“I did not sucker punch the guy” - Matt Crafton denies allegations, explains his side of the story on brawl with Nick Sanchez

NASCAR Truck Series driver Matt Crafton has denied claims of punching Nick Sanchez following the Craftsman Truck Series Race at Talladega last weekend.

After their Saturday race at Talladega Superspeedway, Matt Crafton and Nick Sanchez got into a brawl, leaving the latter with bruises and blood all over his face.

As per footage shared by an eyewitness, Sanchez was seen threatening Crafton as the former's nose was bleeding. Sanchez claimed that he was sucker-punched while he was in the garage area after the argument.

In a long message via his social media, Matt Crafton has explained his side of the brawl. In order to clear any misunderstanding, he revealed to his fans what was missed in the viral video.

"First, let’s address the ‘sucker punch.’ Before the cameras started rolling I approached Nick and said "hey" when he turned around I said ‘what the —?!’ to which he looked right at me and threatened me," Crafton wrote via X (formerly Twitter).

He continued,

"That is when it all went to hell. I had his attention, words were exchanged, all before anything physical took place, so I did not ‘’sucker punch’ the guy. There may not be video, but there were plenty of eye witnesses."

Crafton stated that what was lacking was Sanchez's driving style during the race. During the Truck Series race, Crafton was involved in an accident near Sanchez and was unable to complete the race.

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Matt Crafton slapped with huge fine after physical brawl with fellow driver

NASCAR fined Matt Crafton $25,000 on Tuesday for hitting fellow driver Nick Sanchez after the Truck Series race at Talladega Superspeedway.

Due to his actions, Sanchez was given a $5,000 fine and his father, Rene, was prohibited from the final two Truck Series events.

Elton Sawyer, senior vice president of competition for NASCAR, explained on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio why officials considered fining Crafton instead of suspending him.

"We totally understand that’s in the heat of the battle, understanding the situation, but we just can’t have those type of comments. That’s why he received the fine that he received,” Sawyer said.

But Crafton has denied that he punched Sanchez after the race. He stated that the viral video that has been circulating failed to capture what actually happened.