Maybe overcompensating from the time he raced in his underwear, Matt DiBenedetto’s fire suit looked a little different this week. Yeah, it’s a giraffe. We’re not sure why or for how long he’s owned it, but we’re also not going to ask. Talk about putting your neck on the line.
Ok fine…I will wear clothes for today’s virtual Richmond race 🦒 pic.twitter.com/eVTX0uMUg8
— Matt DiBenedetto (@mattdracing) April 19, 2020
A familiar voice joined Jimmie Johnson Sunday — that of longtime spotter Earl Barban.
My livestream is going to have a familiar voice on it today… Make sure you’re tuning in pic.twitter.com/hNHkz2Cq4Y
— Jimmie Johnson (@JimmieJohnson) April 19, 2020
It was great to have @BigEarl48 spotting for me in today’s @NASCAR @iRacing event from @RichmondRaceway. pic.twitter.com/D32vq0jNtx
— Jimmie Johnson (@JimmieJohnson) April 19, 2020
Seven-Time wasn’t the only one with a familiar name on board.
Crew chiefing for @TylerReddick today in the #ProInvitationalSeries!! He doesn’t know that’s a bad idea. 😬
— Kaz Grala (@KazGrala) April 19, 2020
Usual in-race tweeter Alex Bowman’s lack of preparation caught up with him this time. Yes, some of the drivers shifted from fourth gear to third in the corners in order to get a better run on exit — something Driver No. 88 didn’t realize until late in the going Sunday.
Level of effort I put into this weeks iRacing preparation: pic.twitter.com/OzkPD89LxC
— Alex Bowman (@AlexBowman88) April 19, 2020
WAIT GUYS ARE SHIFTING?! Damn I picked a bad week to not practice 😂🤦🏻♂️
— Alex Bowman (@AlexBowman88) April 19, 2020
In typical short track fashion, tempers boiled over after a series of back-and-forth incidents between Matt DiBenedetto and polesitter Ryan Preece resulted in Preece’s virtual car wrecked and DiBenedetto parked for the afternoon.
Matt, Ryan… to the virtual #NASCAR trailer after the race, please. Both of you.
Check out the in-car of the altercations between these two. #ToyotaOwners150 #ProInvitationalSeries pic.twitter.com/bnQH62DYHv
— 𝙚𝙍𝙄𝘾𝙃𝙈𝙊𝙉𝘿 𝙍𝘼𝘾𝙀𝙒𝘼𝙔 (@RichmondRaceway) April 19, 2020
INSIDE pic.twitter.com/cIcE2LtTJW
— Matt DiBenedetto (@mattdracing) April 19, 2020
I’ll give it to you if you show up like this pic.twitter.com/22dLHAQZTR
— Ryan Preece (@RyanPreece_) April 19, 2020
Ok. Please @iRacingMyers don’t suspend us for talladega. That looked like a total accident to me. 😩
— Wood Brothers Racing (@woodbrothers21) April 19, 2020
After so many years in the sport, I can't believe I failed to use this phrase with the media post race. It is brilliant https://t.co/vfrOjqcYA9
— Steve O'Donnell (@odsteve) April 19, 2020
It was all in fun, says DiBenedetto — he raced in a giraffe suit, after all.
Post race recap. I do not feel very intimidating currently but you guys can still sense my rage pic.twitter.com/I8uK1lMNrr
— Matt DiBenedetto (@mattdracing) April 19, 2020
Preece vs. Guido wasn’t the only flare-up after the race. Garrett Smithley and Daniel Suarez cost themselves a shot at top-five finishes after a late-race dust-up.
Smithley suggested Suarez stick to Mario Kart. Harsh words! But if it ends up with iRacing releasing Rainbow Road somehow, we’re cool with it.
Stick to Mario Kart @Daniel_SuarezG https://t.co/OnYUpEjJex
— Garrett Smithley (@GarrettSmithley) April 19, 2020
Welcome to my life lately amigo 😂😂 https://t.co/3IzXLe95r1
— Daniel Suárez (@Daniel_SuarezG) April 19, 2020
The Clint Bowyer-Bubba Wallace saga looked like it could have taken another turn after the two made contact for the second race in a row …
Oh no. @ClintBowyer and @BubbaWallace got together … again. 😳 pic.twitter.com/myahAcnfzx
— eNASCAR (@NASCAR) April 19, 2020
… but Bubba revealed he received a text from Clint absolving him from fault. Whew, close one.
Just to clear the air…#NotBubba'd pic.twitter.com/CkYuhUFcRe
— Bubba Wallace (@BubbaWallace) April 19, 2020
He even stuck around to give the virtual fans a Polish victory lap — Chase Elliott even confirmed it.
Hey @jeff_gluck @bobpockrass @KellyCrandall @NASCARONFOX @dustinlong
You guys would be remissed if you didn't mention I was the last car off the racetrack. Even gave that enormous crowd a Polish victory lap! #neverquit
— Bubba Wallace (@BubbaWallace) April 19, 2020
I can vouch. I saw him out there… #overachiever https://t.co/VhMBWtYlRo
— Chase Elliott (@chaseelliott) April 19, 2020
All in all, a good day for this fan!
Looks like we found today’s 50/50 raffle winner.#RCR #ProInvitationalSeries pic.twitter.com/ZgY34Y6JIk
— RCR (@RCRracing) April 19, 2020
William Byron put on a clinic for the second race in a row, celebrating victory over Timmy Hill — who didn’t offer repayment for a bump-and-run at Texas a few weeks ago.
2 for 2 at Richmond! What a call by @NickOttinger and Holden to stay out, I was nervous about it but they raced me clean and it worked out. Thanks @AxaltaRacing @LibertyU @Hertz pic.twitter.com/ZxfHf1aK2p
— William Byron (@WilliamByron) April 19, 2020
It’s Willy B Vs. Hilly T in this. Fun day. #ProInvitationalSeries
— nascarcasm (@nascarcasm) April 19, 2020
A look through the rest of the field:
2nd place finish today for our @PitBossGrills Toyota! Just came up a little bit short there at the end. Congratulations to @WilliamByron on the win! Looking forward to a bunch of fun at Talladega next week! pic.twitter.com/T4L0HrFrur
— Timmy Hill (@TimmyHillRacer) April 19, 2020
MAN! P3 on the day. We had an awesome long run car there. When I was in position perfectly, I touched the apron out of turn two and let @TimmyHillRacer get me (post a video of it soon)
Stupid mistake on my part. But really fun race. @Valvoline | @BurtKligEsports
— Parker Kligerman (@pkligerman) April 19, 2020
Solid top-5 for our @mmschocolate team today at virtual @RichmondRaceway #ToyotaOwners150 pic.twitter.com/Wcjs6ouLdg
— Kyle Busch (@KyleBusch) April 19, 2020
Top 10 virtual @RichmondRaceway today. Ran 4-6 all race and took too many tires on the last stop. Enjoyed representing @TMCTRANS. Dega next. Man that will be wild stuff. 💥 pic.twitter.com/wS5B3kCqNh
— Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) April 19, 2020
A little recap of @RichmondRaceway @BassProShops #camary pic.twitter.com/X5BRDAmcQa
— Bobby Labonte (@Bobby_Labonte) April 19, 2020
Well that was a new experience!!! Glad to have that out of the way never been so nervous in my life!!! Have a few technical items to work on before next week but definitely had fun!! @BuschBeer @iRacing @SHR_eSports @NASCAR @hbpizza @Mobil1 @jimmyjohns @FordPerformance
— Kevin Harvick (@KevinHarvick) April 19, 2020
Best thing about pops’ new iRacing job…. after the race, he was able to get up stairs and snuggle with 👶🏼 as she woke up from her nap. 💗 pic.twitter.com/lzMer1vQWm
— DeLana Harvick (@DeLanaHarvick) April 19, 2020
Beau and I debrief our p12 effort from @RichmondRaceway today in our @CatRentalStores Chevrolet! pic.twitter.com/0ISOZtgYv5
— Tyler Reddick (@TylerReddick) April 19, 2020
Getting better every week. 💪 Next up… Dega.#ProInvitationalSeries @SportClips pic.twitter.com/XIvDBMyIHV
— Erik Jones (@Erik_Jones) April 19, 2020
They say practice makes perfect. Definitely helped this week! pic.twitter.com/bxFOtBWoGh
— Brad Keselowski (@keselowski) April 19, 2020
Upgraded my sim rig to a bigger size seat and wheel…gonna take some getting used to pic.twitter.com/Tan6hQCUgh
— landon cassill (@landoncassill) April 19, 2020
Give Byron his second virtual trophy and checkered flag!
The inaugural #ToyotaOwners150 goes to @WilliamByron, and so does the virtual Commonwealth of Virginia Trophy!
Congratulations to William and the entire No. 24 @TeamHendrick squad on a huge win from all of us at Richmond Raceway. 🏆 #ProInvitationalSeries pic.twitter.com/u52SEXXlsd
— 𝙚𝙍𝙄𝘾𝙃𝙈𝙊𝙉𝘿 𝙍𝘼𝘾𝙀𝙒𝘼𝙔 (@RichmondRaceway) April 19, 2020
Congrats to @WilliamByron on winning the #ProInvitationalSeries race at Richmond! To recognize his win, we are proud to present this virtual framed Sunoco Checkered Flag to him and @TeamHendrick. #FuelingVictories pic.twitter.com/QrPMIXleSA
— Sunoco Racing (@SunocoRacing) April 19, 2020
Hey, @WilliamByron, our staff — and some friends and family — wanted to celebrate with you, too! So that's what we're gonna do. 🎉🎉🎉#ToyotaOwners150 #ProInvitationalSeries pic.twitter.com/MhRlJsyCBi
— 𝙚𝙍𝙄𝘾𝙃𝙈𝙊𝙉𝘿 𝙍𝘼𝘾𝙀𝙒𝘼𝙔 (@RichmondRaceway) April 19, 2020