Dale Earnhardt Jr. weighs in on controversial Ross Chastain-Kyle Larson incident
Believe it or not, Ross Chastain found himself in the middle of another NASCAR controversy last week. At the end of the Goodyear 400 at Darlington last Sunday, Chastain collided with Kyle Larson, paving the way for William Byron to claim his third victory of the season. Racing legend Dale Earnhardt Jr. wanted to weigh in on the situation.
Chastain has earned a reputation as a “dirty” driver in the NASCAR Cup Series, frequently involved in collisions on the track. Larson doesn’t back down from anyone, either, creating quite the finish last weekend.
Though Chastain caught plenty of heat for his involvement in another accident at Darling, Earnhardt doesn’t seem to mind the approach.
“I have to be honest, we saw two of the best drivers … you send those guys into the corner with under 10 laps to go at Darlington, what do you expect?” Earnhardt said. on the Dale Jr. Download.
“Ross is still finding those limits. But I’ll tell ya man, I wish there were more people out there willing to go over them. Over the limits, over the line.”
Earnhardt continued to say that he wasn’t overly surprised that Chastain and Larson collided near the end of the race. He pointed to the stubbornness of both drivers.
“Two guys who are bull-headed and absolutely both gonna send it into the corners,” he said. “Two guys sending it into the corner where there’s really not room for two cars to be sent that hard, both of them diving into the corner as hard as they could. … They were on a collision course.”
Chastain, Larson in top-10 of NASCAR Cup Series points standings
Both Chastain and Larson sit inside the top-10 of the NASCAR Cup Series points standings at the midway point of the season. They’ve each found plenty of success early on.
Chastain owns the points lead heading into the All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro this week. He’s posted five top-five finishes through the first 13 races. The odd part? He has yet to take home a checkered flag in 2023.
Larson, on the other hand, owns two victories during the 2023 season. He drove to Victory Lane at Martinsville and Richmond this year. He also has crossed the finish line in the top-five five times this year.
At the midway point of the season, Larson sits at ninth in the NASCAR Cup Series standings.
Earnhardt said he’s a big fan of the way both Chastain and Larson approach the racetrack. And, so far, the results speak for themselves.
“I’m here for it,” Earnhardt said. “I don’t love either one of those cars getting a terrible result (at Darlington). But this drama. I mean, there’s been three really great weeks of racing. … Now, we’ve got more damn storylines than we know what to do with.”