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After reverting to his decision to appeal against the penalties, Denny Hamlin left many fans baffled. The #11 driver has turned back on his decision over the course of two days.
NASCAR fined Denny Hamlin $50,000 and docked 25 driver points for his on-track collision with Ross Chastain. Hamlin admitted on his podcast that he had intentionally wrecked Chastain on the final restart in Phoenix.
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Hamlin initially announced on social media (March 16) that he wouldn't appeal against the penalties. Two days later, on Saturday (March 18), Hamlin made a surprise announcement that read:
"After much consideration I’ve decided that I will appeal the decision by NASCAR to penalize me. What happened on Sunday was common hard racing that happens each and every weekend. There was also no manipulation of the race nor actions detrimental to the sport."
Hamlin's latest tweet has perplexed fans, with many hoping for additional penalties for the driver. Here are a few reactions on Twitter:
A few fans had a lighter take on Hamlin's decision:
Why did NASCAR take a strong stance against Denny Hamlin?
Denny Hamlin's remarks on his podcast 'Actions Detrimental' instigated NASCAR to take action. Hamlin openly admitted to having wrecked Ross Chastain as he said:
"It wasn’t a mistake. No, it wasn’t a mistake. I let the wheel go, and I said he’s coming with me. It’s been interesting because I hear people say this is for last year or this year. I got wrecked at the Clash. I don’t know that Ross sees it that way. I think he’s still curious about what I thought about the Clash. I don’t know why he wonders what I thought about the Clash."
The two drivers have a year-long history of run-ins. Their feud was reignited at the Busch Light Clash where Chastain spun Hamlin.
NASCAR stated that Hamlin had violated Sections 4.4B and 4.4D of the Cup Rule book which deal with a driver's behavior.
Elton Sawyer, senior vice president of competition at NASCAR, admitted that Hamlin's comments on the podcast forced the officials to penalize him. Sawyer said:
"When you look (the incident between Hamlin and Chastain) this past weekend, we would have viewed that as a racing incident, but then 24 hours later to have a competitor that has gone on a podcast … (and) you start admitting that you have intentionally done something that would compromise the results of the end of the race, then that rises to the level that we’re going to get involved."
Last year, William Byron spun Denny Hamlin in the Texas playoff race. Byron admitted after the race to making contact but denied his intention to spin the #11 car. NASCAR fined Byron $50,000 and docked 25 points. When Byron appealed, the National Motorsports Appeals Panel doubled his fine to $100,000 but removed the points penalty.
