Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott did not like each other very much at the end of the Cup Series race at Iowa Speedway on Sunday. During a Stage 2 restart, they went three-wide with no particular need and traded paint trying to get ahead of each other. The sequence recurred 20 laps later, with them fighting for the same piece of real estate in the middle lane.
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This left Denny Hamlin frustrated more than anybody. The Joe Gibbs Racing veteran spoke about the reckless mistakes that the Hendrick Motorsports drivers had committed. He pointed out how they lay back three car lengths and then tried going side-by-side, creating a massive risk of wreckage. He went a step further and called for NASCAR officials to punish the drivers.
He said, “What I’m calling on is NASCAR officiating to do something about it, ’cause it’s a complete disregard for the people that you’re laying back from because you’re just willing to stick them in a four-wide situation where you know they’re going to wreck or someone’s going to wreck and you just don’t care.”
He also believes that they’re being told to do as much as they can get away with. The driver took it on himself to break down the error that had been committed in detail.
“They laid back so much, they must have been running 10 miles an hour faster, probably more than that. Then the cars in front of them, when they all took off and then they both tried to shoot the gap at the same time in the middle. It’s like they both deserved to wreck,” Hamlin said.
Larson left frustrated with a 28th-place finish
Elliott managed to finish 14th, but Larson came home 28th. The No. 5 driver lost it during the race when Christopher Bell made contact with him and slid his car up.
He yelled on the team radio after narrowly missing the wall, “How much f***ing room do I have to leave people? … I’ve been quiet for 45 minutes… I’ve been trying to be a good teammate, [and] a good competitor, and it hasn’t gotten me anywhere for the last f***ing hour.”
Hendrick Motorsports executives will hope that the heated feelings don’t continue to exist through the week. Teammates at war with each other is the last thing that any team of such high caliber needs.
