Talladega, Ala. ? NASCAR team owner Jack Roush was in critical but stable condition Saturday after crashing a small plane into a pond about 100 miles from Talladega Superspeedway where his drivers are racing this weekend.

Roush, whose 60th birthday was Friday, was being treated at University of Alabama-Birmingham Hospital for a head injury and two broken legs.

He was flying alone Friday night when the borrowed plane apparently hit a power line and crashed into a pond, flipping upside down. The accident occurred in a neighborhood in Troy, about 50 miles from Montgomery.

“Right now, what we need to be doing is praying for Jack and taking care of business,” said Mark Martin, who has driven for Roush since the owner came to the Winston Cup series in 1988.

Geoff Smith, team manager for Roush Racing, credited a Troy resident, Larry Hicks, with pulling Roush out of the plane and resuscitating him.

“Without Larry and the efforts of the Troy police and emergency response team, we wouldn’t be feeling as positive as we do at this moment,” said Smith, who noted that Hicks was a former Marine who specialized in underwater search and rescue.

Smith said doctors told team and family members the trauma to Roush’s brain is the most serious injury.

“However, we are very encouraged by the fact that he is able to follow commands and respond to the commands that he is given,” Smith said. “We’re told to be guarded about the head injury for 48 hours because circumstances can change in that regard.”