Will the William Byron-Ross Chastain Spat Carry Into Future Races?

Will the last-lap Texas Motor Speedway contact between William Byron and Ross Chastain carry into future NASCAR Cup Series races?

Joy Tomlinson: Who knows? Ross Chastain left the track before anyone could ask him about it. I would be upset if someone junked my car (whether by accident or on purpose) on the last lap of the race. Chastain likely will race harder with William Byron until he feels vindicated of the incident. Since Chastain tends to drive more aggressively, that could result in some contact made with Byron. It reminds me of when Kevin Harvick was angry with Chase Elliott after Elliott blocked him at Bristol Motor Speedway. Then, at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL, Harvick wrecked Elliott and later wrecked himself, and that was that. But that was in the playoffs, not within the first few months of the season. I don’t think Chastain would do something that drastic that could potentially hurt his team more than what Byron did at Texas.

Luken Glover: It’s hard to say anymore, because some drivers let things go easier than others. There is also the potential factor of things happening just beyond payback, such as an unhappy owner or sponsor. Remember Chastain’s incident with Kyle Larson last year? That led to conversations within Chevrolet, and Chastain struggled for weeks after that. With Talladega Superspeedway this week, there very likely will not be, nor should there be any further conflict. It’s something that could have dissipated by the time drivers arrive in Alabama, or it’s something that we’ll see hashed out weeks down the road. Drivers do have long memories. But given Byron deemed it as a racing incident and was apologetic, I doubt you will see much, if any retaliation in the future.

Kevin Nix: No. Replays showed that the contact was not intentional, as Chastain lifted and almost smacked the wall coming out of turn 2 before Byron got into him. Chastain has been public enemy No. 1 of Hendrick Motorsports, but this contact has been seen as a racing deal by both Byron and much of the fanbase. Chastain can sometimes be a reckless driver, but it would do him more harm than good to either retaliate against Byron or race him any differently than he has been.

Vito Pugliese: I don’t think so; Byron is generally a pretty clean competitor, and it was Chastain who arced down into Byron’s path off turn 2. This isn’t the beginning of another Chastain vs. Denny Hamlin saga, even though Rick Hendrick had his fill…