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NASCAR officials ruled Wednesday that Austin Dillon‘s win at Richmond Raceway would not count toward eligibility for the Cup Series Playoffs. The decision arrives three days after the Richard Childress Racing driver bashed his way to victory by crashing Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin on the final lap of Sunday’s Cook Out 400.
Dillon’s penalty was the most severe of a handful of those issued after Sunday’s race, which was decided by a chaotic last lap of overtime. After a full review of footage and data, NASCAR officials ruled Dillon’s victory would stand, but that his automatic berth in the 16-driver postseason field would be voided for violating Section 12.3.2.1.b of the NASCAR Rule Book, which deals with playoff eligibility and states: “Race finishes must be unencumbered by violation(s) of the NASCAR Rules or other action(s) detrimental to stock car auto racing or NASCAR as determined in the sole discretion of NASCAR.”
Dillon and the No. 3 team also were docked 25 points in both the drivers’ and owners’ standings, dropping Dillon from 26th to 31st in the former rankings. Officials also indicated that the rescinded playoff eligibility for Sunday’s win applies to both the drivers’ and owners’ championship.
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Elton Sawyer, NASCAR senior vice president of competition, indicated that the penalties stemmed from the total chain of events through Turns 3 and 4 on the final lap.
“I think in all due respect to the appeal process, we looked at this and the totality of everything that happened as you enter Turn 3 and as the cars got to the start/finish line,” Sawyer said. “So, as we look through all of that data, we came to the conclusion that a line had been crossed. Our sport has been based going for many, many years, forever, on good, hard racing. Contact has been acceptable. We felt like, in this case, that the line was crossed.”
Logano was fined $50,000 for his actions after the race, when he spun the tires of his No. 22 Team Penske Ford in anger near the RCR No. 3 team’s pit box. That show of disgust — a violation of the member code of conduct for compromising the safety of others — sent celebrants from Dillon’s team scattering on pit road and drew a stern rebuke from NASCAR officials at the scene.
NASCAR competition officials also suspended Brandon Benesch, the No. 3 team’s spotter, for three Cup Series races for his guidance of Dillon atop the grandstand roof. A review of transmissions from the No. 3 team radio revealed Benesch saying “wreck him” as Dillon battled alongside Hamlin with the checkered flag in sight.
Dillon entered Sunday’s race in 32nd place in the Cup Series standings, but his performance had vaulted him into the 13th position on the provisional playoff grid. Wednesday‘s ruling reduces the number of playoff qualifiers to 12, with four open spots to be determined in the three remaining regular-season events. Dillon is still eligible for the playoffs overall, should he win one of those remaining three races.
Both Hamlin and Logano were critical of Dillon’s last-lap tactics, which turned both of their cars into the outside retaining wall. Logano had cleared Dillon on the final restart and opened a slight advantage in the two-lap dash to the finish, but Dillon hustled his No. 3 RCR Chevrolet deep into Turn 3, clipping Logano’s No. 22 Ford and spinning it sideways.
Dillon’s loss of momentum allowed Hamlin’s No. 11 Toyota to inch ahead at the exit of Turn 4 but contact between those two sent Hamlin broadside into the outside wall. Dillon drove on to his first Cup Series victory in 68 races, a span of nearly two years.
Dillon and his team owner and grandfather Richard Childress defended the final-lap moves in the winner’s press conference. Dillon explained he was trying to get Logano’s car loose and that his contact with Hamlin’s car “was more of just a reaction.” He also noted the pressure of a lengthy winless skid and the stakes of qualifying for the Cup Series Playoffs.
“I don’t know, man. It’s just the rules of the sport, right?” Dillon said. “It is what it is. Wins get you into the next round. I did what I had to do to cross the start/finish line first.”
Dillon, Childress and No. 3 crew chief Justin Alexander all indicated they did not hear Benesch’s directive of “wreck him” from the spotters’ stand. Told that a recording of the team’s radio transmissions seemed to confirm that language, Childress said: “I didn‘t hear him, and I was on the radio with him. We’ll see. If he did, he did a damn good job at it. He won the race.”
Sawyer explained the thought process that went into the officials’ decision to suspend Benesch, saying, “If you look at at the crew chief and you look at the spotter, and view them as calming voices in the driver’s ear, in this case, we just felt like we’ve all listened to the audio. We know exactly what was said. We just felt like that that’s not what we need spotters doing. That’s not what we need (from a) crew chief sitting on the box. They’re a calming voice to what the situation is in front of them, and they’re supposed to be spotting for the race, not making comments like were made, as we all know.”
Sawyer addressed the fine for Logano’s pit-road anger, saying that officials would take a closer look at post-race protocols for people going over the wall while cars are still moving toward their designated parking areas.
“Some of this, we’ve got some work to do on our side,” Sawyer said. “There was a lot of people on pit road, and there always is. We have our officials out there. The drivers need to understand that. Totally understand the emotion — I get it, I’ve been there a few years back. But you have to respect the fact that we do have people on pit road. Our officials will be there, security will be there. We’ll do a better job on our side to make sure that families and young children and sponsors and of that nature are not on the hot side.”
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