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The 2024 season has seen a number of controversial finishes in both NASCAR CUP and Xfinity Series, starting from Austin Cindric's win at Federated Auto Parts on August 12 at the Richmond Raceway to the Cure 250 on October 12 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course. Let's take a deep dive into some controversial finishes of the 2024 season.
#1. Cook Out 400 at NASCAR's Action Track
Austin Dillon secured his spot in the playoffs in the round of 16 by winning the Cook 400 race on August 12, spinning out the #22 driver Joey Logano and the #11 driver Denny Hamlin. In the final lap of the race, while entering turn three, Logano was in the lead, and Dillon bumped into his rear bumper, sending him into the walls.
As Hamlin then tried to take the lead, Dillon hit the #11 driver's right rear end and sent him into the guardrails. He secured his maiden victory for the season, clinching RCR's first win at the Richmond Raceway since the retirement of NASCAR legend Kevin Harvick.
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Hamlin finished in P2, while Logano took a lot of time to recover from the spin and ended up in 19th place.
#2. Biggest wreck at Talladega Superspeedway
The YellaWood 500 was held on October 6, 2024, and witnessed the biggest wreck of the modern era of racing.
The wreck took place on the backstretch of NASCAR's longest track. Austin Cindric triggered the wreck, bumping into Brad Keselowski, in a series of events that eventually collected 28 cars, including eight playoff drivers, and brought out a caution.
Rickey Stenhouse Jr. won the race, sparking several controversies among the motorsports community. Speaking on his podcast Actions Detrimental some time after the race, the #11 driver, Denny Hamlin, felt that Stenhouse's victory was against NASCAR's rules. He mentioned the #47 driver's left door was damaged and the foam was missing after getting involved in the wreck.
The Florida native compared it to the Josh Berry incident that happened at the Kansas Speedway where he was sent to the pits at the start of the race because he got in a wreck flatting multiple tires. Hamlin said,
"Brad Moran clarified it, did he not, publicly? Yeah, we did it by the rules so while it looked screwed up and it probably was it doesn't matter we played by the rule. This weekend they did not play by the rules, they changed them and they changed their mindset and didn't notify one team member of that change of mindset" (37:18).
On the same podcast episode, Hamlin asked his co-host to explain the DVP rules of the stock car association for a clearer understanding of the situation. Hamlin's co-host explained,
"Section 3337 of the Cup Series rulebook states, 'Energy-absorbing foam blocks must be installed on the outside surface of the left and right side door. And B- door foam that has been damaged or crushed must be replaced, effective immediately, May 4th, 2022" (26:58).
#3. Cure 250 at Charlotte Motor Speedway
Sam Mayer won a controversial race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, on October 12, after a caution was thrown just before the white flag was waved in the race. Parker Kligerman was just two feet from crossing the finish line when NASCAR officials raised a caution, denying him his first Xfinity Series win.
On the 66th lap, Leland Honeyman slammed his car straight into the tire barrier and got stuck, making it obvious to bring out the caution. But the officials took more than 20 seconds to make the call. This delayed judgment creating a sense of confusion for the drivers like Parker Kligerman who crossed the finish line before the call for throwing in caution was made.
NASCAR insiders were frustrated by the late caution in the race, including Matt Weaver and Kenny Wallace. Weaver questioned the stock car racing association about the delayed decision. He wrote via a post on X (formerly Twitter),
Kenny Wallace also believed that Parker Kligerman was "screwed" by NASCAR's decision, as he lost on what would have been his maiden victory of his career. After the restart, Kligerman finished in sixth place and 12th in the Xfinity Series, eliminating him from advancement to the next round of playoffs.
