By Jerry Jordan, Editor
LAS VEGAS – Denny Hamlin’s decision to pass Ross Chastain in the closing laps at the Charlotte ROVAL race and his subsequent comments about making a different decision had he known where Joey Logano was in the points have sparked a firestorm of comments from drivers, NASCAR and fans questioning whether a different move would be considered race manipulation.
Recapping the situation, immediately following the race, Hamlin said his radio was silent as the team declined to relay information on where other drivers were in the points. Because he passed Chastain, Hamlin is now forced to deal with Logano possibly spoiling his championship hopes.
“I would’ve made the best decision for me. I wish I would have known,” Hamlin told the media. “I didn’t know if I was running 10th or 25th. I mean, listening to the radio the whole time, there was just crickets. Nobody said anything, nobody told me anything. I wish they did.”
Earlier this week, NASCAR’s communications team spoke of the matter on the sanctioning body’s Hauler Talk Podcast, saying that discussing points over the radio and seeing a driver react to that information would have raised a “red flag.”
“At a certain point during this week, we will just remind teams, ‘Let’s not put yourselves or ourselves in jeopardy here,’” NASCAR Managing Director of Communications Mike Forde said Wednesday. “I think we would have looked into it for sure. If we heard that radio transmission say, ‘Hey, (Chastain) needs this point to advance to the next round over (Logano)’ or something of that ilk, and all of a sudden, (Hamlin) let off the gas, that would probably raise a red flag on our side.”
Should drivers be allowed to know where their competitors are in the points and use that information to their advantage in competing for the NASCAR Cup Series Championship? Hamlin certainly does and several others do too; however, the topic is also an unpleasant one for some drivers, especially Christopher Bell.
“I don’t know, most of the drivers are out there, you know, are blind to what’s going on unless someone speaks up and I know that’s very sensitive right now with people talking on the radio about it, it’s just, I don’t know, it kind of feels a little bit gross,” Bell told members of the media at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway I would love to just, you know, be able to race and, you know, not have to worry about this, manipulation stuff.”
Bell explained that he doesn’t want to be worried about what is said over the radio and he believes other drivers feel the same way. He added that he just wants to, “go out there and lay it all on the line all the time.”
Logano, who benefitted from the pass by Hamlin and the subsequent wreck caused by Chastain trying to regain his position, said he wants to know the points situation during the race and believes that had Hamlin let Chastain keep his position, it wouldn’t necessarily make things easier in the playoffs Round of 8. He noted that Chastain has a history of aggressive driving and it could have backfired.
“I want to know, obviously, my point situation because it matters, but I also want to know the other point situations because that matters too, not necessarily for manipulating the race, but understanding what risk I’m taking,” Logano said. “Is this guy in a must-win situation and he’s gonna clobber me? Or, how hard is this car gonna be to pass in general. What are the motives out there, and there are plenty of times throughout the year where Coleman (Presley, No. 22 spotter) will tell me, ‘Hey, the top three cars on this restart are all must-wins.’ I’m like, ‘OK.’ I might be eighth at that moment or wherever, but just knowing that gives me like, ‘OK, this could be a pretty crazy restart. This might be a little different than what we’ve watched before the race and how we think it’s gonna go and I’ve got to be ready.’ I want to know those things. That helps me, not in a case of changing the outcome or anything like that, but how can I make the 22-car finish better.”
Logano said he realizes it’s a slippery slope but having information on where his competition stands is important. But he hasn’t heard from NASCAR directly on what is good and what is bad, adding he hasn’t talked to officials and doesn’t think his opinion would matter either way.
“I think if you’re just saying what’s going on, it’s probably OK,” Logano said. “I do think there are some gray lines of, to your point, where is the black and white of this you can do and this you can’t do. I’m sure we could probably tighten some of that up a little bit and just help us understand that.”
Hamlin said he also believes having information on the field is important and pointed to a situation in 2024 at the Martinsville Speedway cutoff race, where there was no doubt there was an attempt made to manipulate the outcome of the race by members of the No. 1, No. 3 and No. 23 teams. Following that race, NASCAR dropped the hammer with major fines and multiple suspensions.
“I think it’s important to know that and then I don’t see any reason why I can’t know what the point situation is,” Hamlin said. “I’ve always asked what the point situation is. I didn’t in this third stage (at the ROVAL). I think the team gave me an update at the end of the second stage, simply because I was restarting, I believe, behind Chase Briscoe (JGR teammate) and someone else and they were saying at the time, Briscoe was close. So, at that point, I don’t want to put him in a bad spot. I know I’m basically in, and so I think that’s important information to know. So, I don’t, I think that if you see through evidence, there’s clear manipulation going on, I don’t think what gets said on the radio should really matter is, I mean, everyone has eyes and ears and so you should be able to see when someone deliberately does something to manipulate the finish. It’s a weird one in my case because I had no dog in that fight. I had no allegiance to either party (Logano or Chastain) and so at that point, my question would be, ‘do I have a right to then choose my competitor?’”