NASCAR car on track, showcasing team dynamics during a tense race. [Image Source: WCYB]
NASCAR has reinforced its playoff communications policy, now prohibiting teams from sharing points information with drivers during races, as highlighted by a recent incident at the Charlotte ROVAL. This NASCAR team playoff points rule sparked considerable emotional reaction from competitors, particularly Denny Hamlin, during the round of 12 finale on Sunday.
Drivers Kept in the Dark During Critical Playoff Battle
Denny Hamlin entered the closing laps at the Charlotte ROVAL unaware of an intense points battle between Joey Logano and Ross Chastain for the final transfer position into the next playoff round. Hamlin was not told that Chastain led Logano by just a single point—crucial knowledge given that Logano held the tiebreaker advantage. When Hamlin overtook Chastain on the last lap, it directly led to Chastain’s elimination. Chastain made a desperate bid to regain his spot in the final corner, resulting in a collision that impacted both drivers.
Freddie Kraft, spotter for the No. 23 team, explained the communication blackout. He said on Tuesday’s Door Bumper Clear podcast,
“The biggest thing to me to explain to the fans side of this, I know a lot of people can’t believe Denny didn’t know,”
Kraft, Spotter. He added that NASCAR has explicitly told spotters and teams not to mention “points” to drivers as a safeguard against race manipulation, noting,
“I know some teams did and God bless them, they got away with it.”
Strict Warnings from NASCAR for Playoff Standings Discussions
Kraft provided an example from the previous day’s race, stating that even reading playoff standings aloud at a driver’s request resulted in a warning from NASCAR officials. The team received firm instructions to avoid any communication about points standings to prevent influencing the outcome unfairly.
Image of: NASCAR Team
“But on Saturday, it was a playoff driver that was in no threat of losing his position or anything, asked his spotter, ‘What’s the playoffs look like? What’s going on?’ The spotter simply read the standings… no directions, just read the standings. He got a warning from NASCAR, do not talk about points standings because they don’t want race manipulation.”
Kraft, Spotter.
Denny Hamlin Frustrated Over Lack of Real-Time Information
Hamlin publicly questioned why he was kept in the dark about the playoff battle, expressing frustration on the Actions Detrimental podcast about the prohibition and its impact on his race decisions. He detailed how having points information would have allowed him to anticipate moves from rivals and react accordingly.
“There’s obviously two reasons I would want to know,”
Hamlin, Driver. He explained that knowing the situation could help him prepare if, for example, another competitor was likely to aggressively defend their position. Hamlin emphasized that being informed would help him choose how and whom to race against, rather than manipulate race outcomes to benefit others.
“It’s not race manipulation if I’m trying to get the best result for me. I got no allegiance to Ford, Chevy, Joey, or Ross, but I have interest in myself winning a championship.”
Hamlin, Driver.
Officials and Spotters See Potential for Race Manipulation
Freddie Kraft gave his perspective on why the information ban is so stringent, especially for teams like Hamlin’s, whose playoff fate was not on the line at Charlotte. From NASCAR’s viewpoint, even unintentional dissemination of points information could be construed as manipulating playoff results. Kraft explained,
“For Denny, who’s not involved, he’s well above the cutline and not involved in the points standings. If they start feeding him information… it would be manipulation if they tell him, ‘If you pass the 1 [Chastain], it knocks the 22 [Logano] out.’ You can’t give that information over the radio because listen, Denny is smart enough to know going into the race the 1 or the 22 are probably gonna be the two guys battling. … I saw he was mad at the team for not giving him information and I’m like, ‘They can’t!’”
Kraft, Spotter.
He also mentioned the significant penalties that can occur if teams are found to be manipulating race outcomes, referencing past disciplinary actions by NASCAR such as those faced by Michael Waltrip Racing.
“I got suspended over this sh*t last year, allegedly. [Spotter Chris] Lambert can’t feed him that information because if he does, you don’t know what the penalties are going to be. They could knock you out of the playoff. If you try to manipulate stuff, we saw Michael Waltrip Racing with fines and basically put them out of business. So, the idea that he didn’t know, well he can’t know because they shouldn’t tell him.”
Kraft, Spotter.
Looking Ahead: Impacts of the Communication Ban
This heightened enforcement of the NASCAR team playoff points rule has led to frustration and confusion among both drivers and teams. For competitors like Denny Hamlin, the lack of real-time context can affect split-second strategy, while for spotters and teams, the risk of sanctions weighs heavily. The intense debate over what constitutes manipulation versus fair competition will likely continue as the postseason unfolds. NASCAR, meanwhile, remains committed to preventing any action that could be interpreted as unjustly altering playoff outcomes, maintaining strict oversight of communications for all teams.
