Ross Chastain and Noah Gragson got into a fight following Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Kansas Speedway. The incident occurred on pit road when Gragson approached Chastain at the end of the AdventHealth 400. Chastain, who is known for driving aggressively, appeared to have pinned Gragson to the wall. The two were seen talking before Grason grabbed Chastian. That led to Chastian punching Gragson before the two were separated by security.
Not only did Chastain get the better of Gragson in the scuffle, but he also topped him on the track, finishing fifth in the race that was won by Denny Hamlin. Gragson, who has only competed in 30 Cup Series races in two years, finished 29th.
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Chastain’s finish on Sunday helped him be in first place in the Cup Series standings. While he has not won a race this season, Chastain has finished in the top 10 six times, the top five five times, led in 254 laps and has four stage wins in 12 races. He’s looking to win his first Cup Series title after finishing in the top four last year. Gragson is in his first season as a full-time driver in the Cup Series after winning 13 races in the Xfinity Series. Here’s a look at the full details of the fight.
The Fight
One person commented: “Even the actual track house employees didn’t jump in…but some random dude in a non team or NASCAR issued shirt stops Noah from doing what any other human Would do in that situation. Annoying.”
Closer Look
Another person commented: “I haven’t watched NASCAR regularly since Earnhardt died but if they had let these boys exchange a few blows before breaking them up I might would watch the next race. Nothing worse than breaking up a fight after the first punch. Gotta give the man a chance to get that punch back at least.”
What Ross Chastain Said
Here’s what Chastian said about the contact that ignited the fight: “I got tight off of (Turn) 4 for sure. Noah and I have a very similar attitude on the race track, and we train together, we prepare together, we know each other’s … every little bit about each other. Yeah, definitely crowded him up off of 4, and he took a swipe at us in 3, and then he came down and grabbed a hold of me, and a very big man once told me we have a no-push policy here at Trackhouse.”
What Noah Gragson Said
“Just got fenced by the 1,” Gragson said. “He took care of us at Talladega. We’re Chevrolet teammates and he didn’t work with us there, and then fenced us here and I’m just over it. Nobody else has the balls to at least confront him, so if you don’t at least just grab him and do something, he’s just going to keep doing it, and I’m over it. It’s the second time. I have respect for (Chastain team owner) Justin Marks and the rest of the Trackhouse team, and that’s why I’m not wrecking him on the race track, but I’m ready to fight him. I didn’t even get a shot in because the security guards got in the middle of it, but nobody confronts the guy. He just keeps doing it, and I’m sick and tired of it.”
Kyle Busch Enters the Room
Kyle Busch is another driver that has issues with Chastain. While talking on the radio during Sunday’s race, Busch said, “He’s pissed because I’m pissed that he races like a f—ing a–hole, and so I doored him twice down the backstretch like ‘this is your warning, boy.’”
Not the First Time
A week before the fight, Chastain got bumped into Brennan Poole during the Cup Series race at Dover International Speedway, leading to Poole and Kyle Larson to crash. Larson expressed his unhappiness with Chastian to his team on the radio, while Poole told Fox Sports’ Jamie Little that Chastian “needs to get his butt whooped.”
What Happens Next?
It’s not clear if NASCAR will discipline Chastain and Gragson for the fight. But it would not be a surprise if Gragson got some love from the drivers for confronting Chastain for his aggressive racing. It will be interesting to see what happens next week when NASCAR is at Darlington Raceway for the Goodyear 400.
