The greatest day in motorsports was a roller-coaster of emotions this past weekend. A huge lap 1 crash in Monaco, followed by virtually no passing, to one of the most iconic moments on the final lap of the Indianapolis 500.
While the Coca-Cola 600 had great racing, its anti-climatic finish left many fuming – among them, Kyle Larson, who showed up late due to a rain-delayed Indy 500 and never got the opportunity to get back into the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet.
While we can’t control the weather (…or can we?), should that preclude Larson from being granted a championship waiver like many drivers before him? This week Trenton Worsham and Vito Pugliese present a stark differing of opinion in 2-Headed Monster.
No Waiver, No Cry
Things were looking good for Kyle Larson at Indianapolis Motor Speedway after the rains moved out, running in the top seven – before a botched pit entry put him behind for the rest of the day. Upon his arrival to Charlotte Motor Speedway, Justin Allgaier was doing yeoman’s duty, bringing the No. 5 from dead last up to 16th before Concord received its end of a storm system that extended from the Carolinas to Hudson Bay. Despite a track that appeared raceable by midnight, NASCAR abruptly called an end to the race and deemed Christopher Bell the winner, with Larson waiting in the wings to relieve Allgaier and complete the kind-of-a-double.
Should the effort alone warrant a championship waiver? In short – no.
I know that’s going to anger a lot of not just NASCAR fans, but motorsports fans in general.
He’s drawing more attention to the sport! It was a great story! What about what Hendrick did for NASCAR at LeMans!
All fair points. Let’s debunk them in order.
Since when does a “story” translate into “OK to blow off a crown jewel race if it gets wet?”
Last week, we announced the newest group of drivers getting into the NASCAR Hall of Fame. Let’s reflect on some of those who are already in there and their heroic exploits:
- Richard Petty – racing with half a stomach following ulcer surgery and a broken neck.
- In case you didn’t read that the first time, RACED WITH A BROKEN NECK.
- Newest inductee, Ricky Rudd, raced in the Daytona 500 with his face tapped together so he could see after almost flying out of the car in the Busch Clash. Won the next race at Richmond.
- Dale Earnhardt Jr. – is on camera burning alive in an ALMS race, still starts the first race in the Chase, covered in salve, bandages and layers of fireproof Nomex to bleed through
- Dale Earnhardt Sr. – Broken collar bone? No problem, just sit on the pole at Watkins Glen driving one handed.
- Mark Martin – broke his wrist and knee at Daytona 24 hours earlier, cuts off cast in middle of race so he can continue driving while third in points. Oh, and needed a spinal fusion.
None of those guys got a pass. Different era, different situations? Sure.
But waivers for snowboarding, not getting a full-time ride with a salary you were expecting, putting all your chips on midwestern weather in late May, or getting dinged in a mid-week dirt race in BFE?
That’s a leap I’m not willing to make.
This isn’t to pile on Kyle. It absolutely was a great story and was the focus of attention for non-racing types. Should a marketing exercise grant you a pass into playoffs?
What other sport would permit this?
One prominent journalist this week used the example of NASCAR pushing Hendrick Motorsports to field the Garage 56 car at Le Mans as justification for a waiver.
First of all, wrong continent, secondly, no drivers missed a points race in order to participate in Le Mans. It also apparently didn’t have much of an effect on HMS as a whole with Larson and William Byron winning races, while Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman were on the mend from their extracurricular activities.
The rules stated in February a driver must start all 26 races to be eligible for the Championship. That was a known inherent risk with attempting the double. Should the rule be changed in the future for drivers attempting the 500 and 600?
Absolutely! So why hasn’t it been done?
Does NASCAR view it as a deterrent to skipping a crown jewel event on their calendar to compete in the world’s biggest single motorsports event? It would appear so – I mean, it isn’t like they aren’t prepared to deal with rain at every race each weekend.
Will NASCAR issue Larson a waiver? Almost assuredly it will. I won’t lose a whole lot of sleep over it, but it’s also why Championships of the Playoff era don’t carry the same weight as those we saw in the 1990s that people still talk about. Will those in the future speak the same of the generational waiver runs we’ll see in years to come? Unlikely, but time will tell. – Vito Pugliese
For All You Do, This Waiver’s for You
The reign of the most popular driver in NASCAR has been that of Chase Elliott, but the tides could be turning. His Hendrick teammate Kyle Larson attempted what very few have tried, racing 1,100 miles between the Indy 500 and Coca-Cola 600.
Attempted.
Mother Nature seemed to have other plans. Delaying the Indy 500 and ending the 600 just under 400 miles put a nail in the coffin that had been a month of fanfare and awe across the motorsports world which prevented Larson from being able to race in both races, even for a lap in Charlotte. The driver of the No. 5 absolutely deserves the waiver for a multitude of reasons with the most obvious being the preciously mentioned early end to the 600, either NASCAR or FOX called it. Angry fans and even teams showcased on social media how the track was able to race but it was too late as the decision had been made.
The waiver SHOULD be granted because he did make it to Charlotte and could take the wheel over from Justin Allgaier to complete the event. This was not on Larson but on whoever decided to end the race. He would have raced in that event, not doing so left him defeated.
Larson didn’t just skip out on a crown jewel to go race his dirt car in some middle of nowhere dirt track or decide to take the day off. He and his Hendrick team planned to race TWO races, one being the biggest in America if not the world, and make it back to race the other. Not racing in Charlotte was not something he planned on doing, he showed up to do just that. This was not a vacation or playing hooky to miss a race due to being in the playoffs for being locked in with a win.
Drivers such as the aforementioned Elliott have been granted waivers left and right for various reasons, such as the injury the driver of the No. 9 suffered a year ago snowboarding, something not racing-related. Matt Kenseth was granted a waiver in 2020 when Larson was suspended, allowing him to compete in the playoffs should he have made it in.
Before putting time, money, and resources into this, one would also think that Rick Hendrick and Jeff Gordon would not have been worried about not obtaining a waiver. Some talks behind the scenes must have happened but here we are, here they are, wondering if it’ll happen. With all the fanfare and almost every other race detailing the Hendrick origin story on the broadcast, there’s no way NASCAR would rip that right from them or their driver who has elevated the sport with new eyes at this time.
One consideration for the waiver is because of the elevation he has brought to the sport of NASCAR. People heard of the double and his plane being tracked like Taylor Swift after Indy qualifying to North Wilkesboro for the All-Star race. The attention he brought was different than his predecessors Kurt Busch and Tony Stewart, even reaching the rich and glamorous Formula 1 spectacle of Monaco.
Sure, just bringing eyes and causing people to pay attention to NASCAR doesn’t inherently deserve a waiver, but NASCAR would set a precedent if drivers wanted to do this again in the future, gambling a championship chance for achieving a dream and a goal. Even if they did make the race but unable to turn a lap due to circumstances out of their control.
If NASCAR doesn’t grant the 2021 Cup champion this waiver, nothing is stopping him from not racing the rest of the season and hopping in his dirt cars and reminding them who the hell he is.
If NASCAR doesn’t grant Kyle Larson — the most talented racecar driver on the planet — the waiver, they’ll just be doing what they did two weeks ago: punishing a driver and then marketing the hell out of them. -Trenton Worsham
Vito is one of the longest-tenured writers at Frontstretch, joining the staff in 2007. He’s a contributor to several other outlets, including Athlon Sports and Popular Speed in addition to making radio appearances. He forever has a soft-spot in his heart for old Mopars and presumably oil-soaked cardboard in his garage.
