It seemed only a matter of time before NASCAR came down on Austin Hill after the Richard Childress Racing driver deliberately crashed Aric Almirola. Hill went on an expletive-filled radio rant to defend himself after the incident, but failed to convince many, including Kenny Wallace.
Wallace recently weighed in on Hill’s actions at Indianapolis, poking fun at how the RCR driver and team management tried to explain it away.
Kenny Wallace Isn’t Buying Austin Hill’s Excuse After That Indy Outburst
The drama kicked off late in the race at Indianapolis when Hill and Almirola tangled in a heated on-track exchange. With a top-five spot on the line, Almirola pushed Hill up the track. Hill quickly fired back, hooking Almirola into the outside wall.
NASCAR wasted no time responding. Hill was hit with a five-lap penalty and parked mid-race, followed by a rare suspension and the loss of all playoff points.
In a recent episode of the “Herm & Schrader” podcast, Wallace discussed the incident with co-host Ken Schrader and didn’t hesitate to take digs at Hill and team owner Richard Childress.
Austin Hill went full Rusty Wallace on ’em at Indy… 🤯
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“Man, he, I mean Austin Hill, they said, Austin, NASCAR’s holding us five laps, and buddy, he went Rusty Wallace on them,” Wallace laughed. “It was fun! It was like, ‘Oh, wow!’ Now, this is, this is just funny, because we all know how close Richard Childress is to NASCAR.”
“Richard Childress, our buddy, if we were drinking right now with Richard, we’d be going, ‘Richard, that was funny what you said!’ He said, ‘NASCAR does not like us because we are a blue-collar team.”
“I don’t see that,” Scharder replied. “And it’s definitely not a blue-collar team in the Xfinity Series,” he added.
NASCAR has been increasingly firm in penalizing intentional wrecks; Hill is the latest example. The organization suspended Cup drivers Kyle Larson and Bubba Wallace for such misconduct.
Austin Dillon avoided a ban after two incidents at Richmond last season, but still paid a price when NASCAR ruled his win wouldn’t count toward playoff qualification.
NASCAR had previously stopped short of suspending Cup driver Austin Cindric and Xfinity’s Sammy Smith, opting instead to dock each 50 regular-season points.
But Hill’s punishment signals that officials saw his actions as more dangerous or deliberate. Unlike the others, Hill initiated contact on a high-speed straightaway, giving NASCAR solid footing for a harsher penalty.
The Xfinity Series returns to action Saturday at Iowa Speedway, but Hill will sit out until Watkins Glen on August 9.