NASCAR fans were upset with the way the HighPoint.com 400 at Pocono Raceway ended on Sunday.
Denny Hamlin was declared the winner after NASCAR called a controversial caution on Lap 160. The race returned to green with four laps to go after a previous caution. But they were only able to race for two laps before Ryan Preece spun out on Lap 158.
Rather than call an immediate caution, race officials declined to let the race continue to play out. It wasn’t until after the white flag came out for the final lap that NASCAR called a caution, which made Hamlin the winner.
Officials had typically called a caution immediately after something happened, so many fans wondered why Preece’s spin wasn’t handled the same way. NASCAR likely did not want to go into overtime to determine a winner.
The crowd immediately began booing over the way the finish was determined.
Denny Hamlin wins his 50th race and gets BOOED! #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/NHv4EAKYsU
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) July 23, 2023
“We can all hate it, but there was no choice,” one of NBC’s race commentators said of NASCAR’s decision.
When Hamlin got out of the No. 11 car, fans were booing. Not only were fans upset with the way the caution was handled, but they probably were unhappy with the way Hamlin had been racing.
There were questions about the contact between the No. 11 and the No. 5 car around Turn 1 on Lap 154.
One more look at what everyone is talking about. pic.twitter.com/x8BeVoC8nw
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) July 23, 2023
Hamlin had pulled a similar move on Ross Chastain last year.
That was Hamlin’s 7th career win at Pocono, which is the most all-time.
