.RossChastain's wall ride should be immortalized, but not repeated.
Chastain's move, however, worked better than anyone could have imagined. Sure, he successfully destroyed the right side of his car, but just by riding the wall in those final two corners he set a lap time of 18.8, a full second faster than the weekend's pole time and about two seconds up on race pace the lap before. That means there's something here.
A significant part of auto racing is finding those unfair advantages, the things that give a driver or team a significant and repeatable boost. Chastain's move was so effective that wall riding has suddenly gone from every driver's favorite widely discredited desperation play to something that needs to be taken into account going forward.
That puts NASCAR in an awkward position, one they are unlikely to actually do anything about right now. If the four Championship Four teams crack how to repeat the wall ride at Phoenix, it will be a must in a close race. One of those teams is Chastain's Trackhouse Racing, who will have full access to the car that actually pulled it off and the most robust possible data set to determine what went right and what could be improved upon.
That can all stop now. Writing the specific rule will be difficult, particularly with NASCAR's spotty history officiating its own rule book, but existing throttle and steering traces will allow the series to judge intent and hand out penalties post-race. Any rule will have to be written around that, with penalties coming if a driver shows an unusual split from how they normally run a corner to bring the wall into play.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
NASCAR: Ross Chastain's epic wall-riding maneuver on the last lap at Martinsville gets him a spot in the title raceRoss Chastain used an incredible wall-riding move on the final lap at Martinsville to advance to the NASCAR Cup Series championship race.
Read more »
Christopher Bell wins to make NASCAR Championship 4; Ross Chastain advances with insane finishChristopher Bell won his way into NASCAR’s Championship 4, while Ross Chastain used a move more suited for a video game to also advance to the title race in a wild end at Martinsville Speedway.
Read more »
Ross Chastain Makes Late Move to Earn Spot in NASCAR Title RaceChristopher Bell won his way into NASCAR’s championship race, while Ross Chastain used a move more suited for a video game to also advance in Sunday’s thrilling regular-season finale
Read more »
Video: Ross Chastain's 1-in-a-Million Move to Qualify for NASCAR Championship 4If Chastain's daring move was in a Hollywood script, fans would say it was too unrealistic, too corny.
Read more »
NASCAR Power Rankings: Championship 4 Set After Christopher Bell, Ross Chastain MiraclesChristopher Bell won the Xfinity 500 at Martinsville as the Championship 4 field was officially set. Here’s a look at the top 10 drivers before NASCAR’s final race.
Read more »