Earlier this year, the situation was a bit complicated in NASCAR regarding penalties. Drivers like Denny Hamlin were being penalized for saying things on podcasts after the race ended, while teams like Hendrick Motorsports were receiving huge modified penalties with their calls. Even if Hamlin He also appealed the decision of the board of directors to penalize him, his appeal was unsuccessful. Whereas HMS’s appeal was heard and led to the penalty being changed from a points penalty plus a fine to a simple fine.
So naturally, given that William Byron was recently on Hamlin’s podcast, the very podcast that penalized him in the first place, this topic was going to find its way into the conversation.
And that’s what happened.
Denny Hamlin saves William Byron from trouble on his podcast
At one point during the podcast episode, William Byron was asked by Hamlin’s co-host about a very curious topic, which was certainly too hot a topic for Pilot #24 to comment on. This subject of course concerned sanctions appeals.
Hamlin’s co-host Jared Allen asked Byron: “Do you have any advice for Denny on how to win an appeal for race manipulation?
“Oh, well…I don’t know,” Byron responded, completely baffled by the question and only left with an embarrassed chuckle.
"Oh, Jared, from the top rope," Hamlin exclaimed, bursting out laughing.
"I don’t know man," Byron added, to which Hamlin clarified: “We promised not to get him in trouble.”
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Hamlin disappointed after his penalty was upheld
As his appeal hearing approached, Denny Hamlin was hopeful he would make a difference in the decision against him. But this, as we know, did not turn out to be the case. Hamlin’s penalty was upheld and he was understandably quite disappointed.
“I still don’t understand the decision given all the data and all the precedent, even the actual data that I brought to the table,” Hamlin said according to Charlotte Observer. “It still doesn’t make sense, and that’s what’s disappointing.”
But the question remains: What did Hendrick do that Hamlin didn’t do that led to different results in their penalty appeals? Perhaps few people know the answer to this question.
Perhaps it would be better if NASCAR listened to the advice of Kevin Harvick on the matter, who suggested that the appeal hearings be conducted publicly and broadcast live on NASCAR.com.
