NASCAR reveals ‘deeper dive’ into Talladega crash scrutiny

NASCAR has announced plans to take a “deeper dive” into their Damaged Vehicle Policy (DVP), which has stirred controversy, particularly following a chaotic crash at Talladega Superspeedway.

The crash, involving 28 cars with just four laps remaining, revealed the policy’s contentious impact on playoff races, where every point is crucial. The DVP, designed to maintain race safety and competitive integrity, has been criticized for removing vehicles that might still be drivable.

Among the drivers involved in the insane crash were Chase Briscoe and Chase Elliott, both managing to comply with the DVP and return to the pits. Meanwhile, Team Penske drivers Austin Cindric and Joey Logano were less fortunate, unable to rejoin the race due to their vehicles not meeting the criteria set by the policy. In fact, Logano described the situation as “comical.”

“I got out of the car and see a bunch of cars after a red flag where we’ve been sitting there for 10 minutes, and everyone’s just hoping they can roll a little bit. It’s just goofy.”

In response to the growing upset, Elton Sawyer, Senior VP of Competition at NASCAR, addressed the matter post-race.

“On the heels of last week at Kansas, our goal was never to put good cars out of the race,” Sawyer said. “Last week, as we got looking at that and digesting it, maybe we should’ve made a different call last week. As we went into Talladega, we wanted to make sure we aired on the side of the competitors. We didn’t anticipate seeing 25 cars down there, some of them in the grass, high-sided, weren’t sure why they couldn’t continue. That’s why we made the decision to tow the No. 2 to pit road. The No. 9 and No. 14 both met minimum speed, so we felt like that was the right call at that time.

“We will take a much deeper dive into this in the offseason. (The) DVP has been challenging, and we’ll go to work on that in the offseason.”

As NASCAR prepares for a comprehensive review of the DVP, there remains a palpable sense of frustration from drivers concerning the impact of race regulations on playoff outcomes.

NASCAR’s planned review of the DVP during the off-season may bring changes for the 2025 season. Sawyer’s comments hint at a potentially more flexible approach in future enforcement, aiming to prevent repeat scenarios where viable cars are sidelined.