Was the $5 Million Coercive?

Dan Wheldon, by all accounts a really good guy, was killed in an extremely violent accident at a Las Vegas speedway.

This was the story, before the race. It's all about the $5 million, split with a fan, as a marketing tool. That is big money for one race, perhaps causing what the Independent called "increased pressure," which sounds close to coercion.

It seems the track was not all that safe, and people knew it before the race. Yes, even before the race. But they raced anyway, because of the $5 million.

Was the $5 million coercive? Was the prize too BIG to be fair? Some folks seem to think so. It certainly was sad. Was it voluntary?