Ricky Stenhouse Jr. HAMMERED For North Wilkesboro Fight
What’s Happening? On Wednesday morning, NASCAR announced severe penalties for Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and his team following the brawl at…
On Tuesday, NASCAR announced that Carson Hocevar was penalized for intentionally wrecking Harrison Burton under caution at Nashville. However, this penalty was not the same for other similar incidents this season, so why has officiating been so inconsistent?
What’s Happening? On Wednesday morning, NASCAR announced severe penalties for Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and his team following the brawl at…
At North Wilkesboro, Kyle Busch and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. got into each other on lap one. Busch retaliated by pushing Stenhouse Jr. into the outside wall in turn one, and Stenhouse responded by confronting and punching Busch after the race. Stenhouse Jr. was hammered with a $75,000 fine, two crew member suspensions, and Stenhouse Jr.’s dad being indefinitely suspended. Busch, however, was not penalized for his original move on Stenhouse Jr.
Busch denied intentionally wrecking Stenhouse, instead pulling out the old Dale Earnhardt line, saying he intended to “Rattle his cage.” Typically, NASCAR hasn’t penalized drivers for bump and runs gone wrong, so, this was relatively consistent. However, a similar incident later on this list was not treated the same way.
What’s Happening? NASCAR announced on Wednesday that NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Austin Hill was fined $25,000 and docked 25 driver points…
At Charlotte in May, Austin Hill and Cole Custer got caught up in a wreck late in the race. Hill showed his displeasure by shoving Custer down the backstretch and hooking him into the inside wall. NASCAR did not penalize Hill during the race, but they did drop the hammer on Monday with a $25,000 fine and a 25-point penalty.
NASCAR does not take this kind of intentional wreck kindly, such as suspending Chase Elliott and Bubba Wallace in the Cup Series for right-hooks into the wall under green. This happened under caution at a slower pace, so that is probably why the penalty was slightly less severe. A similar incident came up later on this list.
At Nashville in the Truck Series, Layne Riggs and Stefan Parsons were racing hard for position, with Parsons shoving Riggs up the track one lap. Later, Riggs shoved Parsons into turn three, sending Parsons into the wall. Riggs was held for two laps as the penalty.
Why was Riggs penalized for this, but Busch was not penalized for a similar move at North Wilkesboro earlier this year? One factor is that Nashville is a high-speed track, whereas North Wilkesboro is a low-speed short track, which may have played a role. Typically, NASCAR is a bit more lenient when moving on a short track due to the tight racing, but it’s still strange that they dropped the hammer here and not there. It’s also strange how this was officiated compared to later in the weekend.
Under caution at Nashville, Carson Hocevar right-hooked Harrison Burton around, but Burton kept on going with minimal damage. Instead of penalizing Hocevar on the spot as they did with Riggs two nights before, NASCAR decided to wait until Tuesday. The penalty was the same as Austin Hill for wrecking Cole Custer under caution, 25 points, and a $25,000 fine.
So, it’s consistent in one aspect, but NASCAR handled something similar totally differently on Friday. What gives between the two? Riggs’ incident was under green at high speed, so that probably prompted NASCAR to act more quickly. The Hill vs Custer incident is a closer comparison anyway, but it’s still strange how things were different.
Has NASCAR been inconsistent? These incidents are unique in some aspects but similar in others, and NASCAR handled them differently, generally speaking.
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Three races into the season, the new Chase format has already intensified the competition for a foothold in the NASCAR standings. As a system that rewards both race winners and those who maintain consistent results, it keeps the postseason race open for a wide range of contenders, while cycling out those drivers who can’t get their wheels under them during the season.
In the NASCAR Cup Series, Tyler Reddick has established himself as the early points leader with a dominant lead. After securing three consecutive victories, he enters Phoenix Raceway as the clear favorite to make the Chase, while the rest of the field looks to break his momentum.
However, the start of the season has been difficult for several drivers. Despite their previous accomplishments, these competitors are currently struggling to maintain their standing in the early stages of the race to the Chase.
Christopher Bell
Last season, Christopher Bell kicked off his campaign with a dominant stretch of three wins stretching from Atlanta to Phoenix, propelling him into a clear spot for the postseason.
The early stages of his 2026 campaign, however, have made it difficult for him to secure even top-five or top-ten finishes. Bell currently sits 24th in the standings with 59 points. The speed has been there, yet in-race incidents have dug him into a points hole.
At Daytona International Speedway, Bell ran inside the top ten with fewer than ten laps remaining before the race turned on its head. Contact from behind sent his car into trouble, leaving him to limp away with a 35th-place finish, far from where he had been running.
The following race at EchoPark Speedway brought more of the same. During an overtime restart, Bell lined up on the front row when contact from Carson Hocevar pushed the No. 20 Toyota into the outside wall, turning what looked like a chance at a trip to victory lane into another lost afternoon, ending his day 21st.
Bell finally managed to stop the downward slide at COTA. When a late caution flew, he took a gamble on fresh tires and charged from 16th to third, climbing through the field with solid pace. The run placed Bell on the proverbial podium and brought home 34 points, pushing him up by seven positions in the points standings table.
Connor Zilisch
Connor Zilisch showed speed and talent this past weekend at COTA. Starting 25th, he climbed through the pack and crossed the line in 14th despite a day marred by incidents with other drivers. At one point, he even climbed from the back 30s to fourth before trouble struck again.
While numbers do not tell the whole story, for now, results from the opening racing of the season have left Zilisch with ground to make up. Zilisch collected five points at Daytona, nine at Atlanta, and 23 at COTA. The tally has left him with 37 points, placing him in 32nd in the standings, among the bottom group in the standings.
Zilisch closed last season at Phoenix (albeit in the O’Reilly Series) with a third-place finish, hinting that the one-mile oval in the deserts of Arizona, this weekend, could offer him a chance to improve his ranking.
Chase Briscoe
Chase Briscoe entered 2026 after his best Cup season so far in his young career. His first season with Joe Gibbs Racing ended with a third-place finish in the standings. However, the early stretch of the 2026 season has delivered mixed returns.
Briscoe finished runner-up at Atlanta, but the other two races have slipped through his fingers after looking strong. Briscoe came home in 36th in the Daytona 500, and after starting from third at COTA, he had high expectations.
But his weekend came undone on Lap 63 of the 95-lap race when the No. 19 Toyota lost its transaxle. Briscoe said the car shifted into neutral before smoke began to rise, leaving him with a 37th-place result.
The run was his second DNF in the first three races of the 2026 season. As a result, Briscoe slid from 15th to 27th in the standings with 46 points, trailing Reddick by 140 as the series heads further west.
Beyond the Cup Series, who is facing early points trouble in NASCAR’s lower National Series?
Harrison Burton
Harrison Burton moved to Sam Hunt Racing’s No. 24 and Toyota for the 2026 season. Through the first three races, Burton has recorded two DNFs. He currently sits 34th in the standings with 18 points, a significant decline from the two top-10 finishes he held at this point last year while driving for AM Racing.
Nick Sanchez
Nick Sanchez joined AM Racing this season after closing last year with an 11th-place finish in the standings after scoring his first win in the series at Atlanta. He hoped to ride that momentum into the new season. The start, though, has come with swings in fortune.
Sanchez bagged a third-place finish at Atlanta. But a DNF at Daytona and a 25th-place run at COTA have slowed his climb. After three races, Sanchez finds himself 19th in the standings with 53 points.
What’s Happening? Nick Sanchez will drive AM Racing’s No. 25 car in 2026, filling one of the final open seats in…
Jeremy Clements
Jeremy Clements has long cut out a role as a driver who can surprise race fans and steal a ticket into the NASCAR postseason, though, without the win-and-in format, the driver/owner will have to work much harder to do so in 2026.
Last season, Clements closed the year in 21st place in the standings and began this campaign by scoring a top-10 finish at Daytona. Since then, however, a 32nd-place finish at Daytona, a DNF at Atlanta Motor Speedway, and another P32 result at Circuit of the Americas have left him in P30 with 25 points, placing him well below the cut line.
Grant Enfinger
Grant Enfinger entered the 2026 season after a run in 2024 that carried him to the Championship Four. And last year, despite not reaching victory lane, he sat seventh in the standings by the end of the season.
At this point last year, Enfinger had already placed inside the top five at Daytona International Speedway and at Las Vegas. This year, three races into 2026, Enfinger has finished outside the top 20 in each race and currently stands 23rd in the standings with 41 points.
Daniel Hemric
Daniel Hemric is 19th in the standings with 46 points. After starting the season with a 26th-place finish at Daytona and a 34th-place finish at Atlanta, Hemric secured his first top-10 finish of the year at St. Petersburg. He continues to seek his second career series win following his victory at Martinsville last year.
Mini Tyrrell
Mini Tyrrell arrived in the Truck Series as a rookie after closing last season in the CARS Late Model Stock Car Tour with a fifth-place finish and three wins.
Driving the No. 14 Ram for Kaulig Racing, Tyrrell opened the 2026 season with results of 19th at Daytona and Atlanta. His run at St. Petersburg, however, ended with a 28th finish, which dropped him to 20th in the standings with just 45 points.
What’s Happening? One major storyline to follow during the 2025 and 2026 NASCAR seasons is the ongoing saga of Dodge and…
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Alex Bowman will not compete in Sunday’s Cup Series race at Phoenix Raceway after being diagnosed with vertigo earlier this week. The Hendrick Motorsports driver stepped out of the car during the race at Circuit of the Americas due to illness, and after further medical evaluation, the team decided he should sit out this weekend. In his place, reserve driver Anthony Alfredo will drive the No. 48.
The situation also opens the door for a substitute appearance by Alfredo while the No. 48 team focuses on owner points and waits for Bowman to be medically cleared. Beyond the immediate lineup change, the update has sparked broader discussion about Bowman’s early-season struggles and how quickly he might return to the car.
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Alex Bowman will miss this weekend’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Phoenix Raceway. Hendrick Motorsports confirmed the news after Bowman was diagnosed with vertigo following medical evaluations earlier in the week. With Bowman sidelined, Anthony Alfredo will step in to drive the No. 48 car as the team prepares for Sunday’s event.
The video breaks down the latest update from Hendrick Motorsports, what it means for the No. 48 team this weekend, and how the situation could shape the early part of the season.
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