Sponsorships in NASCAR are seldom discussed since the corporate partners usually work with the same team or drivers for several seasons. However, if the drivers retire, they have to replace them. This time, fans were seen buzzing after learning that Anheuser-Busch, a $110 Billion worth brand, will be sponsoring Ross Chastain following the retirement of Tony Stewart’s driver, Kevin Harvick.
Fanatics immediately rushed to Reddit to discuss the incident that occurred at the Xfinity race at Darlington Raceway five years ago, when Kevin Harvick made some harsh comments about Chastain.
Fans Express Their Support for Kevin Harvick As They Recall the 2018 Incident
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In 2018, during the NASCAR Xfinity race at Darlington Raceway, after Harvick was deliberately wrecked by Ross Chastain, the SHR veteran did not take it well and ended up making some harsh comments about the then-Chip Ganassi Racing driver.
Now, the announcement of Ross Chastain’s 2024 sponsorship of Anheuser-Busch prompted some sarcastic posts against Kevin Harvick on Reddit, recalling his jarring statements.
The Reddit post said, “5 years ago, Kevin Harvick said Chastain would never drive a top car ever again. Now, Ross is the heir of Harvick’s sponsor.”
In response, many Stewart-Haas Racing supporters rallied to his defense, stating things like,
“That’d be a suspension for Ross these days.”
“As it should be. Intentionally right rearing someone on an oval is one of the most ridiculous things you can do, it deserves a suspension.”
“I see a lot of reaching in here trying to justify right rearing someone. Both can be wrong here.”
“Let’s just ignore the fact Chastain right hooked him for hard racing”
“Some of y’all need to take off your Ross colored glasses. It’s clouding your judgement.”
Watch This Story: Martin Truex Jr. Blamed Denny Hamlin for Losing to Ross Chastain on the Radio
Kevin Harvick’s Harsh Comment Against Ross Chastain After the 2018 Darlington Raceway
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Ross Chastain was a happy driver for most of the NASCAR Xfinity Series race. However, on lap 111, Kevin Harvick slid up into Ross Chastain as they were racing for the lead out of turn two, sending Chastain careening into the wall. Chastain came back down and spun Harvick, bringing out the caution.
Harvick brought his Ford into the pits and parked it in Chastain’s space when the caution came out. After a little while, he drove away and put his vehicle in the garage.
As per ESPN, Kevin Harvick vented his fury in the post-race interview: “I tried to stay as low as I could, and he just rode on my door. That’s just a really inexperienced racer and a really bad move there and got the air and got on beside me and just kept going up the race track.”
“I couldn’t do anything with the wheel. So, you’ve got a really inexperienced guy in a really fast car and made a really bad move and then wrecked me down the back straightaway and hooked me to the right. That’s probably the reason that he’ll never get to drive many of them again.“
Chastain, for his part, tried to tread a middle ground.
“I got to race with these guys, and I feel like I was holding my own with ’em. I was really happy to be out there racing with them. I was just trying to race. I’ll have to see the film, and if I made a mistake, it’s on me. I was the leader there, and I was just trying to race,” he said, as per autoweek.com.
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When asked whether he had purposefully crashed into Harvick, Chastain had a deadpan response: “Once we hit the wall, I was out of control.”
Chastain ended two laps behind in the 25th after making several pit stops to fix problems.
Read More: Ross Chastain’s $110 Billion Blow to Tony Stewart Triggers Uncanny Demands From NASCAR World
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Fast forward to today, despite his reputation for aggressive driving and lack of friends, the Trackhouse Racing driver is now seventh in the Cup standings. And he has a shot at the title this year.
But no matter what happens, Chastain always manages to remain in the headlines of the newspapers.