Dale Earnhardt Jr. took a stand against NASCAR penalization Chase Elliott And Brad Keselowski for a mix-line violation during last weekend’s Brickyard 400.
During the last episode of the Dale Jr. DownloadThe NASCAR Hall of Famer criticized NASCAR for the decision to penalize the two former champions, strongly disagreeing with the decision for a myriad of reasons.
“There were a couple of things that, if I wanted to criticize NASCAR, there were a couple of penalties, and I think Brad and Chase Elliott got those penalties,” Earnhardt Jr. started“So when you come out of pit lane, you’re on the runoff lane. It’s this little strip of asphalt that’s separated from the race track. But right between Turn 1 and Turn 2, it’s connected to the racing surface. A lot of drivers will swing out, cross a couple of white lines, to get a good angle of attack on that runoff lane, that exit lane, into Turn 2, so they can accelerate down the back straight. So it’s a very common move. Very common. Some drivers are more aggressive than others, in terms of how far they swing out, but it’s never been a topic of conversation.
“I know NASCAR gave them some content, some explanation, of what they expected drivers and teams to do in that area before the race. It pretty much said what we all knew: ‘You can get going, you can get off the line and get a little closer to the racetrack.’ It didn’t say any specific lines or anything you couldn’t cross. … I’ve seen so many cars go where they’re going.”
Earnhardt Jr. clearly resented NASCAR for suddenly cracking down on cars that made this move, when it has never been a big issue in the past at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
“It was something that I had a little bit of a problem with. It wasn’t really something that had been refereed extensively before,” Earnhardt Jr. said“These kinds of wide turns, to improve your angle of attack for Turn 2 on this lane, the approach lane, is a common, common thing that drivers have been doing for a long time. I don’t think it’s ever been something that was strictly regulated.
“Now, to have a couple of drivers crash in the middle of the race, when others, we know, probably do the same thing and still do it, it was just a little shaky. It’s not a good idea. It’s frustrating, when you know you’re being black-flagged. There’s no way out of it. NASCAR rarely admits fault or mistake, but you’ve seen or you know you’re not the only one doing that. You know it’s a common thing that’s done around this area. So it’s been a few years since we’ve raced at this track. A little bit of a change, maybe a little bit of a rotation in the booth. Different opinions on how things are done, or should be done, on the track. Different perceptions. That’s the challenge. That’s the frustration, I think.
“It doesn’t make sense. That’s just the way it is, it’s over. I mean, Brad was always in position to win that race, even though it was because of a terrible fuel strategy. The No. 9 was able to bounce back. … It just wasn’t a good call because it wasn’t really well defined, in my opinion, beforehand.”
Sadly, it’s easy to see why Dale Earnhardt Jr. was frustrated, as were Chase Elliott and Brad Keselowski. Fortunately, both drivers were able to bounce back, but it certainly put a damper on their afternoon when they were penalized.
