Kevin Harvick will not be penalized for his actions during the Talladega Superspeedway NASCAR race on Sunday that left drivers and fans alike stunned after accusations arose that the driver intentionally wrecked to manipulate the race’s results.
Harvick, 39, came under fire for allegedly clipping fellow racer Trevor Bayne on the race’s final restart as Harvick struggled to deal the complications arising
from a sour motor, according to ESPN. After he clipped Bayne, a chain-reaction wreck ensued that resulted in the caution being brought out, allowing the drivers to maintain their positions in relation to the checkered flag at a reasonable pace.
Fellow drivers Jimmie Johnson and Kyle Larson were knocked out of qualifying positions for the Eliminator Round when they spun through the infield
grass as a result of the chain reaction wreck, according to Fox Sports, and Harvick himself ultimately qualified after finishing in seventh place.
“The 4 [Harvick] knew he was blowing up,” said driver Matt Kenseth, who failed to qualify himself,
after the race, according to USA Today. “The 6 [Bayne] then went outside, and he [Harvick] clipped him and caused a wreck because he knew he’d make the Chase that way.”
NASCAR later confirmed in a statement that Harvick is not currently facing any penalties for his actions during the race, saying, “NASCAR has worked to review an extensive amount of material from Sunday's NASCAR race in Talladega including video, team radio transmissions and downloadable data. Based on that review, the race results are considered official."
Despite the continued allegations against him from disgruntled drivers and disappointed fans, Harvick maintains his innocence.
“It wasn’t running really well on the restarts. Then at the end I was trying to get out of the way,” Harvick said, according to Fox Sports. “I don’t know if I clipped the 6 [Bayne] or if he came across as I was coming up. It was one of those days where everything went well until the very end until the bottom fell out on those lap couple of restarts when it cooled off. It has a broken exhaust pipe or something.”
Bayne himself remains dissatisfied with the race results.
“That’s a crappy way for Harvick to have to get in the Chase is to wreck somebody — what I believe to be on purpose — maybe it wasn’t,” Bayne said, according to Fox Sports. “I think he realized if the caution came out he was going to be fine, so I got by and get hooked in the left rear. Harvick is a really good driver. I think he knows the limits of his car and where it’s at, so that’s why I think it was intentional.”
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