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NASCAR announcer calls for prominent driver to be suspended

Originally posted on The Spun | By Kameron Duncan | Last updated Mar 13, 2025 4:45 PM ET

We're almost two weeks removed from the NASCAR Cup Series race at Circuit of the Americas in Texas, but one incident has been fresh in the mind of many drivers in the garage and those surrounding the sport.

On Lap 4 of the COTA race, Austin Cindric right-rear hooked Ty Dillon. NASCAR has generally given drivers who right-rear hook others at least a one-race penalty due to the danger associated with the maneuver.

Cindric was not suspended, but he was fined $50,000 and docked 50 driver points. Former NASCAR Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick reacted to the decision from NASCAR, and he wasn't happy with their punishment.

“Well, I agree,” Harvick said when asked about Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin's opinion that Cindric deserved a one-race suspension. Harvick, a former driver and current Fox commentator, spoke on Fox Sports' "RaceDay" (h/t On3).

“I mean this is an awful call. I think that as a driver, with the way that things have gone, and in this particular car and the way that injuries are with the head, this is something unanimously decided on from the drivers’ side of it, that that needs to be black and white."

NASCAR defended the decision to not suspend Cindric by citing the lower rate of speed to a typical race, as the Circuit of the Americas is a road course used by several different racing disciplines. Drivers in the past have been right-rear hooked at speedways, which present more immediate danger as drivers are being sent head on into a wall.

DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 20: Austin Cindric, driver of the #2 Discount Tire Ford, is congratulated by Bubba Wallace, driver of the #23 McDonald's Toyota, in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Cup Series 64th Annual Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 20, 2022 in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

“I did it once and maybe twice, got off with it the first time, but definitely not the second time,” Busch said about right-rear hooking in races.

“Sat out a whole weekend, two more races the second time. You know that’s not his first offense, I don’t know if it’s his second offense. Like I said, some guys get off on based off who I think their last name is.”

Cindric is a former Daytona 500 winner and drives for Team Penske, who has won the last three NASCAR Cup Series titles. Joey Logano has one two with his most recent coming last season, and Ryan Blaney won his first career championship in 2023.

We'll see if NASCAR employs its same standard to these kinds of incidents in the future, no matter what kind of track they happen to take place at in the future.

This article first appeared on The Spun and was syndicated with permission.

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