Via Bob Pockrass
FOX Sports NASCAR writer
HOMESTEAD, Fla. – NASCAR Rarely suspends a driver for an incident on the road. It rarely penalizes a team for race manipulation.
It has done both in the past two weeks. Message: Don’t mess with the knockouts and don’t do anything dangerously evil.
Have the teams and drivers received that message yet? NASCAR will probably find out in the next two weeks.
The knockout race to determine the four drivers who will compete for the championship takes place on Sunday at the shortest track on the track, Martinsville Freeway 0.526 miles. The champion will then be crowned on November 6 at The Phoenix Racetrack is a mile long.
NASCAR officials hope they don’t run into any more problems this month. But the knockout stages are designed for drama, and with that comes sporting control.
William Byron in the Bubba Wallace penalty
William Byron says the sentencing of Bubba Wallace shows where NASCAR stands when it comes to retaliation.
Before NASCAR reaches Martinsville, their appeals panel will hear an appeal over a penalty given to Stewart-Haas Racing for manipulating the finish on October 9 at the Charlotte circuit. NASCAR said Cole Custer instructed to slow down to help teammates Chase Briscoe earn points (points that he finished with do not need to advance to this round).
“I think they jumped the gun a little bit,” team co-owner Gene Haas said of the penalty. “Obviously, they don’t want people fixing races, but when someone says, ‘I think you can have an apartment,’ [as Custer’s crew chief did] doesn’t seem quite exactly a code word.
“You hear that all the time. Cole is pretty tough no matter what. I think these are just some of the situations that they interpret in their own way.”
Also before the NASCAR Cup Series race in Martinsville, Bubba Wallace will return to the track to practice and qualify after being suspended from a race for willful vandalism Kyle Larson in retaliation on October 16 in Las Vegas. NASCAR said the wreck crossed the line when there was dangerous action on the track.
Wallace and 23XI Racing accepted the penalty. There hasn’t been much argument from them, and the conversation around Wallace’s punishment has been about whether NASCAR was more lenient in previous cases that should have resulted in suspensions.
“They drew a very good line,” said Denny Hamlin, co-owner of 23XI Racing and a driver for Joe Gibbs Racing. “They did the right thing.
“Can we be more consistent with that in the future and what’s the determining factor in crossing that line? … Speed, the kind of road we’ve been on [at Las Vegas] was a big factor in the penalty kick. “
Denny Hamlin says NASCAR did the right thing
Denny Hamlin says NASCAR did the right thing in drawing up a line of retaliation.
While the heat of the moment may overshadow their judgment at high speeds, drivers appear to favor the establishment and enforcement of NASCAR’s rules.
“Personally, I think it’s good that NASCAR is lowering the law, knocking down things that they think are wrong and that they want to take action on,” Ryan Blaney speak. “That’s the only way you can sort the cop. You have to do those things.
“At the end of the day, that’s their call. If they see something they don’t like, I hope they act on it and they have the last few weeks. That doesn’t change the approach. of the way I do anything.In my mind, you never think, ‘If I do something malicious on purpose or something like that, you can just ignore it. ‘ “
Ryan Blaney on the recent penalty given by NASCAR
Ryan Blaney says he thinks it’s good that NASCAR has taken down actions it deems wrong.
Former National Cup Champion Joey Logano tells the driver what’s right and wrong at high speeds – or they’ll eventually learn.
“Sport tests your morals and tests your character many times over,” he said. “Sometimes it’s hard to balance all that in the heat of the moment. … Sometimes you make decisions you’re not proud of later, but you learn the lesson each time.
“I made mistakes and made stupid decisions inside racing cars that I deeply regret. But I learned from each of them, and I feel like I know where I am.”
Joey Logano about the message NASCAR sent
Joey Logano said NASCAR has been sending messages over the past few weeks about the location of the line according to the driver’s behavior.
Lines can vary by rider and team as to how far they will go to help a teammate or express their dissatisfaction with the way they have been raced.
“It doesn’t change anything in the way I think and the way I do things because in my opinion both of those moves are extremely, extremely stupid,” said the Trackhouse driver. Daniel Suárez speak. “Both of you, I would be surprised if I didn’t get a ticket.
“Even before those situations happened, I would never do something like that. It’s not that obvious. You have to be smarter. I don’t know what those people are thinking.”
Suarez said he’s happy that NASCAR “puts people in their place because it’s too much.” However, that doesn’t mean he won’t give his teammates, Ross Chastainsome space was left open as Chastain tried to advance to the championship round.
“I’ll race Ross not too hard,” admitted Suarez. “He’s my teammate, and I know what lies ahead… I’ll never give up a win to help him. But the level of my aggression towards my teammates right now will be going.” slightly.
“But I would never brake hard to give up a position. I know the consequences of that. That’s unprofessional. Same thing – destroy someone the way it happened. [at Vegas] – not intelligent. “
Chasing Briscoe with punishment in retaliation
Chase Briscoe believes that NASCAR penalties for retaliation should be severe.
Drivers were relatively united in their views on Wallace’s actions.
“Deliberately hooking people up in [right rear] should never be accepted,” Kevin Harvic tweeted after Wallace’s sentence was announced. “Protect us from ourselves. I hope this is the beginning of the end of it happening.”
The driver could obviously prevent that from happening on his own. They are the people who hold the steering wheel and the people who operate the brake pedal.
“You just hope that you’re not in those situations,” Larson said. “NASCAR has been struggling here lately… and hopefully we can pick up the momentum to shift to the NASCAR side for a bit.”
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Think big
While the focus is on the knockout stages at this time of year, the team that is quietly showing signs of improvement for 2023 is Kaulig Racing.
AJ Allmendinger finished ninth a week ago in Las Vegas and then finished third at Homestead, signaling that he could be a factor next season as he enters Cup racing full time. Those were not great shots for Allmendinger and the Kaulig team.
Everyone knew the Allmendinger would be a threat on road courses. But for him, showing this strength on the intermediate ovals is impressive.
His teammates, Justin Haleyhas seen a streak of seven finishing in the top 20 happen at Homestead, but he is also showing progress.
Social focus
Statistics of the day
Brad Keselowski earned 5th in the first top 5 of the season with 5th at Homestead.
They said it
“Great racing car.” – Kyle Larson after victory at Homestead
Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR for FOX Sports. He has spent decades driving motorsport, including 30 former Daytona 500s, with positions at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrassand sign up FOX Sports NASCAR Newsletter with Bob Pockrass.
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