NASCAR has all the time discovered a strategy to get the big-name drivers in competition regardless of how unhealthy their automobile could also be and this yr is not any completely different. NASCAR all the time favors the Earnhardts, Jimmie Johnson, or these darn Toyotas. Regardless of how a lot followers wish to see an actual aggressive race NASCAR all the time has to get entangled to verify the favored hero wins to ship the followers dwelling completely happy or to enrage the followers by letting Kyle Busch or Denny Hamlin win or lord forbid Bubba Wallace has an excellent run.
NASCAR’s Wild Resolution
Because of Austin Dillon assembly Joey Logano and hooking Denny Hamlin into the skin wall to win the race at Richmond and punch his ticket to the playoffs, or so we thought. In response to Fox Reporter Bob Pockrass NASCAR has deemed the strikes by Dillon to affect the integrity of the game enormously. Elton Sawyer the Senior Vice President of Competitors informed the media Tuesday:
The actions of Austin Dillon have enormously broken the integrity of the game and with that, we have now to strip Austin Dillon of the win and take away his playoff berth. To make issues proper we are going to add Jeff Gordon to the playoff. He has earned the best to be within the playoffs and can look ahead to seeing him drive for his fifth championship.
Whereas Sawyer was making the assertion Richmond Raceway and NASCAR Social Media groups had already integrated the ultimate at Richmond to each industrial for NASCAR and Richmond subsequent season. Jeff Gordon has not raced since Martinsville in 2016 filling in for Dale Earnhardt Jr. who was out for a concussion. The Corridor of Famer informed Complete Apex Sports activities in an interview after receiving the information of his unlikely playoff berth:
It actually got here as a shock at first after which I noticed, oh yeah I’m Jeff Gordon, and when this nice sport comes calling I’ll fortunately reply the decision and dig out that outdated rainbow-colored hearth swimsuit and end that drive for 5.
The Fallout
Jeff Gordon has received 4 championships and 93 races in his illustrious profession and if anybody deserves that closing shot it’s NASCAR’s Rainbow Warrior. Since Hendrick Motorsports already has all 4 drivers within the playoffs they obtained a particular waiver within the rulebook to permit a fifth cup crew to race the remainder of the schedule. Gordon will race within the quantity 88 Axalta Chevy.
Joey Logano nonetheless yelling Hen S**t from pit street at Richmond realized his complaining after the race could have price him dearly:
If I knew that NASCAR was going so as to add Jeff Gordon I might have stored my mouth shut as a substitute of racing a rooster s**t now we have now to deal with a legend within the sport, dang it man
Denny Hamlin shared the identical sediment however some have been thrilled to see Gordon make his return to the observe. Chase Elliott informed the media:
It’s nice to have a legend like that on the observe and racing for the championship, Gordon is a fierce competitor and I’ll do what I can to get him up to the mark. Did I learn that accurately Jeff? Oh wait I wasn’t imagined to say that.
NBC Sports activities is happy with the choice as they hope to draw followers again to the game and get some return on their funding in broadcasting the Cup Sequence and Xfinity sequence. Rick Hendrick the proprietor of Hendrick Motorsports and who owned Jeff Gordon’s automobile all these years informed the media:
We had an opportunity in 2013 however it didn’t work out for Jeff. Now we have now one other probability at getting him that fifth championship now that Jimmie Johnson is totally out of it, that is Jeff’s greatest shot in a long time.
Sawyer and different officers are scrambling to search out different guidelines to assist Gordon end the drive for 5. Sawyer reached out to WWE’s Head of Artistic Paul Levesque (Triple H) and NFL’s Roger Goodell on find out how to script the top of the season. Different groups are scrambling to get ahold of former New England Patriots Head Coach Invoice Belichick on find out how to beat the scripts. The race throughout the race, we should see if somebody can overcome the NASCAR as soon as once more rigging the system to present Gordon that fifth championship.
