A caution flag that comes after the race leader crosses the finish line and takes the win – isn’t that surprising? Well, this is what went down in NASCAR’s coming-back race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. NASCAR now finds itself amidst another raging controversy among many others this year. This season, it was all about the rain delays and the governing body’s changing rules, and the race at Brickyard 400 was no different.

This time, NASCAR was on the fender because it favored Kyle Larson. But then again, this wasn’t NASCAR’s first time favoring him. Brad Keselowski, who lost the race in a turn of unfortunate events, (indirectly) took a jibe at NASCAR and their ever-changing rules. He basically said that had Kyle Larson not been in the lead towards the end, the incident in question would’ve been “a caution any other week.” And fans are all up for it!

Kyle Larson got his redemption at Indianapolis after the May events when he couldn’t finish The Double. But at what cost and whose? NASCAR now is under fire for helping him make up for May. The issue – the late caution! And how it all went down is ever the more interesting. With four laps remaining, Kyle Busch spun and continued his streak of crashing, bringing out a caution and setting up the first overtime attempt. The leaders then began conserving fuel and running slower laps.

Brad Keselowski, who had pitted 10 laps earlier, led the race and had Ryan Blaney trailing behind him. Then, Keselowski ran out of gas, dove into the pits, and called it a day. And Blaney thought this win was on his plate at the moment. But “dumb luck” ruined his day. Back on the track, since Kyle Larson was running in third, he took Keselowski’s spot after the latter retired. And per Blaney, “you’re promoting the third-place guy before the second-place guy,” which was unfair. 

While Blaney had first dibs to fire first, he didn’t take advantage, and Larson got the jump start. The lap was aborted, and a second overtime was called. However, following a red flag for a multi-car pileup, Larson rushed forward in the second restart while Blaney wiggled and struggled. This was when things got muddled with the rules.

Ryan Preece spun and hit the wall after contact with Chase Elliott, but the race continued. Kyle Larson took the white flag, and by the time NASCAR decided to throw a yellow flag on the final lap, it was already too late. Brad Keselowski highlighted this and took a jibe at NASCAR, writing, “Hahahaha, that’s a caution any other week.” While he might have called out NASCAR in humor, there was nothing humorous about how Blaney felt after finishing P3 in a race he felt he should’ve won.

“I thought we put ourselves in a great spot,” the No.12 driver said. However, he didn’t expect Larson to be promoted once Keselowski dove into pit road. “It’s dumb luck… I’m just upset. That’s a heartbreaker. We did everything right today. I mean, was in prime position to win and just didn’t work out for us. Just got unlucky.” While it may not do anything to soften the blow he must be feeling, fans agree with him. And with Keselowski.

NASCAR’s chameleon facet isn’t suiting either Brad Keselowski or fans 

NASCAR fans all closely follow the sport and have been doing it for ages. Even a slight change and they can tell. The organization has been making many such decisions lately and ruling changes that are piercing everyone’s eye. The Bubba Wallace case from Chicago, for example, was where everyone thought the $50,000 penalty was too excessive for door-slamming. And given that Wallace isn’t the most loved by fans, them standing up for him says a lot about NASCAR’s decisions.

Seeing how inconsistent NASCAR is with its rulings, a fan wrote, “The consistency is laughable hard to watch when week to week the rules bend or change.” And this wasn’t even the only instance. Kyle Larson was given a waiver when he failed to complete The Double despite choosing to miss the Coca-Cola 600. And now, he’s allowed to contend in the playoffs. Per the rules, a driver has to compete in every regular race to qualify for the playoffs unless there is an unavoidable circumstance. Highlighting this apparent favoritism for Kyle Larson, a fan opined what the officials’ thinking was like in the Brickyard 400.

They wrote, “Nascar…poor Kyle. He missed the 600. Hmmm. Nascar. We have INDY coming up. If Kyle is close, let’s do what we need to do. That 5 might as well be a bullseye now, IMHO.” While Chase Elliot might be the Most Popular Driver in NASCAR, his teammate is now deemed the ‘golden boy’ — quite mockingly by fans. And, well, also by Blaney.

After he watched Larson get promoted following Keselowski’s DNF and subsequently watched him take the lead, Blaney fumed on the radio. “There’s no way they should’ve let that go green. That’s ridiculous. They just gave it to [Larson]… Gave it to f**king golden boy.” With a similar sentiment, a fan commented, “Without a doubt! But that’s NASCAR and their new golden child and favorite owner,” referring to Rick Hendrick.

Even if one lets the caution slide, the fact that Larson jumpstarted the race and escaped unscathed seemed odd. Referencing this, a user wrote, “After he gets away with jumping a restart, too.” At the same time, another took a massive dig and made fun of NASCAR, even comparing it to WWE. Notably, the wrestling organization has pre-determined outcomes for fights, but how that outcome is achieved is usually up to the wrestlers. The fan said, “They don’t need new rules. They just need to finally admit that this is the WWE and that they adjust the ‘calls’ to suit their needs. They decide who wins.”

What do you think about NASCAR and its favoritism of certain drivers? Do let us know!