal on same track



Aunt of Kevin Ward Jr. launched an emotional attack on NASCAR champion Tony Stewart on Facebook after the death of the younger driver



She branded Stewart a 'd**k' who has left her family with a 'hurt that should not be there'

Kevin Ward Jr. was fatally struck by Stewart on Saturday night in New York

Stewart has been interviewed twice by police but there are no criminal charges pending

This is the second crash in a year at the Canandaigua Motorsports Park that Stewart has been involved in

In July 2013, he became embroiled in a 15-car pile-up that left Alysha Ruggles, 19, with a broken back

The racing legend nicknamed 'Smoke' has admitted his responsibility for that accident



Anger: Wendi Ward (with her husband) has taken to social media to express her fury towards NASCAR champion Tony Stewart - who was involved in a fatal collision with her nephew Kevin Ward Jr. on Saturday

Anger from members of Kevin Ward Jr.'s family has publicly spilled out in the aftermath of his tragic death in upstate New York on Saturday.



His aunt, Wendi Ward, posted a furious message to Facebook on Sunday, labeling three-time NASCAR champion Tony Stewart a 'd**k' following his fatal collision with 20-year-old Ward on the track at Canandaigua Motorsports Park on Saturday night.



Raging that Stewart, 43, has left her family with a 'deep hurt that should not be there', Ward's comments are in stark contrast to the more measured official statement released by his parents, who were reportedly in the crowd when their son was hit and killed.

A day after the 20-year-old was fatally hit by Stewart, his family said it 'appreciates all the prayer and support' but that they 'would like time to grieve and wrap our heads around all of this'.

But furious aunt Wendi didn't hold back when she sarcastically posted 'thanks for thinking of our family tony Stewart (sic) when you decided to be a d**k'.



On Sunday, some members of the Ward family posted a group picture to Facebook of them wearing T-shirts embossed with artwork on the back from Ward's website and the message 'Always and forever'.

WARNING GRAPHIC VIDEO

Full post: This is the post that Wendi Ward posted to Facebook on Sunday that expressed her anger towards Tony Stewart after the tragic crash that claimed the life of her nephew on Saturday

The outpouring of grief from the Wards, a prominent racing family in the local community, comes almost one year to the date of Stewart's involvement in a 15-car pile-up at exactly the same track that seriously injured a 19-year-old female driver last year.



Alysha Ruggles, who was friends with Kevin Ward Jr., was left with a compression fracture of her back after Stewart triggered the mass-crash in July 2013, which the NASCAR legend, nicknamed Smoke, has admitted responsibility for.

At the time of the crash, Ruggles' mother, Wendy told the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle that her daughter was lucky to escape without more serious injury.



'Right now, she has to take it one day at a time,' Wendy Ruggles, told the newspaper in July 2013. 'We had a big scare; she was close to being paralyzed.'



However, Alysha Ruggles, who like Ward Jr. comes from a racing family, refused to blame Stewart for the accident.

Ward Jr pictured with a woman who appears to be his girlfriend in a photo posted to his Facebook

On Saturday night, Ward crashed after colliding with Stewart in the sprint car race in Canandaigua, New York.



Video showed Ward walking from his crashed car onto the racing surface as cars circled by, and, as he gestured at Stewart's passing car, the 20-year-old was struck.



Ward's website said he began racing go-karts in 1998 at age 4, but didn't start driving sprint cars until 2010.



The 20-year-old from Port Leyden, New York, was Empire Super Sprint rookie of the year in 2012 and this year was his fifth season racing the Empire Super Sprints.

Always and forever: Members of Kevin Ward Jr.'s family posed for this picture on Facebook on Sunday in the aftermath of his tragic death on Saturday

Tribute: Extended family of Kevin Ward Jr. put on a brave face the day after his death on Saturday at an upstate New York racing track

Despite the anger displayed on video by Ward Jr. towards Stewart in the seconds before the collision, Chuck Miller, the race director and president for the Empire Super Sprints circuit at Canandaigua said there was nothing going on between the two before the apparent on-track bust-up.

'There's no history with these two drivers,' said Chuck Miller to USA Today.

Incident: Alysha Ruggles with a friend posing in front of a racing car. In July of 2013, Ruggles was injured in a 15-car collision caused by Tony Stewart which almost left her paralysed

'That's the competitive nature of the game and the drivers around it. Any time Tony has raced with us, Kevin also raced. Tony's been good for us.'

Speaking to the Charlotte Observer on Sunday, he added: 'We had a group of young guys who came on board here at the same time, and he was right in there with them. He was super competitive with all of them and got along really well.



'He was a real tough racer. He wasn’t afraid to go fast and to put his car to the front.



'Kevin had enough talent that this was probably a stepping stone for him. He was really talented and looked like a winner straight from the get-go.'

The Ward family was heavily invested in Kevin's racing career and their business, Westward Painting Co. sponsored racing events in upstate New York.



'We’ve all always been proud of Kevin Jr.’s achievements. The whole community is totally grief stricken over this unfortunate thing that happened. I cannot imagine what his family is going through,' said Katie Liendecker, mayor of Lyons Falls, New York, according to the Charlotte Observer.



The collision was as common as any in racing. Kevin Ward Jr.'s car spun twice like a top, wheels hugging the wall, before it plopped backward on the dimly lit dirt track.

Sorry: Tony Stewart has issued a statement revealing that 'there aren't words to describe the sadness' he feels after he caused the death of Kevin Ward Jr by running over and killing him in New York on Saturday

Too young: Kevin Ward Jr (right) was pronounced dead after being struck by Stewart's sprint car at the Empire Super Sprints late Saturday night in Canandaigua, New York

Racer: Sprint car driver Kevin Ward Jr. was killed after he was run over by Tony Stewart on Saturday

In a sport steeped with bravado, what happened next was another familiar, but dangerous, move: Wearing a black firesuit and black helmet, the 20-year-old Ward unbuckled himself, climbed out of the winged car into the night and defiantly walked onto the track at Canandaigua Motorsports Park.

He gestured, making his disgust evident with the driver who triggered the wreck with a bump: three-time NASCAR champion Tony Stewart.



Ward, a relative unknown compared to NASCAR's noted swashbuckler, was nearly hit by another passing car as he pointed with his right arm in Stewart's direction.



As he confronted Stewart in his passing car, disaster struck.



Ward was standing to the right of Stewart's familiar No. 14 car, which seemed to fishtail from the rear and hit him.

Dangerous: Spectator video shows the tragic moment Kevin Ward Jr (pictured) was hit by NASCAR driver Tony Stewart while angrily approaching him after the champ spun him around on the track.

Pointing fingers: Ward Jr was spun around by Stewart on the first lap, and he is then seen getting out of the car and approaching Stewart on foot as he comes around for another turn

Tragic end: But just seconds later, Stewart's car hits Ward Jr and sends the 20-year-old flying

According to video and witness accounts, Ward's body was sucked underneath the car and hurtled through the air before landing on his back as fans looked on in horror.



Ward was killed. Stewart, considered one of the most proficient drivers in racing, dropped out of Sunday's NASCAR race at Watkins Glen, hours after Saturday's crash.



The sport was left reeling from a tragedy that could have ripple effects from the biggest stock car series down to weeknight dirt track racing.



'There aren't words to describe the sadness I feel about the accident that took the life of Kevin Ward Jr.,' Stewart said in a statement.



Authorities questioned the 43-year-old Stewart once on Saturday night and went to Watkins Glen to talk to him again Sunday.





Tributes: Flowers are placed at the entrance of the Canandaigua Motorsports Park

Help: An ambulance is pictured parked on the infield of Canandaigua Motorsports Park on Sunday

They described him as 'visibly shaken' after the crash and said he was cooperative.



On Sunday, Ontario County Sheriff Philip Povero said that investigators also don't have any evidence at this point in the investigation to support criminal intent.



But he also said that criminal charges have not been ruled out.



The crash raised several questions: Will Ward's death cause drivers to think twice about on-track confrontations?



Did Stewart try and send his own message by buzzing Ward, the young driver, only to have his risky move turn fatal?



Or did Ward simply take his life into his own hands by stepping into traffic in a black firesutsuit on a dark track? The only one who may have that answer is Stewart.



David S. Weinsten, a former state and federal prosecutor in Miami who is now in private practice, said it would be difficult to prove criminal intent.



'I think even with the video, it's going to be tough to prove that this was more than just an accident and that it was even culpable negligence, which he should've known or should've believed that by getting close to this guy, that it was going to cause the accident,' he said.



The sheriff renewed a plea for spectators to turn over photos and videos of the crash.



Regan Smith (center) replaced Stewart at his race on Sunday. Pictured above getting into Stewart's car before the race at Watkins Glen International

Investigators were reconstructing the accident and looking into everything from the dim lighting on a portion of the track to how muddy it was, as well as if Ward's dark firesuit played a role in his death, given the conditions.



Driver Cory Sparks, a friend of Ward's, was a few cars back when Ward was killed.



'The timing was unsafe,' he said of Ward's decision to get out of his car to confront Stewart.



'When your adrenaline is going, and you're taken out of a race, your emotions flare.'



It's often just a part of racing. Drivers from mild-mannered Jeff Gordon to ladylike Danica Patrick have erupted in anger on the track at another driver.



The confrontations are part of the sport's allure: Fans love it and cheer wildly from the stands. Stewart, who has a reputation for being a hothead nicknamed 'Smoke,' once wound up like a pitcher and tossed his helmet like a fastball at Matt Kenseth's windshield.



'I've seen it many times in NASCAR, where a driver will confront the other one, and a lot of times they'll try to speed past them. And that's what it appeared to me as if what Tony Stewart did, he tried to speed past Ward,' witness Michael Messerly said.



'And the next thing I could see, I didn't see Ward any more. It just seemed like he was suddenly gone.'



The crash also raised questions about whether Stewart will continue with his hobby of racing on small tracks on the side of the big-money NASCAR races.



He has long defended his participation in racing on tracks like the one where the crash happened, even as accidents and injury have put his day job in NASCAR at risk.

Dropping out: Stewart-Haas Racing crew chief Greg Zipadelli (pictured) announces that Stewart will not compete in the Cheez-It 355 at Watkins Glen International

Saturday's crash came almost exactly a year after Stewart suffered a compound fracture to his right leg in a sprint car race in Iowa.



The injury cost him the second half of the NASCAR season and sidelined him during NASCAR's important Chase for the Sprint Cup Championship.



Stewart only returned to sprint track racing last month.



The crash site is the same track where Stewart was involved in a July 2013 accident that seriously injured a 19-year-old driver.



He later took responsibility for his car making contact with another and triggering the 15-car accident that left Alysha Ruggles with a compression fracture in her back.



'Everybody has hobbies,' he said last month, adding that 'there are a lot of other things I could be doing that are a lot more dangerous and a lot bigger waste of time with my time off do than doing that.'



Greg Zipadelli, competition director for Stewart-Haas Racing, said Stewart felt strongly he should not race after the wreck. Regan Smith replaced him in his car.

