NASCAR team in show of defiance after driver handed major Iowa penalty

NASCAR team Richard Childress Racing made a show of defiance at Iowa Speedway this weekend after their driver was handed a major penalty.

Austin Hill was hit with a one-race suspension by NASCAR officials ahead of this weekend's action, ruling him out of Saturday's HyVee Perks 250 in the Xfinity Series.

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Hill's punishment came after he intentionally wrecked Aric Almirola at Indianapolis last time out, initially hit with a five-lap penalty and then subsequently issued a suspension after NASCAR reviewed the footage post-race.

Hill was replaced by RCR's Cup Series driver Austin Dillon in Iowa this weekend, but despite that, the team opted to keep Hill's name on their car, and not replace it with Dillon's in what could be viewed as a small sign of protest.

After all, Richard Childress himself has already made his feelings clear on the incident that took place at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

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RCR in show of defiance over Hill penalty

Speaking immediately after last weekend's race, the RCR boss offered an emphatic response when asked if he thought Hill should be banned.

"Hell no!" Childress exclaimed. "They didn’t do a damn thing to the [No.] 2 car [Austin Cindric] when he wrecked Ty [Dillon] and admitted to it, drove him in the right rear and wrecked him at COTA.

"It’s who you are. We’re a blue-collar team. They give us trouble all the time."

Austin Dillon went on to finish 14th in Saturday's Xfinity Series race, stepping in for Hill on a one-off basis.

Hill is set to be back in action in the No. 21 Chevrolet at Watkins Glen next weekend.

READ MORE: NASCAR seizes Team Penske and Hendrick Motorsports cars for further inspection post-Iowa

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