“We will react”: Elton Sawyer sends clear warning to NASCAR drivers in race manipulation scenarios

NASCAR Vice President Elton Sawyer has taken a major step in the Martinsville incident and penalized drivers, their spotters, crew chiefs, and the team owners for trying to manipulate the race. 23XI Racing, Trackhouse, and RCR teams were each hit with a $100,000 fine and a one-race suspension.

However, Sawyer didn't suspend the drivers from racing in the Championship Race scheduled for November 10, 2024. Only the spotters of Bubba Wallace, Austin Dillon, and Ross Chastain were suspended for the last race of the 2024 season. The VP might not have suspended drivers but issued them a serious warning.

NASCAR analyst and reporter Bob Pockrass shared a clip of Elton Swayer, where the VP explained their focus on holding team leadership accountable. Sawyer highlighted that they followed this approach for the first time. Traditionally, the Stock Car Racing Association fined drivers in every scenario.

He added:

"But I promise you that does not exclude going forward. and we have meetings coming up this week with our drivers, and we will get that point across to them and be very clear that when you do anything, that's going to compromise the integrity of our sport. We are going to react." [00:08]

Bubba Wallace's rank was affected, and he dropped from P17 to P18 in the driver's standings after receiving a penalty from the sanctioning body.

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Penalties announced by NASCAR's VP, Elton Sawyer

The Xfinity 500 race held on November 3, 2024, at Martinsville Speedway ended controversially, ruling Christopher Bell out of the Championship 4 round. Elton Sawyer penalized Bell for pulling out a Hail-Melon-inspired move in the final lap while he overtook Bubba Wallace.

William Byron finished in P6 and secured his spot in the final race of the 2024 season. The motorsports community noticed that Ross Chastain and Austin Dillon helped Byron stay in his place by driving side by side and blocking all the drivers. This led to serious discussions at NASCAR headquarters, and penalties were handed to the other drivers.

Elton Sawyer slammed Trackhouse Racing and the driver, Ross Chastain, both for a hefty penalty of $100,000. Along with a one-race suspension for team executive Tony Lunders, crew chief Philip Surgen, and spotter Brandon Mc Reynolds. Both the team and drivers were deducted 50 points.

Elton Sawyer fined Austin Dillon and Trackhouse Racing $100,000, followed by a one-race suspension for team executive Keith Rodden, crew chief Justin Alexander, and spotter Brandon Bensech. Both the team and the driver lost a total of 50 points each.

NASCAR VP fined Bubba Wallace the same amount as previous drivers and suspended his team executive Dave Rogers, crew chief Robert Barker, and spotter Freddie Kraft for the Championship 4 race. Wallace and 23XI Racing were also deducted 50 points.