"They lost right away" - Kenny Wallace reflects on Richard Childress' calculated move after NASCAR turns down Trackhouse's appeal
After Trackhouse Racing lost its appeal for its Martinsville penalties, Kenny Wallace shared his thoughts on Richard Childress being a "smart man" to withdraw his appeal levied by NASCAR soon after.
On account of manipulation at the Martinsville race, Trackhouse and its #1 Chevy driver Ross Chastain were issued a $100,000 fine and docked 50 points each. In addition to that, the team's executive, crew chief, and spotter were suspended for the upcoming race.
Richard Childress Racing and the #3 Austin Dillon were charged with the same penalties.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), former NASCAR driver Wallace shared his outlook on both the Cup Series teams appealing the penalties despite being heard on the radio communications, as well as RCR owner Childress' calculated move.
"I was like, uh, 'You sure you want to appeal this? They got y'all on radio.' However, Trackhouse went and appealed it, and poor Trackhouse, they lost right away. And then Richard Childress, being the smart man, he said, 'Okay, Trackhouse lost their appeal right away,' and Richard goes, 'I think we'll just, we'll just withdraw our appeal,'" said Wallace. [1:26]
The 61-year-old Wallace also added:
"So that's all there is to it was just, it's not funny from their standpoint, but it's funny from my standpoint because it's like, 'We're gonna appeal this, damn it! And then it's like Richard, you sure? We got this [indicating Trackhouse's lost appeal]."
Not only Chastain and Dillon, but 23XI Racing's Bubba Wallace was also hit with the same penalty for alleged race manipulation to help the OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) teammate advance for the Championship 4 race in Phoenix. As a result, NASCAR penalized these three drivers and their teams for violating sections 4.4.B&D: NASCAR Member Conduct of the Rule Book.
However, the NASCAR VP believes they held accountable the team's leadership rather than the drivers who are still allowed to compete in the season's final race in Phoenix.
"We are going to react": NASCAR VP Elton Sawyer warns drivers after the recent race manipulation
Senior Vice President of Competitions Elton Sawyer shared his thoughts on suspending NASCAR drivers after the race manipulation in last week's Martinsville race.
As reported by Fox Sports' Bob Pockrass, Sawyer warned the Cup Series drivers for damaging the integrity of the sport. He said:
"In this case, we felt like we wanted to focus more on team leadership, something we haven't done in the past 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."
The Cup Series will return for the Championhsip 4 race at Phoenix Raceway on November 10.