“Alex Bowman was robbed”: NASCAR fans debate William Byron’s win at Daytona 500 after rule book states otherwise

The recently concluded Daytona 500 has left NASCAR fans arguing about the legitimacy of William Byron's season-opener triumph as Alex Bowman suffered a near miss.

After having a close battle for contention with Ross Chastain and Austin Cindric, Hendrick Motorsports driver William Byron clinched The Great American Race on the NASCAR Cup Series calendar. Finishing at P2 was the #24 driver's teammate, Alex Bowman.

Moments before the white flag, Cindric bumped into Chastain, spiraling both drivers out of the racing field, which robbed the drivers of their P2 and P3 spots, respectively.

Alex Bowman found himself as the beneficiary of the wreck, dashing toward the checkered flag. But his hopes for a P1 finish were thrashed as his teammate was the one to take his car to the victory lane. However, the questionable last-lap maneuvers between the HMS teammates have sparked debate in the community regarding the real winner.

One fan was quick to point out the incorrect implementation of NASCAR rules, following which they revealed an excerpt from the final lap of the 500-mile race, showcasing that "Alex Bowman was robbed."

He posted on his X (formerly Twitter) account, claiming:

"10-7 White Flag. 'When the yellow flag is displayed and/or the caution lights are illuminated (yellow) during the white flag lap, cars will be scored based on their respective track position.' Bowman was robbed - rules state when LIGHTS ILLUMINATE"

A second fan claimed that the caution light never came out but was a mere reflection:

Some fans believed that Byron rightfully got his season-opener victory and reacted:

Here are a few other reactions:

Alex Bowman unraveled what caused the massive wreck that took six NASCAR champions out of the race

With only 9 laps to go, Alex Bowman was running at P6, while Byron was leading at P4. However, due to bump-drafting by the #48 driver, a domino effect was initiated, resulting in a huge wreck.

Byron saved himself from going off-track, however, it was Brad Keselowski who was the first to go off and was followed by over a dozen more cars.

While conversing with motorsport journalist Jeff Gluck, Bowman unraveled the details of the juncture when the yellow-flag-moment took place. He said (via The Athletic):

"I can't even see far enough to see that Byron turning Keselowski is what started it. I had William in a spot that I didn't want to have him in. We're all just kind of sandwiched up there, right? I was lifting to try to get off of him once he was aimed at the wrong place."

The HMS driver added:

"But we're all just shoving each other; that's what speedway racing has become. Definitely didn't mean to crash anybody by any means. And I was trying to get off of William while getting shoved at the same time."