As the holdup for the Great American Race came to an end, it sparked controversies in the racing community. The race, already delayed by rain, came with more unprecedented happenings on February 19 at the Daytona International Speedway. Now, the NASCAR community is in splits, as many aren’t satisfied with the results. Although NASCAR fans raised questions about the intricacies of the race’s final moments, a few NASCAR insiders find them misleading.

Among them are drivers, commentators, and other NASCAR officials. Let’s delve deeper to find out what Door Bumper Clear’s host and other NASCAR insiders think about the Daytona race, its cautions and commercials in between, as well as how NASCAR found out its winner.

The post-race criticism of the very first race of the season

Theories revolving around the final moments of the Great American Race continue to be the talk of the town. Fans and race officials shared their views. In the recent episode of The Door Bumper Clear, the hosts indulged in a detailed conversation with their guest and NASCAR driver, Bubba Wallace. While Wallace’s spotter, Brett Griffin, was seen voicing his opinions on how NASCAR found the winner for Daytona, he had some big words about how the race looked to him.

Covering the widely discussed 2024 Daytona cautions, Griffin said, “So, I was disgusted that you guys couldn’t race harder. I mean, like you said, I’m not an average fan sitting at home. Obviously, I’m watching the game.” 

Adding more about the race, the c0-host said, “This is the Daytona 500 but there’s a reason to it because if you don’t go by the strategy, you are not gonna be a contender, so, I was very frustrated at the end of the race. There’s no way I would have, I must like I saw you guys saying the ARCA race is embarrassing, the truck race is embarrassing. The way that race ended it was fucking embarrassing.” He believes that the evidence challenging the videos from the final race is misleading.

Read More: Dale Earnhardt Jr Devises a Plan to Eradicate the ‘Fuel-Mileage’ Problem From Daytona

What was so controversial about the 66th Daytona 500 race?

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The 66th edition of the Great American Race came up with controversies regarding the declaration of its winner. With just over one lap remaining in the 200-lap race, William Byron, driving for Hendrick Motorsports, led the field on the inside lane, closely followed by Austin Cindric. Meanwhile, Ross Chastain led the outside lane.

As Byron approached the start-finish line, the caution flag flew. NASCAR declared him the winner, citing that he was slightly ahead of Alex Bowman at that critical moment. However, photo evidence seemed to contradict a video circulating online, leaving fans divided. Questions on the timing of the yellow flag continued.

Responding to this, NASCAR’s managing director of racing communications, Mike Forde, justified the timing of the caution flag. Forde said that the yellow was called because Cindric and Chastain came back onto the racetrack, endangering other cars. Had they stayed on the apron like Bowman did, the race might have continued under green. This forced the yellow flag, leading to Byron’s victory. However, a piece of photo evidence seemingly challenged Byron’s win, as some saw a clear winner, while others questioned the timing, the angle, and the very essence of victory.

NASCAR insiders, however, find this disturbing conversation just a misleading incident.

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