Kyle Larson Demands Consistency From NASCAR Over Flip-Flop on Rule Implementation

NASCAR made a controversial decision last Sunday when they did not penalize Denny Hamlin for jumping the final restart in Richmond. What turned out to be more aggravating was the explanation that was given for it. The promotion’s VP of competition told the media that the infringement wasn’t called because it came in the dying moments of the race and it would’ve been had it been a few laps earlier.

With several concerns over this since then, Hendrick Motorsports driver Kyle Larson expressed his opinion ahead of Martinsville. He said that the race officials have a tough job from the booth and not 100% of the population will be satisfied with the calls that they make. However, he did reiterate that consistency regarding rules was ultimately expected of them.

His words went, “I heard them say, ‘Oh if it was early in the race we would have probably made a call. If that’s their view and they stay consistent within that then I guess that’s okay. But, yeah, it’s just finding some consistency would be… I think what most of us would like to see.” Larson’s view came not only as a driver in NASCAR but also as the owner of the High Limit Sprint Car Series.

Thanks to the restart that late in the Richmond race, Larson finished in 3rd place. He currently sits second on the points table next to Martin Truex Jr. having won a race and finished in the top five thrice.

NASCAR’s reason for choosing not to penalize Hamlin in Richmond

Elton Sawyer, the VP of Competition, acknowledged early this week that Hamlin had indeed jumped the restart. Why his officials chose to ignore it was because he had done so when the race was in its final moments and they didn’t want to disturb the flow of things. However, Sawyer did warn other drivers from taking this as an example and jumping their restarts.

“If this happens at Lap 10 or 50 or 300, the call could’ve been different,” he said on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. “If I were a competitor, I wouldn’t be playing that game every week. Sometimes you get the call in your favor, sometimes you don’t.” Following these words, many including the likes of Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Joey Logano expressed how it didn’t sit well with them.

Now that Kyle Larson has joined the bandwagon to demand NASCAR to follow the hard-set rules, the promotion could act differently in such future scenarios.