“He Was Caught Red-Handed”

NASCAR just concluded the first round of playoffs at Bristol Motor Speedway. What a dominating performance it was for Kyle Larson, who led 462 out of the 500 laps. This came when Denny Hamlin and Joe Gibbs Racing were expected to dominate the event, especially since the first race of the season was a JGR photo finish with Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. finishing 1 and 2.

However, thanks to Larson’s dominance and Chase Elliott’s consistency, Hendrick Motorsports took the top spot this time. JGR’s Hamlin finished 4th, and Christopher Bell took P5. This year, Bristol hasn’t been kind to the JGR team. First, Hamlin received an engine penalty after the first race. And now, after the second Bristol race, two of their drivers have been eliminated because of speeding penalties. If this wasn’t enough, a recent video has surfaced from the Bristol race, which has fans accusing the team of cheating!

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Hamlin was having a great campaign and was in a strong position to win the regular season championship when a penalty ruined his hopes. For the first Bristol race of the season, Hamlin’s team received an L2-level penalty for a violation of NASCAR’s engine inspection requirements. As a result, the #11 lost 75 driver and owner points, as well as 10 playoff points. Hamlin’s crew chief, Chris Gabehart, was also fined $100,000. The 10 playoff points lost could have enabled Hamlin to have a stress-free playoff, as, before his Bristol finish, he was in the elimination zone.

And speaking of penalties, Joe Gibbs‘ team was penalized for speeding in the pit lane, leading to MTJ and Ty Gibbs getting eliminated from the playoffs. MTJ was in the top 5 until after Stage 2; however, he sped in the pit lane and was pushed to the back of the field. Eventually, he finished 24th, a lap down and out of the playoffs. The same story applies to the #54, who was running in the top 10 until the speeding penalty ended his championship hopes, as he finished 15th in the race.

To possibly add to their troubles, a recent video from the race has surfaced, where a cameraman pans inside a JGR garage where crew members are doing something not clearly visible. However, seeing the camera, one member jumps in astonishment and has a puzzled look as he wipes off his sweat. Fans after this video smell something fishy happening in the Joe Gibbs garage. Here, take a look at the video:

What’s your perspective on:

Caught red-handed or just a misunderstanding? What’s your take on Joe Gibbs Racing’s latest controversy?

Have an interesting take?The video has led fans to call JGR cheaters as they appeal to NASCAR to initiate an inquiry about the incident. As of now, no official statements have come from the authorities regarding this. Let’s wait and see if something comes of it.

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Trendinghas piqued fans’ curiosity further is how the crew member reacted. He hastily stood up with a puzzled look, possibly finding it difficult to fathom the camera’s arrival. When he realizes it, he walks toward the cameraman, trying to subtly push him away from the scene where something allegedly fishy is going on. One fan commented, “Yo, bro looks like he was caught red- handed.” Another fan echoed the same emotions when he wrote, “They are definitely up to something based off their reactions.”

The man seen in the video is trying to distract the cameraman by pointing all around the room and also deliberately looking everywhere around him. If only the video had some audio, we could have been better detectives. One fan is certain that the team is hiding something and he urges NASCAR to look into it. The fan wrote, “@NASCAR he is definitely cheating! And he looked like he’s going to fight the cameraman too.@bobpockrass @jeff_gluck.”

This is not the first time Joe Gibbs Racing has been accused of cheating. Back in 2008, the Gibbs cars were accused of having magnets on the back of the gas pedal to prevent the gas from being fully depressed, resulting in the cars showing lesser horsepower. Perhaps this is why no fan is giving JGR the benefit of the doubt. One fan wrote, “How to Find a Cheater, NASCAR edition.”

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Amid the serious accusations, one fan decided to take a sarcastic jibe. He noted that despite cheating, the team couldn’t take the top spot, as Larson was just unbeatable at Bristol after he led the most laps ever by any Hendrick driver. The fan wrote, “Cheating and still can’t catch the 5!”

What do you think of the video? What do you think is happening there? Share your thoughts with us in the comments down below.