Where to start…? Like everyone else, the place to start, apparently, is at the end…
Ricky Stenhouse Jr pulled along the quarter of Ryan Preece which sent the #41 into a 360 spin as the #47 of Stenhouse went up with a nose in the wall. This set an overtime scene at Richmond Raceway and a restart that became a finish by the bumper.
Austin Dillon held a comfortable lead in the Cook Out 400 when the caution was thrown. A pit road dash cycled for the restart which placed Dillon, Joey Logano, Denny Hamlin and Tyler Reddick on the front rows. The race was on for a green – white – checkers finish with hot sauce and vinegar.
Logano jumped forward on the start. Dillon fell back. The final turns on the final lap had Dillon in the #3 pushing momentum and into Logano. Logano spun as Dillon drove on and into Hamlin who had come up on the high side. The #11 went into into the upper wall. Dillon came through with the #22 and #11 in tangles and took the checkers in a very hot finish.
Hamlin was less than content. Logano was a bit less than that…
Dillon took the win and an *apparent berth in the post-season playoffs. Coming into Richmond the Richard Childress Racing #3 was scratching the bottom in 32nd place for season points and had not taken a win in two seasons. Hamlin in the #11 crossed the line in the 2nd spot as Logano managed to get the #22 moving and crossed over in 19th.
The early race began with Denny Hamlin on the pole and running in the top five with a 2nd place stage 1 behind Christopher Bell and a 3rd place at stage 3. Logano was also top 5 at the stages crossing in 4th for both.
The big talk is on the #3 and the sudden *boost into a playoff spot. Drivers like Martin Truex Jr and Daniel Suarez also made some moves. Suarez has a season win but added to his points with a stage 2 win and a top 10 finish at Richmond. Truex fell back with engine trouble forcing the #19 to park and a last place score. Truex has run well but still has no win this season and took a points hit for playoff positions.
For the finish at Richmond, fans and the team of the #3 are throwing the “short track bumping and rubbing is racing” flag while fans and teams of the #22 and #11 are throwing the questions and accusations. We’ve all seen forced moves to pass and bumper retaliations involving Logano and Hamlin (and many others…). The scales are being tested between fan excitement and the cost and payoff of racing.
*Later decision by NASCAR using rules applying to incident racing stripped the #3 team of the playoff spot. They keep the win but it does not apply to playoff positions. The #3, essentially, is just a nudge above their points coming in. Joey Logano was fined $50k for dangerous post race maneuvers in the #3 pit box.
Three more NASCAR Cup races remain for playoff points or a win to get in. The #3 made a big move to make it in and these next races will see if that sets the stage for more “at any cost” actions to claim the checkered flag. It will also be interesting to see how the teams of the #22 and the #11 race with the #3 into the late season. Be patient… Things might not get really interesting until that first round of eliminations.
Photos from the Cook Out 400 at Richmond Raceway – Sunday, August 11, 2024
