INDIANAPOLIS – In what may have been the most absurd race in the history of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, A.J. Allmendinger won Sunday’s Verizon 200 at the Brickyard NASCAR Cup Series race on the IMS road course.
How he got there, well, that’s the absurd part.
“In my wildest dreams, I could never believe how that all played out,” Allmendinger said afterwards. “We had to fight hard. I saw Robin Miller this morning and this one is for you, and for Bob Jenkins.
“I just won at Indy. Hey, Mike Shank – I just wanted to be like you.”
RESULTS: Verizon 200 at the Brickyard
Allmendinger was referring to IndyCar and IMSA team owner and close friend Michael Shank, who was the winning car owner for Helio Castroneves when he won the 105th Indianapolis 500 on May 30. He honored longtime journalist Robin Miller, who is battling serious health issues and paid homage to Bob Jenkins, the famed announcer who passed away last Monday.
“We just won at Indy – what’s up?” Allmendinger said. “Let’s go!”
While Allmendinger was on the frontstraight celebrating the victory, Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe were having a face-to-face discussion on pit road. Briscoe sent Hamlin spinning off course from the race lead during the final overtime restart. That’s what handed the lead to Allmendinger, who went on to win the race.
The contact between Hamlin and Briscoe came after Briscoe was ordered to serve a penalty by NASCAR for cutting through the grass in turn one during the restart and re-entering the track side-by-side with Hamlin.
“It’s not on purpose, but my team told me he had a penalty right away,” Hamlin said. “Then, he was racing me for a lap and ran right into the back of me. You can’t race that way. I don’t think it was malicious – it was just bad judgement.
“I got hit by the 16 (Allmendinger) going into the corner and he shoved me out and then I shoved him out and then was racing with the 14 (Briscoe) for a while. This turns everything upside-down.
“I’ve been doing this a long time and I’ve been on the giving end of mistakes, so I get it. Obviously, there is going to be a penalty if you cut the race track. It sucks. It turned our day upside-down.”
Briscoe, a rookie Cup Series driver from nearby Mitchell, Ind., who had more than 300 friends and family in attendance in turn four of the IMS road course, tried to give his side of the story.
“He’s upset and I would have been too,” Briscoe said of Hamlin. “I didn’t even know I had a penalty until I got to Turn 10. I didn’t even know where that was at the time.
“Denny has been in that position where you are trying to get your first win. I ruined his day and I understand that. As far as I knew, at that moment in time, I was going for the win. I wanted to beat him fair and square. I didn’t want to wreck anybody for a win.
“I totally get why he was mad. I had no reason to wreck him. He was trying to outbrake me and I was trying to outbrake him.”
The race was red flagged twice because of issues with the curbing in turn six, including two massive crashes near the end of the race. It has left many wondering if moving the annual NASCAR Cup Series race at the historic venue to the road course was all worth it.
The controversial turtle curbing created havoc as Cup Series cars continued to drive over them throughout the race. Even though a section of the curbing in turn six was removed overnight, it was the curbing on the other side of the turn that created Sunday’s issues.
The abuse to the curbing by the heavy stock cars eventually caused the turtles to break, creating a massive crash in turn six with five laps to go.
Numerous cars were destroyed. Joey Logano’s Ford was ripped apart before making contact with tire barriers. Pole winner William Byron’s Chevrolet was sliced apart by the curbing as well, ending his day while he was running in the top-five.
NASCAR and Indianapolis Motor Speedway officials decided to remove the curbing completely in turns five and six, leaving one portion off the track that would later serve as a ramp in another massive crash during NASCAR’s first attempt at overtime.
That is when another major crash on the Hulman straight on the infield portion of the 14-turn, 2.439-mile road course destroyed even more race cars.
On NASCAR’s second attempt at overtime, Hamlin was the leader and Briscoe was alongside with Allmendinger in third.
There was significant beating and banging going down the frontstraight before entering turn one. That is when Briscoe got knocked off the race course. He drove it through the grass in a straight line and re-entered the course alongside Hamlin’s Toyota.
Later in the lap calamity ensued as Hamlin’s drive to victory ended in a spin and Briscoe served as the wrecking ball.
Prior to the curbing coming up and causing the first red flag that stopped the race for 19 minutes and 13 seconds, it was a fairly clean race.
In the end, it was Allmendinger, a driver who led laps in the 2013 Indianapolis 500 driving for Roger Penske, that accepted the winning trophy from Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner Penske Sunday afternoon in victory lane.
Allmendinger defeated Ryan Blaney by .929 seconds. Kyle Larson, who led much of the race after winning the Knoxville Nationals Saturday at Knoxville Raceway in Iowa, finished third ahead of his Hendrick Motorsports teammate, Chase Elliott.
Matt DiBenedetto rounded out the top five in the No. 21 Wood Brothers Ford.