You don't see that everyday, as driver issues refreshingly honest assessment of his own performance in Sunday's Cup Race near St. Louis.
Sean GardnerGetty ImagesPerhaps unlike anyone in recent memory, Ross Chastain fell on his sword following Sunday’s Cup Series race at World Wide Technology Raceway near St. Louis. With one notable exception, virtually everyone on the grounds agreed that the 29-year-old Floridian did the right thing by acknowledging his blunders.
It’s not the kind of apology often heard after a race at any level.
Chastain’s post-race comments – given freely and without apparent reservation – focused on his inexplicably reckless driving during the 245-lap, 300-mile race that Joey Logano won over Kyle Busch in overtime. Fortunately, Chastain wasn’t nearby as those former champions raced hard and clean for the victory.
Denny Hamlin, left, stays one bumper ahead of Ross Chastain (1) at the NASCAR Cup race Sunday.
Sean GardnerGetty Images
By then, his rampage was done. It had begun early, when he knocked Denny Hamlin into the Turn 1 wall as they raced for sixth. The contact cost Hamlin four immediate laps, putting him out of contention and headed for a 34th-place finish. On at least two occasions afterward Hamlin tried to run Chastain off the track or block his progress in retaliation. It became so obvious that NASCAR finally warned the team that Hamlin had “made his point.”
“It seems there’s no sense of conscience (in Chastain) that says maybe I’m being a bit aggressive,” Hamlin told various media outlets. “That’s his decision to make; he can make any decision he wants. He’s his own guy and he’s been very successful doing what he’s doing.”
Hamlin then issued this threat: “Ultimately, this sport is self-policing and usually when you least suspect it—and it means the most—it comes back around. You gotta fence these guys, hard… just to get their attention. We’ve all learned the hard way and we’ve all had it come back around on us. It’ll be no different.”
Later, Chastain hit 24th-finishing Chase Elliott during a three-wide scrum (including Austin Dillon) in Turns 3-4 that sent innocent bystander Bubba Wallace spinning. Elliott complained that Chastain had hit him entering Turn 3, then turned him in traffic. “What’s he doing?” Elliott said. “He ran me over getting into (Turn) 3 and then runs me over again.” Even later, Chastain and McDowell got together with minor damage.
Finally, after finishing eighth, Chastain told anyone who would listen how unprofessional he had been, that he couldn’t believe how badly he had raced. It was both a refreshing and astonishing moment, one seldom seen in racing.
“It was terrible driving,” said Chastain, already one of the sport’s most popular drivers. “It’s one thing to do it once, but I kept driving into guys. At this level, I’m supposed to be better than that. It’s a shame for (his sponsors). I have all these people believing in me with (owners) Justin Marks and Pitbull putting me in this car. They deserve better.”
When asked if he’d speak with Hamlin, Elliott, and McDowell, the answer was obvious: “I will, yeah,” he said. “I owe half the field an apology. Words aren’t going to fix it, so I’ll have to pay for it on the track. I almost did today and I’ll deserve everything they do. I can’t believe I continued to make those same mistakes; overdrive the corners and drive into guys. I had time under caution to get reset, but we’d go green and I’d drive into somebody.
“Running into people is not acceptable at this level.”
“It’s completely unacceptable. For the 11 (Hamlin), 9 (Elliott), 34 (McDowell) and so many guys, I was way off my driving today. Running into people is not acceptable at this level. I cannot believe, standing here right now, that I just made so many mistakes back-to-back. It’s one thing for one, but I just absolutely drove over my head today. It’s unacceptable.”
The only dissenting voice on Sunday afternoon was that of Marks, who has quickly built a championship-caliber, Chevrolet-based organization with Chastain and Daniel Suarez. Understandably, he found no fault in Chastain’s driving.
“Honestly, I don’t think there’s a single thing Ross Chastain did wrong today, not a single thing,” he told NBC Sports. “This is a very, very competitive sport and you fight for every single inch. The thing is, he’s a newcomer in the top five and the established top-five guys don’t like a newcomer there. I’m super, super proud of him. He’s very aggressive, and that’s what’s required in winning races.
“Ultimately, it’s going to get him to where he’s going to be a NASCAR champion—his aggression matched with his talent.”
Time will tell.
Keyword: Ross Chastain: 'I Owe Half the Field an Apology' after NASCAR Race at WWTR