2011 Bud Shootout: Denny Hamlin Defends Illegal Pass At Finish

When Denny Hamlin darted below the yellow line on the last lap of Saturday night’s Bud Shootout and made a pass on Ryan Newman, half of him thought NASCAR would declare him the winner.

The other half – the one that turned out to be correct – knew NASCAR might penalize him for the illegal pass. And officials did so without much hesitation, awarding the win to Kurt Busch and relegating Hamlin to 12th place.

So why did Hamlin go below the yellow line when every driver knows it’s against the rules?

For safety reasons, Hamlin claimed.

“The yellow line is there to protect us and the fans’ safety, and I just chose to take the safer route,” Hamlin said. “A win in the Shootout is not worth sending the 39 through the grandstands.

“As fast as we’re running, if I get into his left rear, that car will go airborne. It was a tough position.”

NASCAR tells drivers in the pre-race meeting that passing below the yellow line is strictly forbidden, but leaves a judgment call as to whether a driver will be penalized if he is forced down the track by another car.

Hamlin said he “moved my car down to the bottom to avoid contact,” but obviously officials weren’t buying that.

“It’s just coming to the checkered and you’ve really got no room to work with, so you try to use all the asphalt you can,” he said. “It’s just in the heat of the moment, you’re just trying to do the best thing and not cause a wreck.”

Unfortunately for Hamlin, it was an expensive decision. Second place paid about $95,000, while 12th place only paid $38,000 (drivers typically get about half the winnings).