After publicly deciding to not appeal NASCAR’s 25 point and $50,000 penalty on intentionally wrecking rival Ross Chastain, Denny Hamlin has now changed his mind and will now appeal the penalty. Hamlin announced it on Friday (March 17).
Denny wrote: “After much consideration, I’ve decided that I will appeal the decision by NASCAR to penalize me. What happened Sunday was common hard racing that happens each and every weekend. There was also no manipulation of the race nor actions detrimental to the sport.”
On his podcast Actions Detrimental, Hamlin had previously said: “It wasn’t a mistake. I let the wheel go and said, ‘You’re coming with me.’” Additionally, Hamlin had stated on his Twitter: “I won’t be making an appeal to NASCAR.”
The penalty stems from the overtime restart last week at Phoenix Raceway where Hamlin put Chastain into the wall. The two drivers finished 23rd and 24th, respectively, after running in the top 10.
NASCAR’s Senior Vice President of Competition Elton Sawyer had also given a statement regarding Hamlin’s penalty: “We’re delighted that Denny has a podcast. We think that’s great! He interacts with the fans, but when you start admitting that you have intentionally done something that would compromise the results of the end of the race, then that rises to the level that we’re going to get involved.”
“We’ve been consistent in the past with that, and we will be consistent going forward.” Sawyer added.
The appeal will be heard by an independent appeal panel.
Sign up for the Frontstretch Newsletter
A daily email update (Monday through Friday) providing racing news, commentary, features, and information from Frontstretch.com
We hate spam. Your email address will not be sold or shared with anyone else.
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at …