"Doesn’t matter if it was on purpose": Corey La Joie debates NASCAR analyst on Austin Hill incident at Watkins Glen

Austin Hill triggered a multi-car wreck while battling for second on Lap 74 of Saturday’s Xfinity Series race at Watkins Glen International. Although not intentional, it wrecked the day for several drivers, including Cup Series regular Michael McDowell and Xfinity Series playoff contenders Ryan Sieg, Taylor Gray, Jesse Love, and Jeb Burton.

Reflecting on that incident, NASCAR analyst Mamba Smith shared his thoughts on X. According to him, Hill’s move wasn’t intentional, but it did put the NASCAR officials in a “tough spot” while deciding whether to penalize the Richard Childress Racing driver.

Former NASCAR driver Corey LaJoie commented on Smith’s post, saying that it didn’t matter if it was intentional or not. He further added,

“He couldn’t have been in a worse position to force any leverage there. You can use your head and lift.”

Corey LaJoie

@CoreyLaJoie

@MambaSmith34 It doesn’t matter if it was on purpose or not. He couldn’t have been in a worse position to force any leverage there. You can use your head and lift.

In a post-race interview, Austin Hill did explain his stance. In an attempt to catch race leader Connor Zilisch, Hill took a massive run off the Carousel and tried passing Zilisch from the left.

“The grass was coming up in front of us. I had to get to the right,” Hill recalled. “I was kind of hoping he was going to move to the right and kind of give me some room, and it just didn’t happen.”

“But if everyone wants to blame me for it, I’ll take the blame for it. I mean, I could have lifted and lived to fight another corner,” the driver added.

Connor Zilisch won the race, marking his sixth victory of the 2025 season. Hill, on the other hand, managed to salvage a P4 finish. He now has 10 top-five finishes this year and places fifth in the driver standings with 690 points to his name.

---

Austin Hill holds ground, recalling his one-race suspension

With eight laps left in the July 26 race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Austin Hill got moved up the track by former Cup Series driver Aric Almirola. After avoiding a head-on crash, Hill returned the favor by right-hooking Almirola, who was sent crashing nose-first into the wall.

NASCAR officials deemed the move intentional and suspended him from the following weekend’s race at Iowa Speedway. Hill has been reinstated for today’s race at Watkins Glen International.

The driver is still holding his ground that the hit was not intentional. In a statement, he said,

“I know that when I go to my grave way down the road that it wasn't done on purpose. So, I can at least take that with me.”

“From my standpoint, it was a full racing incident, full racing deal. I pleaded my case to NASCAR and everyone…It wasn't one of those lose your mind moments and turn to the left. I feel like I'm a smarter racer than that,” he added.

As things stand, both Austin Hill and Aric Almirola are playoff contenders for the 2025 season. No matter how they fare at Daytona next week or at Portland the week after, the drivers will drive in the Round of 12 opener at Bristol Motor Speedway.