Ross Chastain retaliates after checkered flag, puts Tyler Reddick in the wall

Even after the checkered flag had waved to finish the Busch Light Clash, Ross Chastain had unfinished business with Tyler Reddick. The Melon Man had grown frustrated after the final lap. So, he put his NASCAR competitor into the wall.

At this very short track in the LA Coliseum, you can do a lot more bumping than other races. You can also put your opponent into the wall without too much concern you will hurt them. Still, NASCAR doesn’t love actions like this.

If anyone had thought Chastain had changed since last season, think again.

Ross Chastain let Tyler Reddick know how he felt getting picked against the spun out car of Bubba Wallace on the checkered flag lap. Watch it all go down, from Reddick bumping Chastain to the after-the-finish contact.

Denny Hamlin won the race and then Ross Chastain dumped his driver. Coincidence? Yes. Funny? Also, yes.

There was some contact after the checkered flag. 👀 #BuschLightClash pic.twitter.com/oyMGp4ZgId

— NASCAR (@NASCAR) February 4, 2024

These are two drivers that might end up seeing each other often this year. They are both capable of making deep playoff runs. Both drivers have had their feuds in the past, Chastain especially. It will be interesting to see if this continues into the rest of the season or if it ends in Los Angeles.

Ross Chastain had up and down day in LA

For the Trackhouse Racing driver, today was a grind. He put himself in position to drive for a top-5 finish at times. However, things just never came together. Contact on the track, issues like Reddick putting him into the car of Bubba Wallace as it was spun out on track.

Chastain went from a potential top-10 finish to P15 because of that move from Reddick at the end. So, you can understand the frustration. I don’t think we can really draw too many conclusions from this race for Chastain, other than he is the same driver he has always been.

That is a good thing, by the way. We need the aggression and attitude in the Cup Series. Someone who is going to make other drivers nervous when he’s around them on the track. While you hate to see retaliation after the race, you can’t be too upset about what Ross did, really.

Ultimately, Ross Chastain showed the same grit and fight he has always had in the Cup Series. Trackhouse Racing is making strides and growing at an unreal pace – performance on the track matters. Chastain wants to get more wins sooner rather than later and make a statement to the rest of the garage.

Will we see another feud begin between Chastain and another Toyota driver?