Cole Custer reacts to Daytona 500 last lap wreck

Cole Custer made his return to the NASCAR Cup Series as a full-time wheelman over the weekend, as he’ll be racing the No. 41 for the Haas Factory Team after a couple seasons in the Xfinity Series.

He wasn’t expected to be a major factor in the Daytona 500, but that’s how it goes sometimes during the biggest race of the NASCAR season. Custer was in the mix at the end of the race, as the field was coming to the checkered flag, and he had a shot at hoisting the Harley J. Earl Trophy.

Custer has a run on Denny Hamlin and Austin Cindric, but instead of making a move for the lead, it led to a gigantic wreck that propelled William Byron to Victory Lane for the second consecutive season in The Great American Race.

In the time afterwards, Custer has received some backlash for his move, with the aforementioned Hamlin calling him out: “The No. 41 had the run and I chose not to block him. In these races, you gotta live to make it off of turn 4 and we just didn’t. I thought that the No. 41 came down. I’m pushing the No. 2 down as low as I can, giving the No. 41 all the space and not stopping his run,” the three-time Daytona 500 winner explained.

“I thought he steered left and was trying to crowd it. I understand everyone’s trying to go for it, and he’s going for it. All of us are. But in those situations, we gotta get off of 4, then we can do this. But we just never made it and someone else won. I don’t even know where William [Byron] was running.”

While it’s hard to pinpoint who’s at fault when it comes to the massive wrecks at Daytona each year, Hamlin seems to believe Custer is the one who ruined his evening. Nevertheless, he won’t go quietly into taking the blame, as the Haas wheelman defended himself while speaking with Bob Pockrass of FOX Sports following the Daytona 500.

“There was a lot going on. A lot of pushing, a lot of shoving. I wish we could’ve stayed together with Austin, but just how it all worked out, field blocking and everything, it just didn’t work out. But yeah, everybody just going for it. … At the end of the day, I mean, you’re just going as hard as you can,” Custer stated. “These super-speedway races, you’re pushing, you’re shoving, you’re side-drafting, and it’s the Daytona 500. This is the biggest race of our lives. The top of our sport. It’s a life-changing race. You’re just going for it all.

“At the end of the day, I need to see a replay of exactly what happened, if I side-drafted too hard, or if I hit in the left rear. I just need to see what happened. But I hate it. I mean, these guys work so hard on this car all week. From the Duels, getting it ready, and just a couple of corners short of having a shot at the win.”

In the end, it’s the Daytona 500, and Cole Custer was doing all he could to land in Victory Lane. Denny Hamlin and some other wheelman might take issue with the suddenness of his move, but he took his shot, and everyone will simply have to move on. At least William Byron is happy about the ordeal.