The Re-Education Of Ross Chastain

“You must unlearn what you have learned.” – Yoda, Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back

Welcome to the NASCAR Thunderdome!

*loud, boisterous cheers*

That’s right, ladies and gentleman. It’s that time again!

We got ourselves a feud! A beef! A straight-up … *pauses for dramatic effect*

… RIVALRY!

*crowd goes into frenzy, chairs are thrown, arson is committed*

But hold on a minute. Is that the right way to describe what the Thunderdome has brought before us?

*crowd quiets down, confused*

I was there on Sunday (June 5), sitting in the frontstretch grandstands at the track informally known simply as Gateway. While I’ve covered a number of races in person since last summer, it was my first time attending a NASCAR race as a fan since the 2019 Southern 500.

I witnessed something familiar.

I saw Ross Chastain, one of the most aggressive drivers in NASCAR, try and try again to get by Denny Hamlin with a faster car in turns 1 and 2.

From the last half of stage 1 to lap 65, Chastain edged his No. 1 Chevrolet inside Hamlin’s No. 11 Toyota in attempts to complete the pass. During this time, it was the closest thing to a battle for position on the track. They weren’t joking when they said it would be hard to pass at Gateway.

Then came the contact that sent Hamlin into the turn 2 wall.

Moments after Hamlin hit the wall, someone said, “We’re done,” over the No. 11 team’s radio. They weren’t done though.

Hamlin continued, but not before doing his best Cole Trickle impersonation and demanding that his team put fresh tires on the car.

Change my tires pic.twitter.com/XMXxIOtoqr

— Denny Hamlin (@dennyhamlin) June 6, 2022

That was when I saw something I don’t think I’ve ever witnessed before, let alone from Hamlin.

For the rest of the race, the Joe Gibbs Racing driver made it his mission to make Chastain’s day miserable.

If Hamlin wanted to wreck Chastain, he could have easily done so Sunday. While Chastain’s mishaps continued…