Corey Day has been quite the addition to the NASCARCraftsman Truck Series. When we say this, we mean it not in the best way. Day has been involved in many on-track incidents, some of which have been his fault. In turn, NASCAR personalities have earned their fair share of criticism for the young Hendrick Motorsports driver.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. discussed the matter on his own podcast, the Dale Jr. Download. In the "s's" portion of Circuit of the Americas, Day lost control of his car for a millisecond, just enough to get into the rear of Connor Zilisch and spin his No. 1 car around.
These cars are not technically teammates on the same team, but they are teammates. Day drives for Hendrick Motorsports in their No. 17 Chevrolet. Zilisch drives for JR Motorsports in their No. 1 Chevrolet. These are two teams closely aligned in development, and thus, Day and Zilisch are OEM and pipelined teammates. This incident led to a meeting with Dale Jr., Rick Hendrick, and Corey Day.
"Rick had a conversation with Corey, and we are all trying to help him understand. Look, man, we want you here," Dale Jr. explained. "We believe in you, we believe you're a winner." Day must do things without being detrimental to eachother (Zilisch).
(Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images for SiriusXM)
Dale Jr. went on to make great further points. Day is a young driver, a developmental driver who strives to race as hard as possible towards ultimate victory. Zilisch is a short-term teammate, and the relationship carries little weight with Day. He is trying to go as fast as possible at all times to achieve the best possible result. While that is fine, he must understand that there are limits to his aggression on the track.
Zilisch had his own input on the situation. On the radio, Zilisch called Day an "absolute hack." He (Zilisch) then waited for Day to come and apologize to him after the race. Instead, Zilisch got a blank stare from Day, perhaps being unsure how to handle the situation. Nonetheless, Day must be better and, at the very least, admit to his mistakes face-to-face.
Denny Hamlin has his own podcast, Actions Detrimental, where he also shared his input on the Day situation. Corey Day is a driver who descends from the dirt racing scene out west. His asphalt experience is very limited. He will not be an immediate winner, as is evident from his many mistakes. In due time, Day can be elite and a constant winner, but it takes time.
Day has only 27 races in his NASCAR National Series career. Hamlin suggests that we give Day another three months to see his progression and learning experience take effect and eventually find his first career victory lane.