The next day in the top-tier Cup series, ex-watermelon farmer Ross Chastain – who drives for a team run by famously subdued rapper Pitbull – put his foot to the floor and rammed his Chevrolet along the barrier of the last corner of the last lap, pipping rival Denny Hamlin to the line as bits flew off his car, securing his place in the playoff final with it.
The daring last-ditch overtake went viral on social media, with drivers from Fernando Alonso to Romain Grosjean expressing their admiration, in a move of spontaneity rarely seen in F1 – NASCAR drivers often express unbridled emotions, and the fans love it.
However, more and more other series appear to be going the way of F1.
WRC star Sébastien Ogier was fined €1500 for doing a couple of donuts before perfectly lining up his Toyota Yaris with the podium after winning Rally Spain last week.
“Money well invested… for the FAN !!! Enjoy the dinner,” the eight-time world champion pithily put it in response to the outcry.
The WRC was briefly reignited earlier this season when now semi-friends Ogier and Seb Loeb went up against one another in Monaco, with fans’ imaginations well and truly captured.
The excitement over that sheer level of sporting greatness on show was clearly accentuated by the residual animosity from years gone by, now somewhat lacking in the WRC – are Elfyn Evans and co just too nice?
Another none-more-testosterone-fuelled discipline isn’t immune either, as our contributing editor Mat Oxley explains.
“Neither is motorcycle racing free of overzealous officials apparently obsessed with sucking the last drop of rock and roll out of racing,” he says.
“At September’s Argentine World Superbike round, Frenchman Loris Baz was sanctioned with a 1000-Euro fine for a middle-finger gesture to rival Axel Bassani, who had just knocked him off.
“Baz, who made the gesture while sliding along the track on his backside, was unrepentant, later posting a photo on social media of him giving the middle-finger salute once again. Most rivals agreed with Baz’s stance.
“Motorcycle racing is a rough game, so it’s no surprise that riders sometimes get a little angry, especially when they’ve just been taken out by a rival. Therefore attempting to purify the sport into some kind of petrolhead’s tennis game doesn’t make sense. Fans love motor sport partly because it’s edgy and risky, so trying to make lions behave like sheep won’t do anyone any good.”
Combined with suggestions that MotoGP’s latest superstar that Fabio Quartararo was investigated for proffering his injured finger in parc fermé, has two-wheel racing lost its edge now it’s in commercial rights holder Dorna’s domain?
Who knows, perhaps if the performance levels of Red Bull, Ferrari and Mercedes converge next year, the non-sanitised fun might begin again, at least in the world championship. Don’t count on it.