Parker Kligerman was only moments away from winning his first Xfinity Series race on Saturday at the Charlotte Roval. But NASCAR and its questionable officiating took away his moment and left him heartbroken. The caution flag for Leland Honeyman crashing into the tire barrier was delayed and flown right before Kligerman’s No. 48 car crossed the white flag.
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Neither he nor the fans were left pleased with the timing, understandably so. The one question that is on every mind is, what took NASCAR so long to get the caution out? Reporter Bob Pockrass put the question forward to the officiating body after the race. The answer he got was downright unprofessional and amateur.
He’d been told that the area in which Honeyman crashed was underneath the tires and, hence, tough to see from the tower. The officials had to wait and confirm things before delivering the yellow flag. While it is commendable that they did not want to make a premature decision, calling a caution with precision is the most basic element of stock car racing today.
Modern technology is advanced enough to show if a car has wrecked even if it isn’t visible from the tower. Other motorsports disciplines don’t face such problems thanks to tech advancements and the common expectation is that NASCAR operates at a similar level. One can only imagine what Kligerman must have gone through due to this lapse.
Fans bash NASCAR’s poor officiating after Kligerman nearly tears up
The No. 48 driver said in his post-race interview, “It’s really tough on this (driver’s) side. I might have teared up when I thought we got it there at the white flag. Caution comes out, had to refocus.” His words touched many and left fans rallying in support of him against NASCAR. They took it to X to make their thoughts clear.
“Oh look, another week another lame excuse from NASCAR being sold by the race media,” one user wrote in response to Pockrass’s relay of NASCAR’s reasoning. Another quipped, “When TV catches something 15 seconds before them, that should be the immediate follow-up question.”
Unacceptable. They have spotters all around the track. TV showed it as soon as it happened. Are they blind up there? Stevie Wonder and Ray Charles would do a better job at this point.
— Brandon Farris Photography (@BDFphotography) October 12, 2024
“You’re telling me they don’t have officials spread out to see all parts of the track at all times?” one fan asked. “Bunch of BS. They have like 50 TV feeds in the tower. They don’t even need to look at the race track. How do they call yellows at larger road courses?” yet another commented.
No matter what the reason, for an organization that is seen as the face of stock car racing around the globe, something like this should never have happened. One fan expressed the same, “Unacceptable. They have spotters all around the track. TV showed it as soon as it happened. Are they blind up there? Stevie Wonder and Ray Charles would do a better job at this point.” Hopefully, Sunday’s Cup Series race at the Roval won’t face any such issues.
