According to the Associated PressHendrick Motorsports has officially filed the paperwork to request a NASCAR Cup Series playoff waiver for Kyle Larson after he missed Sunday’s Coca Cola 600 to compete in the rain-delayed Indianapolis 500.
There is no timetable for a decision to be made and announced.
Even though Larson was the championship leader entering the weekend – and has already won two races to qualify for the round of 16 – his inability to take the green flag on Sunday night will mean he will not be eligible for the championship race unless NASCAR grants the waiver.
According to rule 12.3.2.1.A of the NASCAR rule book: “Unless otherwise authorized by NASCAR, drivers and team owners must start in all championship events in the current season to be eligible for the series playoffs. »
Unless otherwise authorized by NASCAR
The rule was instituted in 2014 with the advent of the current championship format to effectively prevent a driver from winning a race, and therefore qualifying for the playoffs, and then halting racing until the final 10 weeks of the season.
Of course, the format now also rewards season-long success as wins, stage wins, and regular season championship results all factor into the playoff standings. Larson lost the championship lead and fell to third place in the standings due to a single missed race.
The regular season champion at the end of the year receives 15 bonus points at the start of each round, second place receives 10 bonus points, and third place receives eight bonus points up to a single bonus point for finishing 10th.
Larson actually gave up a better chance than seven points in the playoffs.
At the same time, this is the first time a NASCAR playoff waiver has been requested for a driver intentionally choosing to run a race in a different series. Waivers have been requested and granted for driver injuries and behavioral reasons, but never for this.
And NASCAR’s top racing official, Elton Sawyer, suggested as much when asked about the subject earlier in the week.
“It’s a little bit of uncharted territory because in the past, waivers were mostly given for medical reasons, so this one is a little bit different from that aspect,” Sawyer said. “We have had some preliminary discussions but we have not made a decision yet.”
Hendrick Motorsports and NASCAR have reportedly had preliminary discussions on the subject and it is hard to imagine that Rick Hendrick would have approved of the decision if there had been any inkling that NASCAR would deny the waiver.
The rain delay in Indianapolis, which pushed the start back four hours, bit Larson again as the same storm ended the NASCAR race early just as he was landing to replace replacement driver Justin Allgaier.
So now the question is: Is Larson penalized for not completing a single lap, regardless of his intention?
Joey Logano played it a bit on both sides by saying it was awesome, but also bluntly saying he chose an IndyCar race over a NASCAR race when discussing the topic on his SiriusXM NASCAR radio show.
“This scenario – let’s be honest here. Super cool,” Logano said. “What Kyle Larson did with the double – awesome. He found himself in the worst possible position for the scenario that happened, didn’t he? Because of the rain and the Indy 500 delay, all that. But he chose – he decided that the Indy 500 was more important than the Coca-Cola 600. He made that decision, or his team, whatever, he’s a part of it. He put IndyCar ahead of NASCAR, those are the facts, true or false. I don’t know. Waiver or not. I don’t know. I’m not here to make that decision, but the facts are that he thought the IndyCar races were a more important race than the NASCAR races that day.
“I don’t know where you’re going with this. I don’t know where you’re going. I also don’t know where to add anything. I don’t want to make anyone angry here. I’m just spitting out the facts here, which is what happened. I’m not taking anything away from what Larson did. I thought it was the most badass thing you could do, trying to run those two races in one day.
Larson said Tuesday after a Goodyear tire test at Iowa Speedway that he had not yet spoken to NASCAR officials about the subject.
“Personally, I haven’t done it yet,” he said. “At this point, I just tried to run. I’ll let the team take care of it. I’m sure they’re getting ready to go through the process and all that.
Finally, Roger Penske, who owns both a rival NASCAR team and also the IndyCar series, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Indianapolis 500, hopes that Larson will not be penalized for making this decision.
“It depends on NASCAR,” Penske told NBC Sports on Thursday. “I mean, I definitely want to see him not lose anything coming to the Indy 500, that’s for sure. But Larson came here with Hendrick Motorsports to race, they did a great job and I think it’s great for the sport.
“It’s really good for NASCAR. I know they will handle it properly.
Matt Weaver is a motorsport insider for Sportsnaut. Follow him on Twitter.
