Rusty Schlenk sort of reluctantly decided to end his six-year absence from World 100 competition, entering the action after feeling pretty good about his 12th-place run in a Baltes Classic semifeature on Sunday. Eldora’s major events have never been high on the budget-conscious driver’s to-do list, but he thought he’d take a shot at the big show for the first time since 2019.

By the end of the weekend, the 39-year-old from McClure, Ohio, was wishing he had just stayed home.

After falling three spots shy of cracking semifeature fields on Thursday and Friday, Schlenk’s fortunes became even worse during Saturday’s sixth heat. On lap five he was swept up in a devastating five-car accident between turns one and two that battered both his body and self-designed Domination Race Car.

The incident began when Jordan Koehler and Jason Riggs came together and slid up across the track. First Tyler Millwood was collected and then Rusty Ballenger crashed into the mess, clipping Koehler and Riggs with his car’s rear end. Finally, Schlenk smashed into the pile at high speed with the right side of his machine and nearly pushed Millwood’s car over Koehler’s.

Damage was heavy among all the cars involved — Ballenger’s Warrior house car looked especially mangled after virtually all its rear bodywork was torn asunder — but the five drivers were able to climb from their cockpits. Schlenk, however, complained of multiple painful spots and was taken to the infield care center for further evaluation by the Eldora safety team.

Schlenk wasn't transported to a local hospital, but on Monday he told DirtonDirt he suffered a broken bone in his foot, bruised ribs and strained neck muscles from the extremely hard hit that he said left his car and engine “junk.”

The Valvoline American Late Model Iron-Man Series points leader, Schlenk said the injuries won't keep him out of action: “I’ll figure out how to drive.”