If a wreck occurs after the white flag has waved to signal the final lap of a NASCAR race, the next flag – either the yellow or the checkered – will determine the race’s outcome. Problem is, officials are inconsistent in deciding when to trigger a caution after a last-lap wreck, raising the question: does NASCAR’s last-lap caution policy open the door for favoritism when a particular driver is leading?
Since its reconfiguration, Atlanta Motor Speedway has become a hub for pack racing, joining the ranks of Daytona and Talladega. And, as is the nature of pack racing, there’s bound to be a wreck on the last lap as drivers let it all hang out on the way to the finish. That’s exactly what happened at Atlanta on February 23rd, 2025 when a multicar wreck prompted officials to throw the yellow on the last lap.
This gave the win to the No. 20 Toyota TRD Camry of Christopher Bell, which was in front of Kyle Larson’s No. 5 Chevy when the caution was triggered. Had they been allowed to race to the end, Larson and the No. 77 Chevy of Carson Hocevar could have very well rallied in front of Bell’s Toyota.
The finish at Atlanta sharply contrasts with last week’s dramatic conclusion to the Daytona 500, even though the scenarios were nearly identical. A crash unfolded in Turn 3 on the last lap, allowing the No. 24 Chevy of William Byron to sneak by to take the lead with the No. 45 Camry of Tyler Reddick hot on his heels. No caution was thrown, allowing the race to unfold organically.
It’s woth noting that Byron and Larson are teammates at Hendrick Motorsports, which is often regarded among fans as NASCAR’s “golden” team, begging the question – did NASCAR elect to leave the race green until the end of the Daytona 500 because Byron was out front, or were the higher-ups hoping Reddick would pass him? And at Atlanta, did officials choose to throw the yellow with Bell out in front, snatching a potential victory from Larson to stifle suspicions of Hendrick favoritism?
Now, there is an argument to be made that NASCAR is simply erring on the side of caution. During the Xfinity Series race at Atlanta, officials did not display a yellow flag despite a last-lap wreck. Cup Series drivers asked officials to throw a caution in their race, citing safety concerns at Atlanta should a crash unfold after the white.
“Our goal is to finish our races under green conditions,” NASCAR senior vice president of competition, Elton Sawyer, was quoted as saying during the Cup Series driver’s meeting on Sunday. “That’s our No. 1 goal. Also, we’re not going to be racing through a debris field. So you can expect cautions to come out based on last night. That was on us. So a situation that comes up today like last night will be a caution.”
Whatever the case, the double standard is evident, leaving the outcome of any race completely at NASCAR’s discretion, especially at wildcard pack racing tracks where a last-lap wreck is all but guaranteed.
Comments
yep, thats why I quit watching and going to nascrap
Good for you
just look at the seats in the stands, mostly empty. nascar has been ruined.
Well. No. For truck and xfinity, sure. But cup is a lot healthier than it was even in the early 2000s.
Loving all the downvotes. You all really want the sport to fail, don’t you? hah.
Everything that NASCAR does is just an accident looking for a place to happen. Stage racing is for Fiday night at the 1/8 mile dirt tracks. Kit car \s do nothing for the teams to engineer. Go back too your roots.
Go back to solid axle cars with spring rubbers and track bar adjustment, the jack guy with 2 tire stops, carbs. Finish the races at twilight, cap them at 3 hours though, just long enough is better.
No doubt NASCAR manipulates the end of the race. It is all about money and TV ratings.
Let them race back to the line, if a crash happens at the back, why throw the caution to stop the front cars, if a crash happens mid pack, drivers coming from the back always slow down anyway and try to get their car through with no damage to score a place. Beside, Nascar cars are that safe now, nobody gets seriously hurt now anyway.
Seems every race has the same final laps crash-fest. That is the real problem. The latest car doesn’t seem to be any real advancement, either.
No, and the Next Gen car really likes to flip when it gets turned…
nascar shouldnt fix something that isnt broke. should have left well enough alone.
I don’t follow nascar anymore, it’s a joke. I don’t even know anything about the drivers. And couldn’t tell you who the teams are. Might as well run all volkswagon’s I wouldn’t know the difference.
Far too many politics and Woke agendas nowadays affecting NASCAR (No doubt pressure from certain manufactures are probably behind some of it). Get back to racing to WIN and leave the manipulations of the finishing order(s) alone. The yellow flag should be used for safety issues only and not to create a wild shootout to the checker flag.
Nothing new here. The WWN has always had the final decision of when to use the yellow and have used it to manipulate races for decades.
WWN?
No
Nascar worries about team manipulation at Martinsville, now they are doing it BIG TIME they favor the rich teams, in the Duels, they took the win off that Jones boy and gave it to Penske, Daytona 500 they let Byron go to the line to make Hendrick happy, at Atlanta they took the win off a rookie Hocevar to give it to JGR. LET THEM RACE like Daryl mentioned in the above comment here. LET THEM RACE to the line.
I said that I was going to make an honest effort to try and watch NASCAR this year. Two races in and in done. Riding around in identical cars in a pack waiting for a crash, is not racing. But man, do I ever love IMSA and WEC. GO Cadillac.