There is no doubt Ross Chastain has been under a microscope and the focus of ire in the NASCAR Cup Series garage for the past year, and it seems things finally came to a head following Sunday’s race at Darlington Raceway.
In the closing laps, Chastain and Kyle Larson made contact on back-to-back restarts while battling for the lead, resulting in both cars crashing from the lead and out of contention.
On the radio after the incident, Larson’s crew chief Cliff Daniels called on Chevrolet to get involved. Following the race, team owner Rick Hendrick was direct with his criticism of Chastain but pointed out he has a lot of talent behind the wheel.
“He doesn’t have to be that aggressive, and I guess at this point in the race maybe you’re super aggressive, but you just don’t run people up in the fence or just — he’s not going to — he’s going to make a lot of enemies,” said Hendrick. “It’s hard to win a championship when you’ve got a lot of paybacks out there.”
On Monday, Trackhouse Racing co-owner Justin Marks spoke with SiriusXM NASCAR Radio and indicated he would get involved in the situation and take a more active role.
READ MORE: Justin Marks ‘Taking More Active Role’ in Guiding Ross Chastain Through Recent Controversies
