Ford’s Masterplan Saves Tony Stewart’s Driver From Public Humiliation Mere Moments After Near Win

As expected, the race at Talladega Superspeedway offered a lot of drama. With its unpredictable nature and high intensity, the race on Sunday witnessed plenty of surprises. While Ford entered the Round of 12 with three drivers, a lot was at stake on the weekend. Surprisingly, their tactic did wonders for them, as Tony Stewart and the team struggled with their on-track woes.

Throughout the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season, Stewart-Haas Racing has been guilty of slipping up with their technical issues. What has been a poor season for them continued to be so on Sunday. However, given Ford’s success in the race, it has skipped the desired attention and criticism.

Tony Stewart and team escape humiliation at Talladega as Ford witnesses a pleasant outing

Going into the second race of the Round of 12, Ford had plenty of hope for success. RFK Racing’s Brad Keselowski had six wins to his name at the track and was one of the frontrunners to do well. Even Team Penske driver Ryan Blaney with his two wins at Talladega stood a bright chance to impress. However, the task wasn’t as easy as it looked.

Blaney stood below the cutoff line and a slight mishap for either Keselowski or Chris Buescher would have seen them slip deep into trouble. In that case, Ford expected their non-playoff drivers to step up and help their teammates still active in the championship run. It is a plan that tactically made sense.

Having said that, the race at Talladega presented a tricky situation for the team. In the dying moments of the race, both Blaney and Stewart-Haas Racing driver Kevin Harvick competed strongly for the win. While a win for the #12 driver made sense, Harvick almost clinched it had Blaney not outraced him by a margin of 0.012 seconds.

It was a painful loss for the #4 driver, especially when he is about to retire at the end of the season. While a win would have been a fitting farewell for Harvick, it would have hampered Blaney severely. The victory on Sunday not only ensured Team Penske and Ford had a driver in the next round, but also saved Tony Stewart from a massive embarrassment.

Post the race inspection, NASCAR disqualified Harvick for windshield fasteners not being secured. Indeed, it was a massive negligence from the SHR team. Had it not been for Blaney’s win, it would have robbed the veteran driver of an emphatic win. It would have certainly been special considering it was Harvick’s final superspeedway race.

It isn’t the first time this season that the #4 team has faced technical issues. But the question here is, was it an issue big enough for NASCAR to act like they did? Surely, the fans didn’t like how Harvick was treated here.

Kevin Harvick’s disqualification after the Talladega race leaves the fans fuming

The win at Talladega helped Ryan Blaney immensely both with his driver’s and owner’s standings. He now sits in the fifth position in the owner’s standings, giving Ford a massive hope to go all the way. At the same time, things for the other Ford driver, Kevin Harvick, looked equally disappointing.

While he almost secured a win, he and his team were guilty of violating NASCAR Rule Book number 14.5.6.2.F Windshield and 14.1.E&P Overall Assembled Vehicle Rules. This cost Harvick to lose all stage points earned in the race and eventually finish 38th in the running order. However, the disqualification did not please his fans as they expressed their dissatisfaction on social media. Many questioned NASCAR’s treatment of Harvick in the process.

“@nascar isn’t this on you? He didn’t change the windshield during the race so shouldn’t this have been caught during pre-race inspection?”

“This is hilariously ridiculous”

“Why didn’t they see this when his car went through tech??”

“Nascar just is throwing anything at harvick that they can this year. This is so stupid.”

“I would’ve cried if he won and then this happened”

“Nascar just confirmes to Harvick hes retiring for a good reason. Just like every other vet whose abandoned this sport”

“That’s at least 20 more horsepower. I’m sure it’s a safety issue, but that is a lame penalty. WTF, @NASCAR?”

“Shocking. Always trying to bring down Harvick in his retirement season”

It is indeed questionable how NASCAR went about its business in this case. While it is disappointing for Harvick and Tony Stewart, the #4 driver still has enough races to secure a win. The question is, can he manage to pull it off? Let us know in the comments below.

WATCH THIS STORY: NASCAR Veteran Reveals Ford’s “Dead Ringer” Status at Tony Stewart’s Expense.