Editor’s note: The views expressed in this column are solely those of the author.
Are you not entertained?
In a nod to the gladiator era, Martinsville Speedway‘s round in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup postseason worked a packed coliseum into a frenzy Sunday, with Matt Kenseth taking his pound of flesh from Joey Logano in a move that stretched the limits of NASCAR’s unwritten “boys, have at it” policy to let drivers settle differences amongst themselves.
NASCAR’s big-league playoffs channeled shades of a Saturday night showdown at Bowman Gray Stadium, the historic NASCAR-sanctioned short track where weekend warriors fuel their long-running feuds with regular fits of retaliation — all to the delight of the bloodthirsty crowd. Sunday, shockingly, it happened with the cameras rolling on one of stock-car racing’s biggest stages.
RELATED: Logano calls Kenseth a ‘complete coward’
At the center was Kenseth, who — to borrow baseball jargon — had already backed Logano off the plate with instances of hard racing over the course of the first 400 laps. But what happened on Lap 454 was no mere brushback pitch. This was a purposeful beanball directed at the head, the result of bubbling-over tensions from Logano’s punting of Kenseth in a late-race battle for the lead at Kansas Speedway two weeks ago.
In the short trip from his car’s wrecked carcass to the infield care center, Kenseth conjured up mechanical or tire-failure hokum in a thin attempt to explain away the telegraphed laying in wait for payback. Maybe his car wouldn’t turn or stop, but it was driveable enough to plow Logano’s Ford into the wall like so much snow.
The surprising move runs crosscurrent to Kenseth’s mild-mannered and relatively easy-going reputation. But that character has also shown glimpses of a testy nature over his career, with Sunday’s showing, his history of bumper cars at the same Martinsville track with Brian Vickers a few years ago, and his famed post-race tackle between the haulers of Brad Keselowski in the Charlotte Chase race making that short list.
GALLERY: Photos of the incident from the track, garage
Kenseth may not take ownership of the crash or his intent, but it’s a teachable moment and an opportunity for NASCAR officials to take ownership of the competition back in house. Steve O’Donnell, NASCAR executive vice president and chief racing development officer, said Sunday evening that series officials were “certainly disappointed” in the run-in and that it merited further discussion, with any possible penalties emerging Tuesday. Even O’Donnell smiled with a “no comment” when asked if Kenseth’s car failure theory was plausible.
Longtime fans would have to dig back into the sport’s lawless, rough-and-tumble early years to find a similar example, but there isn’t really a comparable case in recent memory for Sunday’s antics, where an ailing, laps-down driver decides that a dominant, leading driver won’t make it to the finish.
The Jeff Gordon–Clint Bowyer altercation at Phoenix in November 2012 comes close, with off-the-pace Gordon waiting for Bowyer to pass before ramming his rival, ultimately earning a $100,000 fine and 25-point penalty. Kyle Busch wrecking Ron Hornaday under caution during a truck race at Texas a few years back? Also close, but the two principles in that instance were both on the same lap, racing for position before tensions erupted.
At stock-car racing’s weekly levels, laps-down drivers wait on leading cars to mete out revenge and it’s all part of the show. Is it part of the Sprint Cup show? Tuesday’s anticipated penalty announcement — and the promotional ads pitching the series’ next race this weekend at Texas — will tell the tale.
NASCAR officials want to see emotions from competitors, but they also don’t want to see cars wielded as weapons, especially with hard, intentional hits on the driver’s side. They also want what’s best for fans, who cheered lustily at Sunday’s developments, though it may have been driven as much by Logano’s comeuppance for his recent unapologetic aggression as by Kenseth’s unsavory methods.
Kenseth sent a message by unceremoniously ending Logano’s three-victory streak with gusto. Now it’s NASCAR’s turn to deliver a message, one that resembles a 95-mph fastball high and inside.
Otherwise, it’s time to revise the 2016 schedule to add Bowman Gray to the Chase and allow the “boys, have at it” mantra to spread its wings in the name of entertainment.
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