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Austin Dillon’s monumental penalty after wrecking two drivers on his way to the win at Richmond affected more than just Dillon himself. It affected the season and the reputation of the NASCAR Playoffs as well.
NASCAR’s decision to penalize Austin Dillon is not warranted, as NASCAR has penalized drivers for intentionally wrecking in the past.
When officials looked at SMT data, similar to Dillon’s, and found that Chase Elliott intentionally wrecked Denny Hamlin during the pair’s back-and-forth battle at Charlotte last season, NASCAR suspended Elliott for one race.
What about a more violent example?
In 2011, Kyle Busch intentionally wrecked Ron Hornaday Jr. in a Truck Series race, and NASCAR suspended Busch for one Cup Series race. Penalizing such actions is not new to NASCAR.
Richmond’s slower speeds may be why Dillon did not receive a suspension, as the prior two examples were on faster tracks.
NASCAR previously set an example for intentionally wrecking drivers with Bubba Wallace and Kyle Larson in 2022 and the prior two incidents. Now, NASCAR has set a new example with Austin Dillon.
Removing a driver who qualified for the playoff under such circumstances has never occurred in NASCAR history—that is, until now. This aggression could be partly due to the new NASCAR Senior Vice President of Competition, Elton Sawyer, who took the role in January 2023.
A former driver, Sawyer, has made the tough calls and had to do so here. The circumstances were not just the credibility of winning a race by wrecking others but of the legitimacy of the playoffs.
Many fans have asked if drivers are more willing to wreck each other in a “win and you’re in” playoff format. However, in an interview about the penalties with Kim Coon, Sawyer said:
“But anything that we feel like from a sanctioning body that has crossed the line from a standpoint that compromises the integrity of our playoff format. As well as our championship, we are going to get involved.” — Elton Sawyer, NASCAR Senior Vice President of Competition
NASCAR wants to protect the playoffs, and while this sets the stage for positive ground, the sport has not necessarily helped itself in the past.
Take the media attention from this last weekend as an example. NASCAR posted the video everywhere, gaining clicks, views, likes, and coverage from all sports outlets, including NASCAR’s white whale, ESPN.
While the controversy gains social traction, it’s not a good look for NASCAR. What about the suspensions in the past? Haven’t they shown that NASCAR cares about more than attention?
Well, let’s look at Sunday’s crash. While the lack of suspension could be due to the slow speeds and the intensity of the finish, everything is not what it seems.
This week, Denny Hamlin’s Crew Chief Chris Gabehart told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio that Hamlin’s wreck, while it looked small compared to past wrecks, was statistically the hardest crash in the Next Gen era at Joe Gibbs Racing.
This is a bad look, as the Next-Gen car has seen its fair share of injuries in its short life span. Hamlin was lucky to have walked away safely.
Those favoring Dillon’s actions have pointed out that Hamlin and Logano have a history of doing so, even after Hamlin called for NASCAR to act on this incident on his weekly podcast.
Hamlin claims that NASCAR had a legitimacy problem and needed to make a big move. Now that NASCAR has made a move for that integrity, Hamlin is catching heat from fans for his past blunders.
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