Jeff Gluck and Jordan Bianchi of The Athletic each referred to the race manipulation controversy at Martinsville throughout the playoffs as a “darkish cloud” which overshadowed the most effective brief observe races of the 2024 NASCAR Cup Sequence season.
Each insiders want the magic genie may come and wipe away the race manipulation that occurred, albeit for various causes. Gluck, talking on Monday’s “The Teardown” podcast, argued that even when race manipulation hadn’t taken place within the closing laps, it wouldn’t have modified the result of Joey Logano profitable his third Cup Sequence championship. Nonetheless, Gluck acknowledged the darkish cloud it put over the game main into the season finale at Phoenix.
“You can argue if there had been no race manipulation at Martinsville, William Byron falls out of the ultimate 4, Christopher Bell is within the remaining 4,” Gluck mentioned. “Nevertheless, I’d argue as properly that doesn’t change the result of actually something besides the ultimate 4. Finally, at Phoenix, the Penske automobiles have been the quickest in any case. Sure, Christopher Bell had a bunch of laps led at one a part of the race, however he wasn’t gonna win. He was attempting as exhausting as he may to win, he wished to win the race and he didn’t. So, even when he was within the championship, would something have been totally different?
“I’d argue no and that the Penske automobiles had everybody lined there. And so finally, that is the distinction of somebody ending third within the championship or one thing like that. Sure, with out the race manipulation hanging over everyone — that darkish cloud type of factor — Logano would have received the championship anyway. [Ryan] Blaney would have completed second anyway, however simply Bell would have been in there as an alternative of Byron. And I’m not saying it due to Bell, I simply don’t need the race manipulation a part of it.”
Martinsville race manipulation controversy defined
Within the closing laps of the Spherical of 8 finale, Ross Chastain and Austin Dillon shaped a blockade behind fellow Chevrolet driver Byron. On the final lap of the race, Bubba Wallace appeared to gradual as much as enable fellow Toyota driver Bell to make the go, which gave him the ultimate switch spot over Byron. NASCAR later penalized Bell for using the wall in Turns 3 and 4 to make the go on Wallace. That gave Byron the ultimate spot within the Championship 4.
Bianchi argued there have been vital ripple results popping out of Martinsville, one being that it overshadowed Blaney’s unbelievable triumph. Bianchi disagreed with Gluck’s take that Bell wouldn’t have received at Phoenix both means, citing a mindset distinction between playoff and non-playoff drivers.
NASCAR insider explains how Martinsville race manipulation overshadowed Ryan Blaney’s victory
“I do doubtlessly assume it may influence the end, although,” Bianchi mentioned. “We’ve got seen drivers within the Championship 4 get raced in another way at Phoenix. And even when it’s only a half % or a %, it may have modified issues slightly bit. Perhaps that mindset of the 20 staff is way totally different going into Phoenix and I do know they’re attempting actually exhausting and wished to ship a message, however even simply that little bit may have been the distinction between we’re gonna run prime 5 to profitable, who is aware of. However I agree with you general it was a foul look. This was the ugliness of this playoff format which I actually like. I do like this playoff format, however that is the ugliness of it that type of comes from this. And now we have seen this occur different instances all through NASCAR’s knockout playoff format.
“Kevin Harvick at Talladega, for instance, the place drivers do these egregious issues the place oh my God, this isn’t what it’s purported to be about. I simply didn’t like how that performed out. It put a darkish cloud over what was an awesome race. We talked a lot this yr in regards to the brief observe package deal. And the way dangerous it was and the way NASCAR wanted to repair it. Like, that was an awesome race. That was what you need to see out of a brief observe. You had tire put on, you had comers and goers, you had all these items. You additionally had a profession day, and I do know he was the defending champion, however this to me in plenty of means was the defining second of Ryan Blaney.
“… The dialog from Martinsville to Phoenix ought to have been targeted on Blaney and the championship… and it wasn’t. It was about all of this different stuff. And it simply actually left a bitter style in my mouth.”
Did Martinsville race manipulation play a job in unfavourable response to Joey Logano’s championship win?
Popping out of Phoenix, wherein the underdog in Logano took the checkered flag, the dialog shifted to questioning the credibility of his championship and the playoff format. Had Bell been within the Championship 4, Bianchi believes there wouldn’t have been as a lot uproar to Logano’s championship win.
“A variety of the dialog out of Phoenix after Logano received was in regards to the format,” Bianchi mentioned. “Was he a deserving champion, that type of factor as a result of take a look at who was there. If Bell is on this Championship 4, I don’t know if we’re having that very same type of dialog as a result of we acquired the common season champion in Tyler Reddick, we’ve acquired a driver in Christopher Bell was dominant all through the common season and the playoffs, you’ve acquired Ryan Blaney who definitely deserved to be there and then you definately’ve nonetheless acquired Joey Logano as that Cinderella kind story.
“I don’t assume the dialog is then about oh my God, the ultimate 4 is the weakest ever, this must be modified. That’s all gone and that’s the fallout of it. I simply assume large image, this modifications a lot.”
