With “Hail Melon” Outlawed by NASCAR, Will Ross Chastain Fall off the Championship Chase?

Last season, Ross Chastain cemented his legacy at the Martinsville Speedway with one of the most outrageous moves in the history of motorsports. What made the move all the more special was its timing and the fact that it helped the Trackhouse Racing driver qualify for the championship race. This season, however, NASCAR has taken away the No. 1 driver’s secret weapon. Given his position on the table right now, he might have had to rely on it one more time.

After five playoff races in the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series, Ross Chastain finds himself in a precarious position. Despite finishing two of those races in the top 5, the No. 1 driver finds himself 10 points behind the cutline with one race to go in the round of 12. With his “Hail Melon” maneuver now outlawed, the question arises: will the 30-year-old be able to mount any kind of title challenge?

The future does not look bright for Ross Chastain

The answer to that is unlikely. Ross Chastain has a mountain to climb, and he will have to do that at one of the trickiest tracks on the calendar, the Charlotte Roval. A 10-point deficit to the cut line might not seem like a lot, but there are a lot of drivers who want to get out of that bottom four.

Chastain’s two main rivals will be Bubba Wallace and Tyler Reddick. Bubba is 9 points behind the cutline, and Reddick is short by only 2. Furthermore, the driver of No. 45 is a master of road courses, which is exactly what Charlotte Roval is. Chastain, on the other hand, has not been anywhere near as good on road courses.

He has finished in the top five only once in the four road course races held so far this season. At the Charlotte Motor Speedway, his record is concerning. In his four races at the roval, Chastain has even finished in the top 10. His average finishing position at the track is 26.5, which is not going to be good enough come Sunday.

One thing that his team can perhaps strategize around is the inclusion of stage breaks, which were not there in any road race this season. Trying to win a stage and scoring as many points as possible can help, but it is a very uncertain tactic for a driver in his position. The best course of action would be to go for the win.

Had the “Hail Melon” not been outlawed, fans might have seen a desperate Ross Chastain trying to repeat what he did last season at Martinsville. The Charlotte Motor Speedway may be classified as a road course, but a large portion of the track is essentially a traditional oval.

Ross Chastain had taken advantage of the oval shape of the Martinsville track to knock Denny Hamlin out of the championship race. With one lap to go, the Trackhouse Racing driver used the wall to gain a boost of speed to finish ahead of the JGR star and take his place in the final four.

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Trackhouse Racing star says no to iconic Hail Melon move

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In an earlier interview with FOX Sports this season, Ross Chastain was posed the question by journalist Bob Pockrass about using the “Hail Melon” in 2023. It might have taken the #1 driver a bit by surprise since the move has been outlawed but he said that the goal was to gain as many points as possible.

“Nothing up these sleeves, Bob. Nothing trick. We’ll just go try to scrape up as many points as we can each round and transfer through. We can win one of these or a few of these. It’s OK to win. Somebody’s got to. No Hail Melon. Just go beat them,” he had said back in early September.

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Ross Chastain might not be the best at road courses but NASCAR is highly unpredictable. Last season, nobody expected him to make it to the final four, but he still found a way. The “Hail Melon” might be banned but that doesn’t mean the #1 driver can’t figure out something else.