NASCAR insider reveals whether Austin Dillon, Ross Chastain could face penalty after Martinsville

A lot of controversy at the end of the Xfinity 500. The NASCAR Playoffs at Martinsville gave us plenty to talk about today. Austin Dillon and Ross Chastain could very well face penalties this week.

The controversy at the end of the race relates to possible race manipulation from Toyota and Chevy. It appeared that Bubba Wallace slowed down to give Christopher Bell a spot. But Dillon and Chastain had their own situation.

Both Dillon and Chastain appeared to form a blockade behind William Byron for about the last 15 laps. They raced side by side, made no attempt to pass each other and definitely didn’t try to pass Byron.

Bob Pockrass of FOX Sports isn’t sure NASCAR will penalize them though. It is hard to prove that they were not giving 100%, but it hasn’t stopped officials in the past.

Thoughts:
—NASCAR tore down Wallace car. Would expect if nothing broke, penalty coming to team.
—hard to predict Dillon/Chastain b/c didn’t lose spots (don’t expect anything to Byron). There isn’t a no blocking rule. 100% rule but does that require risk on outside or a bump?

— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) November 4, 2024

Cole Custer was penalized after the 2022 Roval for giving up a spot to Chase Briscoe and blocking Austin Dillon as well as Erik Jones in the process. So, could we see similar today?

The NASCAR race at Martinsville was actually a good race. The new, softer tires were fantastic. These cars were covered in rubber and looked badass, like an old-school race.

Chevy gave ‘message’ to SVG during Martinsville NASCAR race

Ultimately, William Byron advanced to the Championship 4 as Christopher Bell was penalized for an accidental Hail Melon move. A maneuver that has been made illegal by NASCAR.

Going back earlier in the NASCAR race, Chevrolet was doing more than what we previously believed. On-board camera footage from Shane van Gisbergen’s No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevy shows as much.

Pulled by Andrew (@Basso488) on X/Twitter, the evidence is a bit damning. At this point in the race, the sun was still up. Ryan Blaney was working on moving his way up through the field. SVG was lined up right behind him on what appears to be the final restart. Lap 414.

Over the radio, the Kaulig Racing driver was told, “Okay, don’t forget what the 12 did to you earlier, alright? … That’s a message from Chevrolet.”

To his credit, SVG laughed, said “Copy that,” and raced Blaney clean on the restart.