NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Dawson Cram during the Xfinity Championship race at Phoenix Raceway. Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Watch: NASCAR driver throws bumper at fellow competitor after incident at Richmond

By Samuel Stubbs | Last updated 3/30/24

There's an old saying about short-track racing — "Short track, short on tempers."

That statement could not be more accurate when describing Saturday's NASCAR Xfinity Series ToyotaCare 250 at Richmond Raceway.

With under 80 laps to go, Dawson Cram got into the back of fellow driver Joey Gase, sending Gase into the outside wall in turn two. Rather than flip Cram off or fight after the race, Gase sent him a different kind of message, throwing the damaged rear bumper of his race car at Cram's windshield the next time he came around the track at a cautious speed.

He threw what!?

A frustrated @JoeyGaseRacing just chucked his entire rear bumper cover at @dawsoncram41. #NASCAR

@NASCAR_Xfinity pic.twitter.com/ZvAQvOLmY7
— Motorsport.com (@Motorsport) March 30, 2024

"He cut across my nose on [corner] exit," Cram explained to his team over the radio. He feels Gase was at fault for the spin, though the replay showed that wasn't necessarily the case.

NASCAR likely won't take too kindly to Gase walking across the racetrack and throwing a heavy piece of metal at his competitor's vehicle. Still, Gase was likely not thinking about possible repercussions in the heat of the moment.

"He must not have his head screwed on right," Gase said in his interview with Fox's Regan Smith. "I gave the kid his first-ever opportunity in the Xfinity Series, and I know Johnny Davis (Cram's car owner) is in the business of wrecking racecars, and we're not. We're racing hard for the lucky dog, and he (Cram) doesn't know how to lift."

It'll be interesting to see how harshly NASCAR punishes Gase in its mid-week penalty report, which is usually released on Tuesday or Wednesday following that weekend's races.

The ToyotaCare 250 at Richmond is winding down, with less than 60 laps to go. Last year's Richmond winner, Chandler Smith, currently leads over Cole Custer and Aric Almirola. The race is being televised on Fox Sports 1.

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