Racing fans have taken NASCAR to task several times this year. From excessive Next-Gen car parity to scrapped pylons, the sanctioning body has dealt with a load of criticism this year. But the foremost complaint that flagged off the season was about controversial finishes. The very first race, the Daytona 500, churned out a long debate about who among the two Hendrick drivers deserved the win.
Last weekend, we witnessed a similar situation playing out. Kyle Larson and Chris Buescher aggressively fought for the lead and performed a picture-perfect finish. Even though fans thought Buescher was the winner, NASCAR’s verdict favored Larson. Thus continues the debate, which experts fear will drag out at Darlington as well.
Lady in Black is likely to witness a Kansas replay in NASCAR
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Darlington Raceway has witnessed its fair share of controversies. In 1979, an epic battle ensued between Darrell Waltrip and Richard Petty. The two drivers exchanged leads several times in the last 80 laps. In the end, Waltrip won, with Petty and Bobby Allison inches behind him.
Then fast forward to 2023, Ross Chastain got into the bad books of Hendrick people. With six laps to go in the Goodyear 400 race, Chastain went rogue as he drove into Larson aggressively. Both ended up slamming the wall, and their cars were pretty damaged. Not only did Chastain cost Larson a good finish, he himself wound up in 29th place.
This year’s Darlington predictions are feared to be no better in terms of controversy. Recently, Bob Pockrass shared a video on X depicting the finish line at Darlington. The finish line camera is perched atop a Cup garage parallel to the area. Pockrass tweeted: “Darlington presents a little bit of a challenge when it comes to finish line high-speed camera technology.”
This takes us back to the Kansas confusion last week. NASCAR cleared up fans’ speculations about the crooked finish line. An official stated that a special camera is used to determine the winner. However, the same camera’s location is dubious at Darlington. Hence this amplifies the risk of another controversial finish.
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Interestingly, a Hendrick driver is part of arguably one of the most controversial finishes in NASCAR history.
Another time NASCAR ruled in favor of HMS
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When the Kansas race was over, Chris Buescher’s team had started celebrating. Even Kyle Larson was commending his team for a solid second-place run. But then NASCAR’s verdict came as a shock to most people, albeit for HMS it was sweet glory. Similarly in the 2022 Pocono race, Chase Elliott did not cross the finish line in the first or even second place, he was trailing behind the leading drivers in third place.
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But in a post-race inspection, both race-winning and runner-up drivers, Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch, were accused of foul play. Their car bodies were “modified” which is strictly forbidden for the Next Gen car. Hence NASCAR officials snatched the win from Hamlin and Busch and gifted it to Elliott.
We can only wait and see how the situation plays out at Darlington Raceway, and if NASCAR again falls in a favoritism situation with HMS.
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