NASCAR's O'Donnell reiterates that Chastain's move was legal

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emailBy Kelly Crandall | November 1, 2022 12:50 PM ET

NASCAR chief operating officer Steve O’Donnell reiterated on Tuesday morning that Ross Chastain’s go-for-broke move on the last lap at Martinsville Speedway didn’t violate any rules.

Not only that, but O’Donnell said there will be no knee-jerk reaction from the sanctioning body going forward.

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Chastain rode the wall in Turns 3 and 4 wide open to gain five spots coming to the checkered flag and advance into the Championship 4. In doing so, his fellow competitors were both amazed and pondering if a box had been open for similar moves in the future.

“We’ve seen similar attempts but never successfully,” O’Donnell told on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. “In our 75-year history, no one has successfully done that. So, Ross pulled off a first that we all saw, that I don’t think anyone was thinking about. When you saw that, I think everyone has described [it] like a video game move.

“[It was] certainly within the rules … As with anything you see for the first time, you’ve got to take a look. We’ve had a number of discussions internally about that move and all the what-ifs.

“But it’s within the rules and [we] believe that’s where we’ll be for Phoenix as well and something we can evaluate in the offseason.”

Joey Logano was one of the drivers who was thoroughly entertained by what he saw. The Team Penske driver said it needed to be on SportsCenter (which it was) but also said for as “spectacular” as it was, it needed to be a one-time thing. Logano doesn’t believe the sport needs the field riding against the outside wall for safety reasons.

Denny Hamlin called it “funny,” although it came at his expense for a playoff spot. Kyle Larson, the reigning Cup Series champion, said it was embarrassing for the sport.

But social media has been ablaze with the video of Chastain’s move and drivers from other racing series weighing in with everything from disbelief to how fantastic it was. The clip posted on the official NASCAR on NBC Sports Twitter page has 9.6 million views as of Tuesday morning.

O’Donnell said NASCAR has heard the driver feedback.

“Oh sure, and I’ve always heard from some that said that was the coolest move, don’t do anything,” O’Donnell said. “It’s all over the board. It always is.

“At the end of the day, we recognize we’re the government, it’s our job to make the call. It’s not liked. And if you make half the folks happy and half angry, you usually hit the right tone with whatever call.

“Where we’re at today, we’re going to go to Phoenix, we’re going to race for a championship, we’ll see what happens there in terms of on-track and what’s executable and look over the off season like we do with all of our rules.

“But at this point in looking at it, it was a move that was within the rulebook, and really don’t think it’s right to adjust the rules when, for 35 races, we’ve been one way and throw a wrinkle in for the 36th.”

 

The Martinsville rimshot heard round the world - driver reactions

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emailBy Kelly Crandall | October 30, 2022 9:11 PM ET

Ross Chastain’s shocking last-lap move at Martinsville Speedway left his peers complimenting his ingenuity but wondering if a Pandora’s box had been opened.

The Trackhouse Racing driver went full throttle into Turn 3 and rode the outside wall to the finish, picking up five spots in the process. It was what Chastain needed to do to advance in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs, as Denny Hamlin was running well ahead of him.
Unbelievable. pic.twitter.com/eL2V6O2QCu

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The kamikaze move paid off. The No. 1 car finished fourth (after Brad Keselowski’s car was disqualified) and took the final transfer spot over Hamlin. Chastain will race for his first championship next weekend in Phoenix.

Reigning series champion Kyle Larson tried a similar wall move a year ago at Darlington Raceway while trying to beat Hamlin in the Southern 500. It didn’t work out for Larson, and he was left wondering if he inspired Chastain.

“Yeah, and I’m a bit embarrassed that I did, but that was pretty embarrassing, honestly,” said Larson, who finished second. “That’s not a good look for our sport. At all. I don’t know what you guys think; you probably think it’s cool, but I think it’s pretty embarrassing.”

Ryan Blaney, who finished third, said he should have done the same thing. But Blaney said he didn’t care if it was good or bad for the sport and would let others decide.

“I guess we’ll all start doing it now coming down to the end of the race,” he said.

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As the driver who lost the most by Chastain’s move, Hamlin said it’s all part of the rules. Chastain, said Hamlin, found a way to race within the same walls as everyone else, but in a better way.

“It’s funny but not for me,” said Hamlin.

The move was compared to that of a video game, which Joey Logano said everyone has tried. It is something every driver has thought about in real life.

“As spectacular as it was, as much as it worked, the problem is now the box is open,” said Logano after his sixth-place finish. “Now every Xfinity race, every Truck race, every Cup race, no matter the track, this wall riding is going to be a play. That’s not good. That’s not good.

“It was awesome; it was cool,” the Penske driver continued. “It happened for the first time. There’s no rule against it. There needs to be a rule against this one because I don’t know if you want the whole field riding the wall coming to the checkered flag. I don’t know if it’s the safest thing for the driver or the fans when you have a car right up at the wall hauling the mail like that.

“What if that fence, gate, wasn’t closed all the way? What if it was bent and caught his car? That’s a big risk that Ross was willing to take. God bless him — that’s awesome. I don’t think we need to do that every week.”

Logano does hope it lands on the SportsCenter Top 10 plays, though. And when Logano next sees Chastain, he’ll ask how his head feels.

Chase Briscoe was the first driver that Chastain flew passed on the last lap. Briscoe braced for impact because he thought he was going to be run into, but was left lamenting he should have done the same thing over the final laps and he might have won the race.

“It was well-executed on his part,” said Briscoe, who finished ninth. “I think all of us have thought about that, just none of us have ever been brave enough to ever try it. I’m very curious to see what kind of hole that opens up because I think now, if it’s the last lap at Martinsville and maybe even Richmond, just go wide-open on the wall. I think you’ll see the whole field do it.

“It’s that big of an advantage, so it’ll be interesting to see what happens now because now that we all know it’s that big of an advantage, at the end, if you’re running second or third even, you’re going to do that because you’re going to win the race. I’m curious to see what plays out after that.”

NASCAR said Chastain’s move was within the bounds of the rulebook, but they will address questions and concerns from drivers this week.

 

Chastain's move was legal

 

Trackhouse rides wave from Chastain’s ‘Shot Heard ’Round the World’

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emailBy Kelly Crandall | November 2, 2022 9:18 AM ET

Trackhouse Racing is riding the adrenaline rush from Ross Chastain’s improbable ride along the wall at Martinsville Speedway right into Sunday’s championship fight.

“How spectacular that was, and just the optics of the commitment that he made is an example of what I’ve been preaching to this company all year long,” team founder Justin Marks said Tuesday. “It’s ‘Let’s think out of the box. Let’s do things differently. Let’s fully commit and full send in whatever it is that we do at this company.’

“So, I agree that getting in that way definitely has a positive impact in this shop because there is not a person in this building that wouldn’t do anything Ross Chastain asked them to do right now. Everybody is so fired up that that kid made that kind of commitment that made that kind of move and carried the company on his shoulders in that moment to get us in. It’s incredibly empowering.”

Marks admitted that there could have been a less dramatic way for Chastain to advance, which would have been just fine too. Chastain could have won some stages or won the race. Instead, running 10th while rival Denny Hamlin ran fifth, he needed two spots on the last lap and took it upon himself to gain those in the most unorthodox and shocking way.

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Chastain has gone viral over the last two days. Athletes from other motorsports have weighed in on social media, the highlight was shared on ESPN’s “SportsCenter,” and the social media numbers on the video are in the millions.

Trackhouse Racing is also having fun with the moment. Chastain’s car is on display at the race shop for fans to take pictures with, and the narrative around the whole incident has added to the positivity and energy around the race shop for team members.

When the season started, all Marks said he wanted was one car in the playoffs. It ended up that both drivers won races and made the postseason and now one has them competing for a championship. Trackhouse is now playing with house money, and in a way, the season is already a winner.

“One of the things we talk about in the building here is all we want is a chance, and all we want is an opportunity,” Marks said.

Chastain will race for a NASCAR Cup Series champion for the first time and in the same season that he made the playoffs for the first time. Every narrative around Chastain and the organization and why they would fail (inexperience, drivers who hadn’t won or contended before, etc.,) has been smashed like a watermelon after a win.

And for Marks, there is no reason Chastain can’t continue to do the unthinkable and win the championship.

“No,” he said. “Not at all. This is going to be the hardest race of his life. It’s going to be the most pressure-filled race of his life. The pit crew, that last pit stop, is going to be the pit stop of their lives. But we can do it. We have the talent. We have the tools. We have the passion and the hunger to do it. It’s going to be hard. It’s going to be really, really hard.

“Chase (Elliott) has been here before. Joey (Logano) has been here before. And Christopher (Bell) is operating at an incredibly high level, and he’s motivated and sitting in a fast race car right now. So, it’s going to be incredibly difficult, but it’s 100% possible. We just have to go execute. We have to execute perfectly and leave it all out there.”