At the Atlanta race, where a late collision and a quick caution call generated intense discussion, the inconsistencies in NASCAR’s decision-making once again took center stage. Both insiders and fans began to doubt the sport’s wisdom, confirming a foreboding warning that none other than Kevin Harvick had given weeks earlier. Former Cup Series winner Harvick had expressed his annoyance after the Daytona 500. His wrath wasn’t limited to the race’s result; he was also very upset with NASCAR’s inconsistent refereeing, which he felt was putting drivers in danger. It was extremely dangerous and erratic. He had warned that someone would be harmed. Zg.
Harvick had been particularly worried about the late wrecks in Daytona, when NASCAR had put the drivers’ safety at jeopardy by allowing the situation to worsen by postponing the issuing of a caution. With Daniel Suárez, Ryan Blaney, and Kyle Busch engaged in a furious battle for the lead, the Atlanta race appeared to be headed for one of the finest finishes of the season. But after Josh Berry spun out after making contact with Bubba Wallace, causing a multi-vehicle crash, NASCAR quickly issued a yellow, freezing the field and giving Suárez the victory. In addition to the abrupt conclusion of what should have been a spectacular race, the decision caused criticism due to its inconsistency when contrasted to the Daytona race.
As Harvick had warned, this inconsistency damages NASCAR’s reputation among its drivers and spectators in addition to causing mayhem on the track. In an odd turn of events, Allen Sawyer of NASCAR had openly acknowledged during the drivers’ conference that the Daytona finish had been badly managed just hours before the race in Atlanta. “We need to have issued that warning earlier. “We shouldn’t have allowed that race to unfold the way it did,” he said, vowing to issue a more urgent warning in the future. There is still controversy surrounding this discrepancy in NASCAR’s decision-making. Why wasn’t driver safety at Daytona as important as it was in Atlanta? Should caution calls be made more frequently? Imagine if the warning had been called at Daytona and the same procedure followed at Atlanta? These are questions that continue to plague the sport.
The aggressive racing in the final laps, which Josh Berry called both “crazy” and “a lot of fun,” added to the turmoil of the Atlanta race. But a last-lap incident terminated his race, depriving him of a higher finish and forcing him to consider if racing aggressively was worth the danger. We managed to maintain our aggression, offensiveness, and upfrontness. However, we didn’t receive the finish we were due,” he bemoaned. Ultimately, Harvick’s caution is valid. In addition to interfering with the sport’s spectacle, NASCAR’s uneven approach to safety concerns puts its drivers’ safety in grave danger. This is a situation that needs to be addressed right now and consistently to preserve the integrity of the sport and the wellbeing of those who make it exciting.
