Pro Modified icon Lyle Barnett had seen this movie before. 

Barnett was at a test session hosted by Alabama International Dragway in Steele, Alabama, which later became an Outlaw Pro Modified event. He was in a completely legal NHRA Pro Modified configuration, and in some ways, he was at a disadvantage. But Barnett, a drag racer with a reputation for beating the odds, still liked his chances running his combination in preparation for the NHRA U.S. Nationals. 

Barnett was on a good run when, without warning, the engine and car erupted in flames. Knowing his history, instead of panicking, Barnett relied on far superior safety equipment than he had in 2015. He brought the car to a safe stop and exited. 

As he stood in disbelief, the car burned to the ground. 

The one aspect of the situation is Barnett understood just how much the accident from September 2015 at a Duck X Productions event in Valdosta, Ga., made the difference in him walking away this time without as much as a first-degree burn. 

While the car burned, Barnett appeared as cool as the other side of the pillow, but inside, the flashbacks were all too real when he lay on the South Georgia Motorsports Park asphalt after suffering third-degree burns to 15 percent of his body. 

"I was a little more emotional and scared after the fact," Barnett admitted. "In the moment. I just knew what I had to do to get out and get stopped, and I went through the steps and made sure I had everything done and climbed out of that thing. And as I was walking away and looked back, it was real, then It took me back to when I wasn't so lucky. 

"But I learned from my mistakes back then and had the proper safety equipment, gloves, shield, and shoes on. And I never even felt any heat. I had the fresh air in my helmet and never smelled any smoke. So I had everything in there that I needed to protect me. And it showed that the best of the best is worth it. So just thankful that I learned from my mistakes and took that serious."

Back then, it took a mountain to survive what could have easily been a fatal incident with infections and medical complications associated with the tedious recovery. This time, it was smooth sailing, prompted by lessons learned.

"I say I didn't feel any heat or anything; it just singed the hairs in my glove. That is about all it did when I climbed out," Barnett explained. "But other than that, I was a hundred percent good. Didn't breathe anything. So, just thankful somebody is riding along with me for that run, for sure."

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Barnett, who wholeheartedly credits faith for his 2015 recovery, said the journey up a mountain of adversity made him a different person this year. 

"Back then, I would tell anyone that I was 10 feet tall and bulletproof," Barnett said. "Back then, you couldn't tell me anything. That accident in 2015 showed you just how quickly life can be over. Our dates are already decided. You don't know when it's coming. But our dates have been decided a long time ago, and God just isn't done with me. He's put me in check a couple of times, that's for sure. And there's no doubt in my mind this was a reminder."

Barnett is a proponent of drag racing safety and often uses his pain-riddled experience as an example. The thought of a drag racer, friend, stranger, or even foe, going through what he experienced weighs heavy on his heart. 

"I've been an advocate for the safety side of this sport since 2015, and I want to make sure that everybody knows it can happen to anybody," Barnett explained. "You drive some of these things long enough; it's not a matter of if, it's when it's going to happen to you and making sure that you've bought and prepared yourself for any situation in these things.

"Everybody wants to go home and hug their family at night, and skimping on safety equipment's a good way to make sure that maybe that doesn't happen. But an advocate for safety is really what I've focused on."

While some people believe they have a life's mission, there's no doubt Barnett knows his mission is one from above. 

"Makes me feel like I'm doing what God left me here for," Barnett said point-blank. "You don't have to be somebody that was nearly killed in a racing accident. Maybe you're going through a tough time, and my story of perseverance and a comeback has inspired you to keep going and overcome whatever it is that's got you down. But there's light at the end of the tunnel. I remember a burn victim telling me this when I was in pretty rough shape. There is light at the end of the tunnel. It seems like it's a long way away, and by God, it did then.

"But it's just one foot in front of the other; keep striving to get better. Climb out of this hole, whatever you got going on. And I hope that that part of my story is as impactful as my advocacy for safety is. I believe that that was part of the reason I was left here, to spread the message and try every day to do that and best I can."

And if Barnett can ensure that every racer he encounters walks away with singed hairs on their hands, then he's done what he was intended to do when God spared him in 2015.