The No. 3 NASCAR Chevy team of Austin Dillon was penalized for intentionally wrecking the No. 22 Ford Mustang Dark Horse of Joey Logano and the No. 11 Toyota TRD Camry of Denny Hamlin on the last lap to win on August 11th, 2024. Richard Childress Racing (RCR), which fields the NASCAR Chevy No. 3 Camaro, later appealed the penalty, but after review, the National Motorsports Appeals Panel (NMAP) has elected to uphold the punishment.
NASCAR.com reports that the NMAP panel consisted of Tom DeLoach, Kelly Housby, and Tommy Wheeler. Ultimately, they decided that Dillon’s penalty would remain fixed, meaning his points deductions are still in place, and his Playoff eligibility is still void after winning at Richmond. However, the panel did elect to shorten the suspension of his spotter, Brandon Benesch, from three races to just one.
“NASCAR represents elite motorsports and, as such, its drivers are expected to demonstrate exemplary conduct if its series’ championships are to be validated,” the NMAP panel said in a statement. “In this case, the ‘line’ was crossed.”
As a reminder, Dillon’s actions at Richmond violated the NASCAR Rule Book. Specifically, he was found to be in violation of Section 12.3.2.1.b, which refers to Playoff eligibility: “Race finishes must be unencumbered by violation(s) of the NASCAR Rules or other action(s) detrimental to stock car auto racing or NASCAR as determined in the sole discretion of NASCAR.”
Dillon’s victory stands, but his Playoff berth was revoked. Additionally, Austin Dillon and the NASCAR Chevy No. 3 team were docked 25 points in both the drivers’ and owners’ standings.
RCR expressed displeasure with the ruling and released a statement in response, saying, “Richard Childress Racing is disappointed in the results of today’s hearing in front of the National Motorsports Appeals Panel. We respect the NASCAR appeals process, but we do not believe that today’s outcome reflects the facts presented. We plan to appeal the decision to the Final Appeal Officer.”
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Comments
When # 11 or #22 wine the Chevy group pays, but then #11 or #22 wrecks somebody it’s just racing. Look back at how many times #11 has wrecked #5 this season. How about when #9 came of the wall with a flat and happen to hit #11 he got points taken away too. I don’t see the crybabies winning a championship.
I’m not surprised. I still call it BS. When the 22 (Ford) wreck Martin Truex Jr. (Toyota) at Martinsville to advance in the playoffs and win a championship. NASCAR didn’t do a damn anything. When the 22 wrecked Matt Kenseth (Toyota) at Kansas to eliminate Matt from the playoffs. NASCAR again didn’t do a damn thing. When Matt retaliated at Martinsville. By the way, the best payback of all time. NASCAR imposed an unprecedented penalty. This are just a few examples. There are more. Like I have stated. This is BS and NASCAR is full of it.