​NASCAR competition officials conducted a thorough review of every radio transmission and all SMT data before deciding not to penalize any drivers for on-track conduct in the aftermath of the Cup Series race Sunday at Chicagoland Speedway. On Lap 48, Hill slammed Van Gisbergen into the wall, and the Richard Childress Racing No. 33 team immediately suspected the move was intentional and retaliatory for an incident that had occurred between them two weeks earlier. SVG had been leading the race during a mid-race restart when Hill spun him, setting off a multi-car pileup.
Van Gisbergen later described his reaction as being “filthy,” signaling his frustration in his characteristic Kiwi manner. During the TNT Sports broadcast, the analysis team examined the SMT data, with Jamie McMurray concluding that all the data pointed to intentionality. Yet, Van Gisbergen did not admit any intent over the radio. Consequently, NASCAR officials determined there was no substantiated basis to penalize Van Gisbergen. The officials’ approach was outlined by NASCAR vice president of racing communications Mike Forde on the latest episode of the Hauler Talk podcast.
“We looked to see if there were any anomalies throughout the race that might have sparked this, perhaps a payback from earlier,” Forde explained. “We reviewed all the radio transmissions to see if anything rose to a smoking gun. We considered camera angles and all available resources, as we always say. And nothing in our eyes proved definitively that this was 100 percent intentional and penalty-worthy.” Hill also shoveled Van Gisbergen into the wall under caution, and NASCAR chose not to penalize that action either. However, the sanctioning body has summoned both drivers to the Cup Series hauler next weekend to discuss the situation.
“We want to have a discussion and ensure it doesn’t escalate into a bigger problem at Atlanta or beyond,” Forde noted. “So, we plan to have that conversation on Saturday.”
In addition, NASCAR investigated the contact between Zane Smith and Carson Hocevar and, like the others, brought those two into the hauler for review. “The same review process was followed, and nothing rose to the level of there being no doubt it was intentional, so we are opting not to penalize there either,” Forde stated.
NASCAR has previously disciplined drivers such as Denny Hamlin and Ryan Preece for retaliatory on-track actions, but in this instance SVG did not admit any intent. “There’s enough reasonable doubt to where it didn’t rise to a penalty for us here,” Forde said. “If you remove that reasonable doubt, then you’re going to get a penalty. If you say you’re going to do it and then do it, that is going to rise to the level of a penalty.”