NASCAR knew it was important to not only make a decision, but to make the right one by the end of Sunday night’s race at Richmond Raceway, so it took three days to announce the penalties.

“I want to apologize for the fact that it took so long,” said Elton Sawyer, NASCAR’s senior vice president of competition. “They have been patient throughout the process. I am speaking with them now and explaining why it has taken so long to make this decision.”

Sawyer explained that the process began Sunday night with the gathering of all available information. NASCAR then continued its review of SMT data and in-car video and audio recordings and conducted all necessary meetings before stripping Austin Dillon of the Cup Series playoff eligibility that the win had earned him.

Dillon’s No. 3 team also received a 25-point deduction in the owner and driver standings. Dillon’s spotter Brandon Benesch was suspended for three races for giving him instructions to destroy him in team communications.

Richard Childress Racing can appeal the penalty. Dillon must win one of the next three races to secure a postseason spot.

NASCAR made its decision on Dillon based on the totality of his actions. Dillon was in second place when he entered Turn 3 and spun Joey Logano out of the race lead on the final lap of overtime. He then clipped Denny Hamlin on the right in Turn 4 after Hamlin had moved to the inside on the way to the checkered flag.

“The most important thing is that we want to make sure that when we get to Phoenix we protect the integrity of our playoffs and our championship,” Sawyer said. “We want to make sure our competitors understand that we want them to make all the decisions, that we want them to be able to ride hard, that’s what our sport has been about for over 75 years. But we also want them to understand – and I think every single one of them understands this – that a line has been crossed here.”

Sawyer admitted that NASCAR is looking into how to make decisions much more quickly than days later, but in this situation, making the right decision was more important than being quick.

A suspension for Dillon was also considered. NASCAR has suspended two drivers in the past two years – Bubba Wallace in 2022 and Chase Elliott in 2023 – for right-hooked a competitor, and those two incidents were contrasted with what Dillon did over the weekend.

“But every situation is different, and when we looked at it, we felt that the penalty we imposed on the No. 3 and the owner of the No. 3, which takes away his eligibility to use that win, was fitting with what happened Sunday night,” Sawyer said. “We didn’t feel we needed to add the suspension.”