NASCAR's thrilling race at Kansas Speedway, which saw Denny Hamlin pass Kyle Larson on the final lap for the win, was overshadowed by the fireworks between two drivers shortly after.
NASCAR rookie Noah Gragson's day ended early when he lost control of his car and wrecked. The spin came just two laps after Ross Chastain got close to Gragson and forced him up into the wall.
After the race, Gragson confronted Chastain, who has been at the center of many on-track incidents. A fight broke out after Gragson grabbed Chastain, who responded by punching Gragson before the drivers were separated. After the fight, Gragson said he was encouraged by other drivers to go after Chastain and felt like it was time somebody did.
"Nobody confronts the guy," Gragson told the Motor Racing Network. "I went down there and grabbed him. I'm sick and tired of it. The guy just runs into everyone. When you got guys like Chase Elliott, other guys telling you to go beat his ass ... Everyone's sick and tired of him, but nobody goes up and gets him. I'm tired of it."
Meanwhile, Chastain hinted that he punched Gragson because of something somebody on the team told him.
"He came down and grabbed a hold of me," Chastain told the media. "A very big man once told me we have a no-push policy here at Trackhouse."
Chastain has had several run-ins with other drivers, including two-time champion Kyle Busch, who turned Chastain into a verb following one race in 2022.
"We got Chastain'd this week," Busch told Fox after the Richmond race. "We were his victim this week."
But Chastain's most famous sparring partner has been Hamlin.
After being wrecked several times by Chastain, Hamlin got a bit of revenge near the end of the 2022 Pocono race as the two drivers battled for the lead.
However, NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt, Jr. has defended Chastain in hte past.
Junior spoke during the 2022 season about how he angered Martin Truex, Jr. after an incident with Chastain. After Chastain caused Truex to wreck on the final lap in Dover, Earnhardt, friends with both drivers, defended Chastain and his "throwback" driving style, saying the sport needs drivers like him.