John Force suffered traumatic brain injury in Virginia Nationals crash, was unable to follow commands for days WHIO TV 7 and WHIO Radio [Video]

John Force’s team said Sunday that the longtime NHRA Funny Car driver had suffered a traumatic brain injury and revealed that he’d been unable to respond to commands from doctors for days following his fiery crash at the Virginia Nationals.

John Force Racing said in a statement that the 75-year-old Force “failed to follow the series of commands to open his eyes, squeeze the hands of his care providers and move his extremities” for four days after his crash. The team had previously said that Force was moved from trauma intensive care to neurological intensive care earlier in the week.

“He became more consistent responding to commands and finally opened his eyes on day five,” the statement said. “Following days of failed attempts, his wife and daughters were overcome with emotion when he murmured his name ‘John Force’ and later when prompted, gave a thumbs up.”

“The biggest challenge has …