Ross Chastain has built quite a reputation since his Cup debut in 2017. The Trackhouse Racing driver has established a household name in stock car racing by combining quick vehicles with an aggressive driving style. Last year, he finished second in the last race, just missing out on the championship.
He has become one of NASCAR’s most divisive figures. Perhaps it’s the watermelon he tosses out his car’s roof after winning races. Perhaps it’s his belligerence; Chastain has been into fights with practically every big name in NASCAR, from Denny Hamlin to Kyle Larson. He punched rookie Noah Gragson in the face.
Fans can’t get enough of him, whether they like him or not. Here’s everything you need know about the Cup Series’ most talked-about driver right now:
Who is Ross Chastain driving for?
Given his outgoing attitude, Chastain required a crew capable of promoting his brand. Fortunately for him, he discovered it at Trackhouse Racing. Trackhouse Racing may not be as well-known as Hendrick Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing, or Richard Childress Racing, but it is a growing force in stock car racing. Trackhouse, owned by Miami’s 13th best rapper (Pitbull) and former Cup Series driver Justin Marks, has served as a bulwark against blue-chip enterprises such as Hendrick.
Founded in 2021, the organization fields two teams in the Cup Series: Chastain in the No. 1 car and Daniel Suarez in the No. 99 vehicle.
Ross Chastain’s timeline of controversy
2015: Chastain’s NASCAR debut was in the Xfinity Series. After placing 32nd in the U.S. Cellular 250 at Iowa Speedway, he got into a fight with Ryan Reed, who claimed that the watermelon farmer pushed him into the wall in Turns 3 and 4 on the final lap of the race. Chastain’s excuse: it was a green-and-white checkered finish.
Fans can’t get enough of him, whether they like him or not. Here’s everything you need know about the Cup Series’ most talked-about driver right now:
Who is Ross Chastain driving for?
Given his outgoing attitude, Chastain required a crew capable of promoting his brand. Fortunately for him, he discovered it at Trackhouse Racing. Trackhouse Racing may not be as well-known as Hendrick Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing, or Richard Childress Racing, but it is a growing force in stock car racing. Trackhouse, owned by Miami’s 13th best rapper (Pitbull) and former Cup Series driver Justin Marks, has served as a bulwark against blue-chip enterprises such as Hendrick.
Founded in 2021, the organization fields two teams in the Cup Series: Chastain in the No. 1 car and Daniel Suarez in the No. 99 vehicle.
Ross Chastain’s timeline of controversy
In 2015, Chastain made his NASCAR debut in the Xfinity Series. After placing 32nd in the U.S. Cellular 250 at Iowa Speedway, he got into a fight with Ryan Reed, who claimed that the watermelon farmer pushed him into the wall in Turns 3 and 4 on the final lap of the race. Chastain’s excuse: it was a green-and-white checkered finish.
2018: Another Xfinity Series race, another clash. Chastain ruffled feathers after sending Joey Gase into the grass on the final lap at Mid-Ohio. That set Gase off, and the No. 35 driver drove his car toward Chastain’s No. 4 vehicle on pit road when there were people on the track. Gase went to confront Chastain but was met with sheer force: one of Chastain’s crew members rammed him onto the ground with a perfectly timed tackle.
Chastain followed up his altercation with Gase by colliding with 2014 Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick at Darlington. During the last stage of an Xfinity race, Chastain threw Harvick into the middle of the track while racing for first. Harvick was not pleased, claiming Chastain would not be able to race in “really fast” cars again.
Chastain’s playoff aspirations were dashed at Dover that year, but he made sure to go out on top, crashing Matt Tifft into Chase Briscoe in the penultimate stage of the Round of 12. Tifft made sure to retaliate, crashing into Chastain following the cooling lap. He said that his foot “slipped” from the clutch.
2019: Chastain had a relatively calm year, with the exception of an accident with Justin Allgaier at Watkins Glen. Chastain spun Allgaier out at the end of Stage 1, which Allgaier believed was intentional. Allgaier replied by pushing Chastain into the tire barrier in the waning stages of the race. Chastain’s No. 4 vehicle was totaled, Allgaier received his retribution, and the world got another peek at Chastain’s aggressiveness.
2022: This was Chastain’s breakout campaign. He not only established himself as one of the fastest drivers in the Cup Series, but he also gained notoriety for his aggressive demeanour. In a short amount of time, he rose from afterthought to possibly the most feared driver in the field. Granted, most of the apprehension stemmed from his proclivity for crashing into other drivers’ cars.
He started the year strong, colliding with Ryan Blaney and Martin Truex Jr. following contact at Richmond and Dover, respectively. Then came the true kindling for the inferno: his drive to Gateway.
Chastain was a wrecking ball that day, engaging in not one but two battles. First, Denny Hamlin’s No. 11 car crashed into the wall. He followed that up by spinning out Chase Elliott, which put him squarely in the sights of his other Cup Series contenders.
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