According to NASCAR:

Following the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event last Sunday at Phoenix International Raceway, Denny Hamlin made some disparaging remarks about the on-track racing that had taken place that afternoon. While NASCAR gives its competitors ample leeway in voicing their opinions when it comes to a wide range of aspects about the sport, the sanctioning body will not tolerate publicly made comments by its drivers that denigrate the racing product.

Ryan Pemberton, vice president of competition at NASCAR, said that Hamlin’s comments were different from constructive criticism. He called them “damaging.”

After the race, Hamlin said:

I don’t want to be the pessimist, but it did not race as good as our Generation 5 cars. This is more like what the Generation 5 was at the beginning. The teams hadn’t figured out how to get the aero balance right. Right now, you just run single-file and you cannot get around the guy in front of you. [If] you would have placed me in 20th-place with 30 (laps) to go, I would have stayed there — I wouldn’t have moved up. It’s just one of those things where track position is everything.

Hamlin also said that despite starting in the back and finishing third, he did not pass a lot of cars on the racetrack.

While those comments don’t seem to be too outlandish, NASCAR has made it clear that it will not tolerate public negative comments about the racing.

In November of 2011, Brad Keselowski was fined $25,000 for making disparaging comments at a NASCAR Hall of Fame event about NASCAR’s move to fuel injection. At that time, Keselowski said:

We’re not doing this because it’s better for the teams. I don’t think we’re really going to save any gas. It’s a media circus, trying to make you guys happy so you write good stories. It gives them something to promote. We’re always looking for something to promote, but the honest answer is it does nothing for the sport except cost the team owners money. Cars on the street are injected with real electronics, not a throttle body (like in NASCAR). So we’ve managed to go from 50-year-old technology to 35-year-old technology. I don’t see what the big deal is.

In the summer of 2010, Denny Hamlin and Ryan Newman were also fined for disparaging comments they made about NASCAR.

This time around, however, Hamlin is refusing to pay the fine and he will appeal. On NASCAR Now, Hamlin said:

Ultimately, I’m not OK with it. This is the most upset and angry I’ve been in a really, really long time about anything … anything that relates to NASCAR. The truth is what the truth is. I don’t believe in this. I’m never going to believe in it. As far as I’m concerned, I’m not going to pay the fine. If they suspend me, they suspend me. I don’t care at this point.

Per the NASCAR rulebook, failure to pay a fine can result in suspension, and the money can be deducts from race winnings.

Update: Denny Hamlin has dropped his appeal of the fine. Hamlin tweeted:

After a lot of thought I have decided not to appeal the fine NASCAR has issued. Dragging myself, my team and NASCAR through the mud for the next 2 weeks would not be good for anyone. I firmly believe I am in the right on this issue and will stand behind my decision not to pay. I understand NASCAR will do what they feel is necessary based on my decision. Thanks to all of my fans and peers who have supported me in this decision. I look forward to putting it to rest.

— Denny Hamlin (@dennyhamlin) March 14, 2013

Related Stories

• NASCAR Fines Keselowski For Fuel Injection Comment
• Frequently Asked Questions About NASCAR’s Fines
• Newman, Hamlin Identified As Fined Drivers

RBR announced earlier this season that they would not be returning to NASCAR in 2012.  The team’s future is still uncertain, just seven days before the end of the 2011 season.  It is expected that the team will shut down at season’s end, unless owner Dietrich Mateschitz can find a buyer for the operation.

Championship Rundown

The Championship battle is now a two man show between Carl Edwards and Tony Stewart.  Edwards remains the point’s leader, with a three-point advantage over Stewart.  Both drivers had fast cars at Phoenix, but they were no match for Kahne.  Edwards and Stewart finished the race in second and third position, respectively.  Stewart led a race-high 160 laps.

Going into Homestead, Edwards seems to have an advantage over Stewart.  Edwards has won two of the last three races at Homestead, with an average finish of 5.7.  Stewart also has two wins at Homestead, back in 1999 and 2000.  However, Edwards has a better average finish  than Stewart, who has an average finish of 12.4.

For the first time in the past eight seasons for the Chase for the Sprint Cup, Jimmie Johnson will not be eligible for the championship going into Homestead.   He finished in 14th position in Phoenix, his fifth finish outside the top-10 in nine races.  Johnson will try to keep a 10-season streak of finishing in the top five in points alive.  He is currently fifth position in points, just two points ahead of Matt Kenseth.

Rough Day for Busch and Kenseth

Kyle Busch, after being parked at Texas Motor Speedway, stepped back into Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 18 car at Phoenix.  He raced this weekend without his primary sponsor M&M’s after the organization decided that they did not want to be on the car for the remainder of the season.  During the first practice, Busch blew a motor, forcing him to start at the rear of the field.  To add insult to injury, as Busch was racing for third position on lap 188, he announced to the team that the engine was blowing up.  This resulted in a 36th place finish.

On the other side of the track, Brian Vickers and Matt Kenseth had fans thinking we were back at Martinsville Speedway.  Late in the race, Vickers slammed into straight Kenseth’s rear bumper going down the backstretch, causing major damage to Kenseth’s racecar.  Vickers claimed over the radio that Kenseth had slowed up, causing Vickers to slam into him.  Kenseth’s comments after the incident backed up that statement.

“I was out of brakes, and I was up on everybody,” he said. “I saw [Vickers] coming and I lifted at least 10 car lengths before where I would normally lift. And he drove in there at 165 miles per hour and cleaned us out.”  Kenseth finished the race in 34th position, Vickers in 23rd.

“We believe the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series schedule will once again provide fans with what they’ve come to expect every season – the world’s most exciting and competitive form of motorsports,” said Brian France, NASCAR chairman and CEO. “Next year’s schedule has a few adjustments that we think will be good for the fans and good for the overall flow of the season. One thing will remain constant, however, and that’s the intense competition we see week in and week out from our drivers and race teams.”

One of those adjustments takes place during NASCAR’s playoffs – the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup – and could affect the strategy during the championship run. Talladega Superspeedway’s Chase event moves up two weeks to Oct. 7, becoming the fourth race in the Chase. Often labeled as the wild-card track in the Chase, Talladega’s grueling test is now staged during the first half of the Chase.

Talladega swaps its Chase date with Kansas Speedway (Oct. 21) to accommodate Kansas’ repave, scheduled for after the track’s spring event. As such, Kansas’ spring date has also been moved. Kansas now will be the eighth race of the season on April 22. Talladega’s spring event moves to May 6, and Dover International Speedway’s spring event returns to its traditional spot on June 3.

As previously announced, the season-opening Speedweeks at Daytona International Speedway will start one week later with the running of the preseason “non-points” Shootout at Daytona on Feb. 18. The 54th annual Daytona 500 will run on Feb. 26.

The race dates for Phoenix International Raceway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway have likewise been moved a week later, to March 4 and March 11, respectively.

Two other featured adjustments to the 2012 schedule:

Texas Motor Speedway’s spring date will be moved to April 14, to accommodate the traditional open week for the Easter holiday.

Daytona’s summer event and Kentucky Speedway’s race will swap weekends in 2012, as the July 4th holiday falls mid-week next year. Kentucky’s race will be June 30; Daytona will run on July 7.

As in past years, FOX will broadcast the first 13 races of next year’s schedule. TNT will follow, broadcasting the next six. ESPN/ABC will broadcast the final 17 events. Race start times will be announced at a later date.

NASCAR will also release the 2012 schedules for the NASCAR Nationwide Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series at a later date.

2012 NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES SCHEDULE

Scene Daily reported that neither driver was called to the NASCAR hauler following the incident, which usually is an indication that no penalties are forthcoming.

Mike Mulhern, however, reported that a penalty would likely be coming. It appears that is not the case.

On the final restart, Martin quickly disposed of Ryan Newman, who stayed out, and cruised to victory.

Top 5: Martin, Tony Stewart, Kurt Busch, Jimmie Johnson, and Greg Biffle.

Denny Hamlin, Martin Truex Jr, David Reutimann, Sam Hornish Jr, and Carl Edwards finished sixth through 10th, respectively.

Notables: Jeff Burton (15th), Ryan Newman (16th), Kyle Busch (17th), Brian Vickers (19th), Jeff Gordon (25th), Clint Bowyer (26th), Matt Kenseth (27th), Kevin Harvick (30th), and Dale Earnhardt Jr (31st).

Earnhardt used a pit road gamble to take the lead. But, as a result of staying out, Jr got off pit sequence with the leaders. He never got the caution he needed, and ended up needing to make an extra pit stop. As the handling went away on his car, Jr began losing positions left and right.

Then, Casey Mears and Jr got together and Jr hit the wall, ending his chance for a good finish.

On the cool down lap, Jr spun Mears out. As Jr went down pit road to head to the garage, Mears caught up with him and bumped him several times.

Kyle Busch came out of the pits on the final caution in second place, but a pit road speeding violation dropped him to the back of the pack. He finished 17th.

Biffle stayed out during the last caution, and used a series of late cautions to hold off those who were on fresher tires.

The victory is owner Jack Roush’s 100th Nationwide Series victory.

Jason Leffler, Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, and Kevin Harvick rounded out the top 5.

David Ragan, Brendan Gaughan, Justin Allgaier, Mike Bliss, and Kyle Busch finished sixth through 10th, respectively.

Notables: Steve Wallace (12th), Jeff Burton (20th), Carl Edwards (33rd), and Michael Waltrip (4oth).

Give a call to Keselowski who finished third for his third consecutive week.

Edwards led 79 laps but had engine trouble — he broke a valve spring — and ended up finishing 33rd.

Busch had a tire problem that put him two laps down, but he rallied to finish 10th. With his top 10, Busch took over the points lead from Edwards.

Carl Edwards ran in the teens early, jockying between 13th and 15th in the early stages of the race. By lap 115, Edwards moved into the top 10. Edwards gained some positions on pit road on lap 261 when the caution came out for debris. He restarted in fourth but could not gain anymore positions over the rest of the race. He finished fourth.

Greg Biffle started at the rear of the field due to a transmission change. By lap 92, Biffle had made his way up to 15th. On lap 102, he took the lead while the leaders pitted. On lap 110, he gave up the lead when Johnson passed him while he was on pit road.On lap 292, the caution came out for debris, and Biffle pitted. Tony Stewart nudged Biffle to show his displeasure under caution, though I’m not sure why. Biffle wound up finishing 11th.

Jeff Burton had a very quiet day, starting mid-pack and running in the top half of the field for most of the day. Much like he has for most of the Chase, he stayed out of trouble and kept his car clean. He finished a very quiet ninth.

Kevin Harvick also started mid-pack and got into the wall hard on lap 15. But, his car appeared to be fine and he continued on. He ran in the top 15 and top 10 for most of the day. Following a lap 261 caution for debris, Harvick came out of pit road running fifth. By lap 282, he dropped to seventh, where he ended up finishing.

Clint Bowyer started the race in 28th and didn’t run very well early. By lap 118, Johnson put him a lap down as he struggled with the handle of the car.Somewhere along the line, Bowyer got his lap back and he rallied to finish 12th.

Jeff Gordon started in the top 10 and ran there for the early part of the race. He seemed to have a competitive car early, but on lap 123, he reported a power issue. On lap 154, he was running third when he started to fall back. By lap 170, he was down to eigth. Twenty-two laps later, he was down to 18th. By lap 195, teammate Johnson put him a lap down. And, on lap 269, his car began smoking heavily and his day was done.

Matt Kenseth started in 34th and, when the red flag came out for rain, he sat on pit road with a flat tire. By lap 98, he lost a lap. On lap 284, Kenseth got his lap back. On lap 305, AJ Allmendinger got a little too aggressive and got to the inside of Kenseth. He got into Kenseth sending him around. Kenseth got into Tony Stewart who also went around. As Kesenth took the checked flag, he appeared to turn down into Allmendinger sending him around and causing a 10-car pile up. Kenseth finished 15th.

Denny Hamlin started eighth and ran near the front all day. He had a good car and stayed out of trouble, and battled in the top 5. He finished fifth.

Dale Earnhardt Jr started in fifth and scraped the wall on lap 5, but his car was fine and he continued on. He had a stout car and kept it up in the top 10 all day. He finished sixth.

Kyle Busch started in 14th and by lap 48 was up to seventh. He ran quietly in the top 10 – 15, and stayed out of trouble. He finished eighth.

Tony Stewart started 29th and made his way up to 12th in the first 89 laps. He ran quietly in the top half of the field for most of the race. On lap 293, he gave Biffle a nudge to show his displeasure for something, but I am not sure what. Stewart’s mediocre day turned eventful when Allmendinger got into Kenseth on the inside and sent him into Stewart, spinning both out. Stewart also was involved in the last lap crash. He finished 20th.

Kurt Busch, Jamie McMurray, Carl Edwards, and Denny Hamlin finished second through fifth respectively.

Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Jeff Burton and David Ragan rounded out the top 10.

Notables: Greg Biffle (11th), Clint Bowyer (12th), Matt Kenseth (15th), Tony Stewart (22nd), and Jeff Gordon (41st).