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Parker Kligerman Finally Spills the Beans Behind His Confrontation With Sage Karam at COTA

Published 03/31/2024, 9:22 PM EDT

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Racing fans and NASCAR enthusiasts are observing an increased number of feuds and conflicts in the Xfinity Series races as compared to the Cup Series this season. This could be because the Xfinity racers are young and comparatively less experienced in handling tensions than their Cup Series competitors. In the Focused Health 250 race at the COTA road course, multiple drivers were penalized for shortcutting at the turns. Post-race, a serious confrontation situation emerged on the pit road at the banks of No. 48 Parker Kligerman pit station.

Bummed up Sage Karam, who finished 17th in the race, headed up to Kligerman’s court to express his frustration, alleging Kligerman had spun him in the last lap of the race. As per the videos being circulated on the internet, a heavy-duty big guy from Kligerman’s team stood between the two drivers, facing his back on Karam.

Parker Kligerman provides his insights about his confrontation with Karam

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The feud started at Pit Road and eventually made its way to a more debatable place, Twitter. It didn’t get over until and unless Dale Earnhardt Jr. intervened. Junior expressed his curiosity about the heavy-duty ECR person. He commented, “The ECR guy played with the way. Come on, man. That was so weird. And he kept moving back and forth, like like, he’s like, what do you do it? Let him talk. They were just talking. Yeah, I don’t get that. But that guy, in his way and it says, he’s just trying to talk to.”

Dale Jr in his statements, expressed his intention that if the ECR guy hadn’t come in between, the feud would have gotten over at the pit road itself. In his terms, maybe everything between Karam and Kligerman would have concluded if they had sensibly exchanged words with each other at that moment.

In response to Dale Jr’s curiosity, the Big Machine Racing driver initiated his response by talking about the ECR Guy. “The ECR engine guy, you are referring to. That is Jake. He’s my engine tuner, He’s a gentle giant,” reflected Kligerman.

Further detailing the pit road scenario, Kligerman continued, “You know I think in those scenarios on pit road, High emotions, right? It’s probably in everyone’s best interest, maybe not the viewers, right? But at least for us internally within the race teams that two drivers that heated, right? Probably don’t meet somewhere in the middle like that. Most likely always is not going to end with the best outcome possible. Because we’re both full of adrenaline, we were, you know, we were super emotional at that time.

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Kligerman’s statements provided the essence of maturity. 

Kligerman’s Richmond Race Updates

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The No. 48 Xfinity race car was behind by 0.327 seconds from the pole leader. Parker Kligerman, sole rider for the Big Machine Racing team, initiated the Toyota Care 250 race from lineup position 9th. In the previous race at COTA, Kligerman had chances to seize some stage points. However, his racecraft lacked the expertise at Richmond’s Oval short track. This time, Kligerman stayed behind during the stages, unable to clinch any of those extra points. 

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Nevertheless, he raced hard in the concluding laps of the races, running neck-on-neck beside Bubba Pollard of JR Motorsports. Finally ending up with a 7th-place finish, better than his starting position.

Christopher Bell Breathes a Sigh of Relief as He Calls In Peace With Kyle Busch After COTA Fallout

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Written by:

Susamay Dey

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Susamay Dey is a NASCAR Author at EssentiallySports. Combining his passion for writing and motorsports, he has gone on to pen down numerous articles on Stock Car Racing's fan favorites, like Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, and Bubba Wallace. While his strength lies in Core Sport reporting, he can also cover lifestyle pieces, enlightening fans about the lesser-known facts about NASCAR stars and their personal lives.
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Edited by:

Shivali Nathta