For the second straight week, Ty Dillon has found himself under the spotlight for all the wrong reasons in the middle of the NASCAR playoffs. After drawing heat at Las Vegas for jeopardizing William Byron’s bid for P2 by diving onto pit road without warning, neither signaling with his hand nor through his spotter, the Kaulig Racing driver stirred controversy once again at Talladega.
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This time, Dillon clipped a tire belonging to Josh Berry’s team while it was still inside Berry’s pit box, sending it into a crew member, who was struck in the process by Dillon’s No. 10 car.
The move sparked backlash from NASCAR veterans Kyle Petty and Steve Letarte, both of whom held nothing back in their criticism. Petty, who knows the ins and outs of pit road from his Cup Series days, called Dillon’s actions unacceptable.
“Ty Dillon left the pits box thinking I’m not responsible for what this car hit car hits. The tire is there. You’ve got to avoid that tire because you’re going to knock that tire exactly like he did up under the back of the car into a crew member. That is a no no! That’s a safety violation,” he said.
Letarte, a former crew chief turned analyst, was even more blunt, stating that if he were running the No. 21 pit box, there would’ve been a serious post-race talk. “The 10 is deep in his box, way deep in his box. He could have backed up very, very easily. The pit crew member is even there, putting his hand out,” Letarte said on Inside the Race.
Letarte further emphasized that Dillon’s move was far from a racing incident. It was completely avoidable. “We could talk about all we want, but there’s a crew member underneath there working on the #21 car. Man, that’s not cool. Like this stuff’s dangerous enough, that is uncool.”
After two consecutive incidents that have put safety in the limelight, all eyes now turn to NASCAR to see whether Dillon faces any repercussions this time around.
