Ricky Stenhouse Jr. claimed victory in a nail-biting photograph end at Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday, crossing the road a mere .006 seconds forward of his closest competitor. Nonetheless, the thrilling race consequence has been overshadowed by controversy following a post-race inspection that uncovered important injury to Stenhouse’s No. 47 Chevrolet.
The injury to the automobile was on account of a chaotic 28-car pile-up simply 5 laps earlier than the race concluded. This accident resulted in a considerable gap within the left aspect of Stenhouse’s car, breaching the protecting foam that NASCAR mandates for security. Beneath the rules outlined in NASCAR’s Rule E book, such injury would necessitate instant restore. The foundations explicitly require that any energy-absorbing foam on the car doorways get replaced if broken, a stipulation that was seemingly ignored.
Surprisingly, NASCAR officers didn’t instruct Stenhouse to pit for obligatory repairs, permitting him to proceed the race. This resolution drew sharp criticism from a number of quarters, most notably from seasoned driver Denny Hamlin. Through his podcast, “Actions Detrimental,” Hamlin commented:
“So, your race winner had an enormous gap in his left aspect door. He had some door foam lacking, he had a gap in his door. That is the place I feel widespread sense would come into play, nonetheless, you do have guidelines. Do I feel that the 47 ought to have come down and put Bear Bond over his door? Sure, by the letter of the legislation.
“That is why you make guidelines, so you could have protocols, and also you implement these guidelines. However they did not, and once I hear Elton Sawyer speaking after the race that it was information to him that the 47 had a gap in his door, I am not likely certain what we’re doing.
“It simply looks like I hear continuously from NASCAR a number of ridiculous reasoning behind calls that they make saying, ‘We did not know, we did not have an excellent angle, we won’t choose.’ Like, you could have the sources to do it, why aren’t you? Finally it’s a must to maintain your sanctioning physique accountable to say, ‘You gotta do higher.’ Do I feel there is a security downside with the 47 from what I noticed? I don’t… The problem is the principles. They did not observe the principles.”
NASCAR’s Senior Vice President of Competitors, Elton Sawyer, acknowledged after the race:
“That is information to me, the primary I’ve heard of it,” Sawyer stated. “I can not touch upon that as a result of I do not know.”
NASCAR Cup Sequence: YellaWood 500 at Talladega Superspeedway Outcomes
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr – Working
- Brad Keselowski – Working
- William Byron – Working
- Kyle Larson – Working
- Erik Jones – Working
- Christopher Bell – Working
- Justin Haley – Working
- Austin Dillon – Working
- Bubba Wallace – Working
- Denny Hamlin – Working
- Martin Truex Jr – Working
- Cody Ware – Working
- Ty Gibbs – Working
- Carson Hocevar – Working
- Shane Van Gisbergen – Working
- Alex Bowman – Working
- Chris Buescher – Working
- Corey LaJoie – Working
- Kyle Busch – Working
- Tyler Reddick – Working
- Zane Smith – Working
- BJ McLeod – Working
- Todd Gilliland – Working
- Anthony Alfredo – Working
- Noah Gragson – Working
- Daniel Suárez – Working
- JJ Yeley – Working
- AJ Allmendinger – Working
- Chase Elliott – Working
- Chase Briscoe – Working
- John H. Nemechek – Working
- Austin Cindric – Accident
- Joey Logano – Accident
- Harrison Burton – Accident
- Ryan Preece – Accident
- Josh Berry – Accident
- Michael McDowell – Accident
- Daniel Hemric – Accident
- Ryan Blaney – Accident
- Ross Chastain – Accident