2023 Bonehead of the Year: The Vote

Who is the 2023 Bonehead of the Year?

  • Chase Elliott

    Votes: 10 28.6%

  • Denny Hamlin

    Votes: 8 22.9%

  • Noah Gragson

    Votes: 12 34.3%

  • Carson Hocevar

    Votes: 4 11.4%

  • Corey Heim

    Votes: 1 2.9%
  • Total voters
    35
  • Poll closed .
HoneyBadger

HoneyBadger

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It's time to decide.

The election comes down to five:

Chase Elliott for hooking Denny Hamlin at Charlotte, resulting in a DNF followed by a one race suspension that ultimately derailed his chances of making the playoffs.

Denny Hamlin for not making the Final Four after his "I beat your favorite driver" speech.

Noah Gragson for earning a suspension from NASCAR by liking a controversial (racist) meme on Instagram.

Carson Hocevar for spinning, whether intentional or not, a championship rival in the Final.

Corey Heim for retaliating against Carson Hocevar in the Championship Final.



P.S... CHASE ELLIOTT'S SNOWBOARDING INCIDENT DOES NOT COUNT!!!
 
Denny. Rest of these guys it's out of character, rare lapse of judgement, etc..... Denny will never learn not to be his ****y self.
 
AndyMarquisLive said:
It's time to decide.

The election comes down to five:

Chase Elliott for hooking Denny Hamlin at Charlotte, resulting in a DNF followed by a one race suspension that ultimately derailed his chances of making the playoffs.

Denny Hamlin for not making the Final Four after his "I beat your favorite driver" speech.

Noah Gragson for earning a suspension from NASCAR by liking a controversial (racist) meme on Instagram.

Carson Hocevar for spinning, whether intentional or not, a championship rival in the Final.

Corey Heim for retaliating against Carson Hocevar in the Championship Final.



P.S... CHASE ELLIOTT'S SNOWBOARDING INCIDENT DOES NOT COUNT!!!
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It was intentional by Carson. Noah should win this in a landslide
 
Mispeedway15 said:
It was intentional by Carson. Noah should win this in a landslide
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What Noah did was stupid for sure. But I am also considering the consequences or self inflicted damage of the bonehead as well. I just don't think he would have lasted at Legacy based on his poor driving performance.

It is true that he sealed the deal and made it happen a lot quicker. He also deprived himself of getting seat time while Legacy was improving during the 2nd half of the season. The bonehead also created a moment that revealed a lot about his character and even if he truly reforms or learns enough to become a better man the moment is going to stick with his reputation for a long time. So I can agree it is a good choice or poll vote, I can understand the reasoning.

The whole thing including my vote is just a matter of opinion. But he still was not my first chouce or vote.
 
AndyMarquisLive said:
It's time to decide.

The election comes down to five:

Chase Elliott for hooking Denny Hamlin at Charlotte, resulting in a DNF followed by a one race suspension that ultimately derailed his chances of making the playoffs.

Denny Hamlin for not making the Final Four after his "I beat your favorite driver" speech.

Noah Gragson for earning a suspension from NASCAR by liking a controversial (racist) meme on Instagram.

Carson Hocevar for spinning, whether intentional or not, a championship rival in the Final.

Corey Heim for retaliating against Carson Hocevar in the Championship Final.



P.S... CHASE ELLIOTT'S SNOWBOARDING INCIDENT DOES NOT COUNT!!!
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Will there be a run off or second poll? If the top two are close and within 5 or 10 percentage points after the poll closes?
 
Chase for on-track actions. Hamlin and Gragson were off-track boneheads. Heim and Hocevar were dumb but at a lower level and in the heat of a championship race.
 
Hamlin. Elliott deserves an award for not putting up with DH's nonsense.....again.
 
Noah Gragson, for getting that dumb-ass haircut that even easy going Ross Chastain didn't care for.



noah.jpg
 
Chase had a junk season, but as the most popular driver and someone who is absolutely expected to make the chase, he gets my vote for making his already tough path to the top 16 even tougher.
 
Chase is getting a lot of flack for that move on Denny but regardless of this season and the effect it had I am glad he did it. People seem to forget that early in that race Chase had a junk car and he was really patient and drove a good smart race while they worked on it and made it better and they were getting better and seemed to be on a good strategy but Hamlin ran him into the wall not once but TWICE over driving his stuff. Seemed to me that the second hit ruined Chase's day and Chase knew it and said "now I am going to ruin your day" but could not know in the heat of the moment he would get suspended for a race. Hindisght is always 20/20 but hopefully Denny will think twice before running Chase into the wall like that again.
 
Chase Fan 79 said:
Chase is getting a lot of flack for that move on Denny but regardless of this season and the effect it had I am glad he did it. People seem to forget that early in that race Chase had a junk car and he was really patient and drove a good smart race while they worked on it and made it better and they were getting better and seemed to be on a good strategy but Hamlin ran him into the wall not once but TWICE over driving his stuff. Seemed to me that the second hit ruined Chase's day and Chase knew it and said "now I am going to ruin your day" but could not know in the heat of the moment he would get suspended for a race. Hindisght is always 20/20 but hopefully Denny will think twice before running Chase into the wall like that again.
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Your glad he could have killed Denny? I understand wanting payback and I wouldn't have had a problem with chase wrecking Denny, but that was not the spot to do it, it was much too dangerous a spot to get your revenge.
 
@Chase Fan 79 , welcome to RF!

Chase Fan 79 said:
Chase knew it and said "now I am going to ruin your day" but could not know in the heat of the moment he would get suspended for a race.
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C'mon, NASCAR has been suspending guys for this type of intentional wreck for years. He may have forgotten in the heat of battle, and his chief and spotter should have talked him down, but the suspension shouldn't have surprised anyone.
 
Daytripper said:
Your glad he could have killed Denny? I understand wanting payback and I wouldn't have had a problem with chase wrecking Denny, but that was not the spot to do it, it was much too dangerous a spot to get your revenge.
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Glad he retaliated and sent a message to not do that again but probably should have done it in a different way, It's easy for all of us to play Monday AM QB and say that though. All I am saying is that in frustration we all do dumb things. Not making excuses to say it was OK. I am sure Chase learned from it and the suspension was deserved of course but I am glad he sent a message to say "don't race me that way again." As a former fan of Chase's dad and Kasey Kahne as well I was frustrated with both of them at time for NOT sending that message. Especially Kasey who got used up by Kyle Busch so many times all those incidents could have their own website. LOL
 
Charlie Spencer said:
@Chase Fan 79 , welcome to RF!


C'mon, NASCAR has been suspending guys for this type of intentional wreck for years. He may have forgotten in the heat of battle, and his chief and spotter should have talked him down, but the suspension shouldn't have surprised anyone.
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It's didn't surprise me at all. - Especially now in that the driver's data is available to everyone but pretty confident Chase did not think "I know this might kill Denny and I aloo know even it does not I will get suspended but I am going to do this anyway." He was pissed for having his day ruined and acted without thinking.
 
Chase Fan 79 said:
Chase is getting a lot of flack for that move on Denny but regardless of this season and the effect it had I am glad he did it. People seem to forget that early in that race Chase had a junk car and he was really patient and drove a good smart race while they worked on it and made it better and they were getting better and seemed to be on a good strategy but Hamlin ran him into the wall not once but TWICE over driving his stuff. Seemed to me that the second hit ruined Chase's day and Chase knew it and said "now I am going to ruin your day" but could not know in the heat of the moment he would get suspended for a race. Hindisght is always 20/20 but hopefully Denny will think twice before running Chase into the wall like that again.
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b1a1f2fe7aa340094b0bda4f767593c2.jpg


Chase could’ve walled him on corner exit like he did at Phoenix years ago, spun him on corner exit, literally anything except right hooking him on a high speed straightaway and nobody would’ve ever said anything about it
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Biggreen695 said:
b1a1f2fe7aa340094b0bda4f767593c2.jpg


Chase could’ve walled him on corner exit like he did at Phoenix years ago, spun him on corner exit, literally anything except right hooking him on a high speed straightaway and nobody would’ve ever said anything about it
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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Hmmm...How are we to know that Chase's car was still going to be able to keep up and "wall" him after the fact? Bottom line - he reacted in the moment. He did not think and he was PISSED for having his day ruined after he had hung in there with a bad car and drove a smart race. When he walled him at Phoenix he was being more calculated at that was not in the heat of the moment. Yes, he could have done many other things in hindsight and was wrong to do what he did but there is a reason they say hindsight is always 20/20. Like I said before, I am sure he learned from it and won't do it again. Also glad Hamlin was not hurt.
 
All I can say is, Denny getting wrecked out or a mechanical out, is always a good thing, IMHO.

Hells bells, if Denny never raced in another Nascar race it would suit me just fine. :booya:
 
Chase Fan 79 said:
Hmmm...How are we to know that Chase's car was still going to be able to keep up and "wall" him after the fact? Bottom line - he reacted in the moment. He did not think and he was PISSED for having his day ruined after he had hung in there with a bad car and drove a smart race. When he walled him at Phoenix he was being more calculated at that was not in the heat of the moment. Yes, he could have done many other things in hindsight and was wrong to do what he did but there is a reason they say hindsight is always 20/20. Like I said before, I am sure he learned from it and won't do it again. Also glad Hamlin was not hurt.
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Don’t get me wrong I’m probably the most anti Denny guy on the forum.

As far as Chase goes he’s a champion in our sport, he should be held to the highest regard.

I fight fire for a living. If I get pissed at a coworker in the heat of a battle and I fly off the handle? Should that be excusable? No because the consequences could be dire.


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pjmolo said:
Noah Gragson, for getting that dumb-ass haircut that even easy going Ross Chastain didn't care for.



View attachment 74228
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That Bonehead Bowl Cut was the insurance he needed to surge ahead of household names like Elliott and Hamlin.

If in doubt about the top three contenders, a voter could just take a 2nd look and think well there was that bowl cut, too. It definitely showed a boneheaded commitment on Gragson's part. He isnt just any other bonehead; he is a complex bonehead as well...
 
Payback skills and the craft will have to improve to become more subtle from this point forward.

Being subtle has been imoortant for a while but Nascar now has enough telemetry related data to review a drivers action in greater detail. Escpecially when it comes to a making slight right to intentionally hook another car. It is harder to claim you innocently just got a little loose after a flagrant move.

You probably have to just drive into the corner a little deeper, get back on the throttle quicker or slightly take a wider line to go 8 tires, or wall him at the apex. But even then it has to be very subtle to look just a little off rhythm in a fight for the same real estate. Avoiding the appearance of going over the top and never admit your intentions even in a coded language

It will never be as monotonous as F1 with the penalties, but things are a lot more subject to review than they were in the past.

Even If you are only singling out another driver just to give him problems while not going as far as wrecking him, they will know that too. That is more of a slippery slope in terms of enforcement but it could be considered based on the ultimate results or consequences.
 
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