Dale Earnhardt Jr Believes Ty Gibbs “Helmet” Criticism Stems from Chase Elliott-Kevin Harvick NASCAR Feud

Last weekend, the Xfinity race at the Martinsville Speedway descended into chaos. This was because a late clash between Sam Mayer and Ty Gibbs cost the latter dearly. As a result, the two of them came to blows on pit road in a very ugly scene. In light of the fistfight, Dale Earnhardt Jr weighed in on the situation.

He said, “That was really the biggest criticism. I think at the end of the night was from social media about the helmet. Don’t know where I land on that because this has never really been a debate in the past, about the helmet. It started last year with [Kevin] Harvick and Chase [Elliott]. There was another incident I think, with a driver or two, where this conversation about the helmet being on or off, started. I don’t remember this conversation ever being important.”

What else did Dale Earnhardt Jr say about the incident?

In his opinion, neither driver deserved a penalty, especially since they did not escalate the situation. Additionally, whatever happens on pit road is generally tried in the court of public opinion. At the moment, public opinion is largely backing Mayer, while Gibbs is public enemy number 1.

One positive that he could glean from this was that it generated a lot of buzz. At the same time though, both Gibbs and Mayer should be discouraged from acting crazy on the track. While they should not be too restricted, the duo cannot afford to go to the other extreme.

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In the end, the drivers have to work it out between themselves and maintain a professional attitude. Dale Earnhardt Jr also acknowledged that on pit road, things happen really fast in the heat of the moment. Words exchanged could threaten to make a driver snap and mistakes can be made.