Dillon wrecks Logano and Hamlin to steal NASCAR Cup Series win at Richmond
Published 10:27 pm Sunday, August 11, 2024
- Austin Dillon celebrates after winning the NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out 400 Sunday at Richmond International Raceway. (NASCAR Media/Getty Images)
RICHMOND, Va. — After a two-week break, the NASCAR Cup Series returned to the track with a controversial and chaotic finish that shook up its playoff picture.
Austin Dillon wrecked leader Joey Logano, and then Denny Hamlin, on the final lap and passed both to win the Cook Out 400 Sunday at Richmond International Raceway.
Dillon, who entered the day 32nd in the points standings, clinched a spot in the Cup Series playoffs with his fifth career victory. He also ended a 68-race winless streak.
“I hate to do that, but sometimes you just got to have it,” Dillon said.
Logano was less philosophical, and not at all understanding. The two-time Cup Series champion used an expletive in a postrace interview to describe Dillon’s actions and then unloaded on him while Dillon celebrated with his family at the start-finish line.
“He’s four car lengths back. Not even close. Then he wrecks the 11 to go along with it, and then he’s going to go up there and thank God and praise everything with his baby, it’s a bunch of BS,” Logano said. “He just came in there and drove through me. It’s ridiculous that that’s the way we race. Unbelievable. I get bump and runs. I do that. I would expect it. But from four car lengths back, he was never going to make the corner. And then he wrecks the 11 to go with it. What a piece of crap.”
Dillon took the lead with 29 laps left. He was cruising toward the win when Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Ryan Preece wrecked in front of him with less than two laps to go to bring out a caution flag.
Logano took the lead on the overtime restart and opened up a lead on Dillon as they came toward the checkered flag. Heading into the final turn, Dillon drove hard into the corner, ran into the back of Logano, and spun him.
Hamlin scooted past and into the lead, and then Dillon clipped the right rear of his car as well to send him into the wall.
Dillon zoomed to the finish line as the yellow and checkered flags waved to end the race. Hamlin was credited with second place, followed by Tyler Reddick, Bubba Wallace and Ross Chastain to round out the top five. Logano finished 19th.
“He’s going to be credited with the win, but obviously he’s just not going to go far,” Hamlin said. “You’ve got to pay your dues back on stuff like that. But it’s worth it, because they jump 20 positions in points. So I understand all that. There’s no ill will there. I get it. I just hate I was a part of it. It would have been fun if I was not one of the two guys that got taken out on the last corner.”