Denny Hamlin Robbed Of Second Shootout Victory

I know beforehand that this article probably won’t go down well with Kurt Busch fans and I understand that, but I also know that a lot of old school fans will like this article because it pertains to the yellow line rule that Mike Helton implemented in 2001 and the first driver to get nabbed with the rule was Tony Stewart at the 2001 Pepsi 400 when he was inadvertently blocked by Johnny Benson, which forced him below the yellow line. NASCAR didn’t seem to care and penalized him anyway after Stewart refused to acknowledge the penalty.

But anyway, back to the race. I thought the finish could have been way better than it looked. Daytona has become too much like Talladega and it is definitely lost some of its luster, but hey the speeds tonight were incredible and as long as the fans are enjoying it that is all that really matters, but tonight we saw Denny Hamlin make a move on Ryan Newman at the start-finish line and was forced below the yellow line. Here is the thing, Hamlin had the lead by an inch or two before he went below the yellow line and according to Mike Helton’s statement after the 2003 Aaron’s 499 ruling for Dale Earnhardt Jr., Hamlin should be the victor.

Now, for those of you who didn’t get to see that race, I will put it in detail for you. Jr. makes move on Matt Kenseth for lead in Turn 3 and goes below the yellow line slightly and takes the lead. Jr. goes on to win the race and NASCAR does not penalize him for the infraction. Mike Helton comes out and claims Jr. was ahead of Kenseth before he went below, which still makes Jr. the winner and according to the amazing invention of instant replay and television we saw that Helton was wrong, but Jr. still won the race. So, what do we have here? A double standard perhaps? I voiced this on my video podcast all last year that NASCAR needs to have consistent rulings and not let popularity dictate their decision. Was that the case tonight? No. Kurt Busch isn’t all that popular, but NASCAR seems to forget their past and a lot of us fans have really good memories.

You know what would be even better? How about we get rid of this stupid yellow line rule altogether and that will solve the problem. Lets let the drivers use the entire surface and let them make their decisions. NASCAR is getting too much like a totalitarian society where you are nagged on what you can and can not do. I’m pretty positive that Mike Helton couldn’t drive one of these things, let alone at Daytona. Let the drivers drive and maybe we can get that popularity like we did back in the 90’s. Jeff Gordon’s move on Rusty Wallace during the 1999 Daytona 500 to get in the lead group would have been banned today. Gordon’s move on Bill Elliott to take the lead at the 1997 Daytona 500 would be banned today and last, but certainly not least, Dale Earnhardt’s attempted move on Gordon on the final lap in 1999, but ended up in 2nd.

Denny Hamlin was clearly robbed tonight of his second Budweiser Shootout victory. He knows he was. He absolutely knows, but if he says anything, NASCAR will probably fine him like they did last year with Denny Hamlin and Ryan Newman. Like I said before, NASCAR is getting too much like a totalitarian society. Think about it. “Hey! You said we robbed you!! That’s a crime!” You have been fined and placed on probation. “Hey!! Ryan!! You said our points system is like a lottery!” (It is) You are fined as well! “You spoke out against our dictator.” You have been thrown in jail.

Do you see where I’m going with this? NASCAR please get the heck of the way and let the drivers drive. If we wanted you to drive we would have let you know a long time ago, but I’m afraid you are too enormous to get in one of these things. A little common sense to start 2011, which we desperately need.