It is far from being over, as the curtain is yet to fall on the Coca-Cola 600 debacle. The whole event has boiled to whether the punishment that was dished out to Chase Elliott is justified or not. The whole of NASCAR is now on the verge of picking sides while the banter between the two groups continues.  

The rain first delayed the start of the Coca-Cola 600 and it later postponed the race to the next day. While the excitement was running high among the drivers as well as the fans, as to who shall clinch the new title, it was Denny Hamlin who had the highest stake among the other drivers in the grid. 

But the unfortunate event occurred between him and Hendrick Motorsports’ ace driver and forced them to finish the race early. Although there were speculations about whether Elliott would be charged with any penalty or not, NASCAR did not delay in thrashing out the punishment owing to its past precedent. 

Denny Hamlin Finds Support From Dale Earnhardt Jr and His Crew Chief

The industry insiders had been vocal about the fact that Elliott deserved the punishment and the penalty from the governing body was considered as a welcome move by many, including Dale Earnhardt Jr. 

In an interview with SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, the veteran driver expressed, “I think we all expected the penalty to come considering the precedent that they had set back in Vegas last year. So I don’t anybody’s really too surprised over with the decision NASCAR has made.”

“I was curious, I know there was some radio chat matter over the 9 car. But there wasn’t admission and I was curious whether the admission would be necessary or the lack of admission would factor into how NASCAR made the decision. Could NASCAR lean solely on the SMT data?[…]”

He also added, “And for Chase, I think just sit down, take the punishment and move forward. Try to put it behind you and move forward. And hopefully, Denny’s frustrated, and nothing going to change. What happened that night and hitting the wall is never a fun experience. We saw the in-car [camera] and how violent it was, but hopefully, he could move forward.”

Even Denny Hamlin’s crew chief, Chris Gabehart, had expressed, “Yeah, you can’t go that far [right hooking someone], no doubt about it. I’m all for contact and heck even spending guys out if you’re upset with them and willing to understand that there might be consequences for it. I think there should be black flags and sent to the rear for rough driving.”

“More consistently I think that’s fine, but I don’t think the driver wants to be mad enough to get the rear, spend a guy out because of it, so be it. But there is an escalation to that type of behavior that goes too far and I’m a witness of it this week. I mean, he’s hurt. I’m not gonna get in specific and he’ll be fine, he’ll go race get away this week but, he’s sore.”

“It rung his bell.”

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Fans Haul Their Anger at Denny Hamlin for Being Dramatic

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But the fans are far from being convinced about the verdict that was issued for the “Golden Boy” and considered that the penalty is flawed. Twitter saw the emergence of a new war of words, where the fans lashed out at the JGR driver.

One wrote, “Denny Hamlin is such a weirdo. Every time since after his last Daytona 500 win he’s been in the news for nothing but drama and nonsense. From Danica Patrick a while back, Ross Chastain, now Elliot? Dude needs a championship to end the career, not on-track drama. Or that guy.”

“Wow @NASCAR . How dare you do that to @chaseelliott when @dennyhamlin started that shit to begin with?! Suspend Hamlin too if you’re going to suspend anybody. Because he started that issue. Chase can’t defend himself? Bullshit. NASCAR is such a joke now. And Hamlin is a cry baby.”

A netizen also wrote a comment under the interview of Junior, “I guess DH is your buddy, the bully!! I’m disappointed in your statement as I have followed you and your beloved father for years.”

Other fans wrote:

“Maybe if Denny Hamlin didn’t drive like an a****le all the time. Maybe he would have not been wracked. He got karma.”

“DH has issues beyond this one. He seriously believes everyone on the track should bow to him in some form or another.”

Nevertheless, the question of whether the fans are right or wrong is a debate for a different time. It is to be seen whether, even after setting two precedents, will the drivers take the risk of committing another, intentionally or not. Should NASCAR be more stringent with its rule or can leeways be provided to drivers is the question of the hour?  

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