WANTED: Integrity. I respect. Morality. Sportsmanship.

NASCAR’s top brass should post that on their social media channels, or maybe on LinkedIn, because that’s all in short supply.

The entire Martinsville weekend was overshadowed by drivers, teams and manufacturers who showed little to no regard for any of those attributes. In a weekend that should be a celebration of intense competition, tough racing and drivers taking the next step to compete for a title in Phoenix, the sport is once again mired in controversy and questions.

Let’s step back for a second to highlight the positives that will come from Martinsville. Sunday’s Xfinity 500 was the best short track race in the Gen 7 Cup era at Virginia’s half-mile track. Goodyear’s commitment to producing the softest tire the manufacturer has ever brought to a NASCAR weekend appeared to pay dividends. It may not have been a complete overhaul like the one at Bristol earlier this year, but the softer tire option brought a variable into the equation.

The tire not only challenged crew chiefs and teams in terms of strategy, but also helped the product on the track. The cars were more side by side than in recent Martinsville outings and, in fact, there were the sought-after “coming and going” ones that mixed up the dynamics of the running order.

It was an encouraging direction in the quest to shore up the Cup short track package and it will be interesting to see if Goodyear decides to go even further in 2025. The intense competition also connects to the effort put in by race winner Ryan Blaney, who with his proverbial back against the wall managed to win Martinsville for the second year in a row to catapult it to the Championship 4.

Blaney was involved in some spirited fights for positions with several drivers and had to fight his way back to the front when he was dragged back on a very short restart, which ended only second after he blew green due to Kyle Busch losing a wheel. . Because the restart was deemed good, NASCAR scored on the next loop after the start-finish line and Blaney lost several positions in the exchange. To make up ground despite having a long-lasting car far superior to that of its competitors,
Blaney admitted it was a little more physical than he would have liked.

“I’ll be honest with you, this is the most tired I’ve been after a race in a long time,” Blaney said afterward. “My God, I was tired. I still am. It’s the most exhausted I’ve ever been.” I have been, for sure. Yes, I don’t know. I mean, we stayed like that all night. Yes, it’s nice when things turn out like that.

“I bumped more guys than I would have liked tonight. I don’t really do that. That’s not my modus operandi. I had to do it at certain times. I don’t think anything was super egregious. I was never going to put the bumper on 9, especially for the lead. It was nice to be able to run without contact there.”

But once Blaney took the checkered flag, there was a lot more to unpack in Martinsville.

It took more than 20 minutes for NASCAR to determine that Christopher Bell’s wall-hugging move in turns three and four was out of bounds and penalized the Joe Gibbs Racing driver. NASCAR banned Ross Chastain’s famous “Hail Melon” move in 2022 citing safety as the main reason and it’s hard to argue that at least the second half of Bell’s outing checked that box.

The punishment knocked Bell out of a Championship 4 spot, making the beneficiary William Byron, who thought he had lost Phoenix’s chance by a tiebreaker. However, Byron was also involved in the controversy, which brings us back to the conversation about integrity, respect, morality, and sportsmanship.

As Byron attempted to carry his worn tires to the finish line, he was ahead of Austin Dillon and Ross Chastain, who appeared to be stuck in their positions and not attempting to get around the No. 24 car. That suspicion appears to be due to the radio communication taking place. discovered between the Richard Childress Racing and Trackhouse Racing teams, instructing his drivers to allow his Chevrolet teammate Byron to keep his place and transfer to the Championship 4.

Oh, and for good measure, Toyota sprung into action with Bubba Wallace, after being told where Bell was on the track and where he needed to go, he suddenly came onto the track with “one tire going down.”

Illicit activity prompts NASCAR to delve into details to determine whether manipulation was really taking place. While the actions may not have been as nefarious as the Michael Waltrip Racing scandal at Richmond in 2023, they are very close to Stewart-Haas Racing’s unfortunate orchestration of the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series race at The ROVAL, which resulted in sanctions including a suspension for Cole Custer’s crew chief, Mike Shiplett. Needless to say, it’s another bad look for the sport at the worst time of the season.

Some were quick to blame the Playoff format and system for the shenanigans. That’s a big cop out. Blaming the system, or even “society,” as someone pointed out on social media, for individual or team actions is weak. The same goes for some drivers and their tired excuse of “I did what I had to do” and why they had to “send” someone into the wall, as was said ad nauseum over the Martinsville weekend.

Everyone is responsible for their own actions but it is easier to blame others. If NASCAR finds enough evidence to punish RCR, Trackhouse, 23XI, Chevrolet or Toyota, then the hammer of justice should come down hard. Suspensions, monetary fines, taking away wind tunnel time…heck, being parked for the race…anything should be on the table to ensure the integrity and credibility of the sport is maintained.

Sometimes the garage is your worst enemy. This is one of those moments and there is a price to pay.