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TALLADEGA, Ala. — The new green-white-checkered finish rule at Talladega Superspeedway, which NASCAR changed from a maximum of three attempts to just one last week, figured heavily into the conclusion of — and eventual Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup eliminations in — Sunday’s CampingWorld.com 500.
An initial effort at a green-white-checkered finish was waved off after Jimmie Johnson and Kyle Larson spun from the middle of the pack down onto the apron and in the infield. Because the field had not reached the start/finish line before the caution flag came, NASCAR ruled that did not count as the lone attempt to finish.
On the ensuing attempt, Kevin Harvick got into Trevor Bayne, sending Bayne’s car spinning into traffic and bringing out another yellow flag just as the lead pack entered Turn 1. That counted as the one green-white-checkered attempt, NASCAR ruled, and officials used loop data and video feeds to determine that Joey Logano was ahead of Dale Earnhardt Jr. at the time of the caution, when the field was frozen.
WATCH: Breakdown of final restart
Logano was declared the winner, leaving Earnhardt Jr. to claim second place — the driver of the No. 88 Chevrolet needed a win to advance to the Eliminator Round.
It also led to confusion throughout the garage as to which four drivers had been eliminated from the postseason — and why the first incident didn’t actually count as a first attempt.
“We stopped the attempt before anybody crossed the green or the checkered or the start/finish line,” NASCAR Vice Chairman Mike Helton said after emerging from the NASCAR hauler. “We just reset everybody except for the cars that were involved in the accident and the cars that pitted. Then we had the second incident — and on that one we had one attempt because we had cars that crossed the start/finish line.”
Driver reaction varied from acceptance to confusion.
Earnhardt Jr. himself, despite being on the wrong side of the tight 1-2 finish with Logano, was fine with the call — and the rule.
“I feel like no matter the rules, when the race is over, I can live with the result as long as everyone else is going by the same rules,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “So I felt like, per the rule book, it sorted out and I finished second. I’m OK with that.”
Not everyone was as diplomatic. Kyle Busch, who was the final driver to advance to the next round, finishing one point ahead of Ryan Newman, said he was surprised that the first restart attempt was waived off — but that it was NASCAR’s prerogative.
“It did surprise me how (NASCAR) called it, but past that — it’s their ball, it’s their field, it’s their bat, it’s their everything,” Busch said. “Play along. … I felt like either way, if the race would have gone green and we would have finished two laps, which I know never happens here, that we would have had a good shot to pass a few guys and get ourselves farther up also. There was a bunch of different scenarios there that could have and maybe would have played out a little bit differently.”
Newman reacted strongly to the situation.
“I’ll be honest. I am extremely disappointed in the situation and what all transpired,” Newman said. “I’m not happy coming up one position short under these circumstances.”
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NASCAR officials announced the green-white-checkered rule change Oct. 20, citing the need to balance excitement and safety.
The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series event on Saturday also had a lone green-white-checkered ending.
“It is what it is,” Helton said. “I think every time we make a procedural rule, whether it’s one, two, none, as long as we do our job right, everybody’s got the same playing field.”
