Dale Earnhardt Jr. disputed NASCAR’s decision to penalize Chase Elliott and Brad Keselowski for blend line violations at last weekend’s Brickyard 400. In the latest episode of Dale Jr. Download, NASCAR Hall of Fame member Dale Jr. criticized NASCAR’s decision to penalize the two former champions and strongly disagreed with the decision for a variety of reasons. “If you want to criticize NASCAR, there were a few things, but I think Brad and Chase Elliott got penalized,” Earnhardt Jr. began. This little patch of asphalt separated from the race track. But it’s just connected to the race track between turns 1 and 2.
A lot of drivers will swing out and go over some of the white lines to get a good angle of attack in the runoff lane or the exit lane coming through turn 2 so they can accelerate on the back straight. So it’s a very common maneuver. Very normal. Some drivers are more aggressive than others with changing direction, but it’s never been a topic of conversation. “I know that NASCAR gave a statement and a briefing before the race about what they expected of their drivers and teams in this field.
It basically said what everybody knew: ‘You can back out, you can go off the line and get a little closer to the track. There were no specific lines that you couldn’t cross or anything like that.’ … I saw a lot of cars just running to get to their destination.”
Apparently Earnhardt Jr. objected to NASCAR suddenly cracking down on cars doing this kind of maneuver, even though it had never been a big deal at Indianapolis Motor Speedway before. “This is something I had a little bit of an issue with. It had never been closely monitored before,” Earnhardt Jr. explained. “Changing direction in this lane, the approach lane, to improve the angle of attack for Turn 2 is a common practice that drivers have been doing for a long time.
I don’t think it’s ever been strictly regulated before. “As we know, it felt so easy to pass some riders in the middle of the race, probably with other riders doing the same thing. It’s not a good look. It’s frustrating when you know the black flag is coming. There is no way to talk your way out of this situation. NASCAR rarely admits fault or liability, but you’ve seen it or you know you’re not the only one this happens to. You know this kind of thing happens a lot in this area. So it’s been a few years since I was there last. A little, maybe a little shake-up in the dressing room. There are different opinions about how things are going on track or how they should be.
Some different perceptions. That’s the challenge. That’s the frustration in my opinion. “It’s not uniform. It is what it is and it’s over and done with. So, despite the terrible fueling strategy, Brad was still able to win that race. The No. 9 was able to make up for it. … It wasn’t a good call or a decision because I don’t think it was clearly defined beforehand. ” Unfortunately, it’s easy to understand why Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chase Elliott and Brad Keselowski were frustrated. Fortunately, both drivers were able to recover well, but the penalty certainly put a damper on the tone of the afternoon.
