"There is nothing wrong with that": Cole Custer defends his 'intentional' move over Chandler Smith that erupted into a heated altercation

Cole Custer has defended his 'intentional' payback move against Chandler Smith at the Martinsville Speedway. The latter bumped his #81 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota into the former's #00 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford to grab the second place, resulting in an on-track scuffle.

Smith direly needed a win at the National Debt Relief 250 Race to safeguard his Championship 4 spot. On Lap 220, the #81 Toyota driver successfully propelled his ride to the front row but the moment was shortlived.

The following restart on Lap 227 saw Custer intentionally choose the outside lane, starting right behind Smith in fourth. As the JGR rival steered through Turn 1, the defending Xfinity champion retaliated for the previous run-in, moving Smith up the track, and clearing the path for his Championship 4 ticket.

The move didn't sit well with the #81 driver following which he punched the #00 driver post-race, in the pit lane.

Following the heated turnaround, Cole Custer was asked about his intentional lane selection and the aftermath with Chandler Smith. The SHR driver said (via Bob Pockrass).

"I did, yeah I did. At the end of the day, there's nothing wrong with that. You're moving somebody out of the way, he moved me straight off the track when he was behind me. So, I did the same exact thing that he did," Custer said (0:42).

Smith won't return to the Xfinity Series with JGR next year while Custer will be promoted to the Cup level to drive Haas Factory Team's #41 Ford.

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"He's the one that got more stakes than I do": Chandler Smith publicly warns Cole Custer of a potential payback at Phoenix

While Smith entered Martinsville's 250 lapper in a cliffhanger situation, Cole Custer was relatively comfortable. The JGR driver posted a fourth-place finish at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway and a P13 finish at the preceding Homestead-Miami race, whereas, the SHR driver settled in eighth in Las Vegas and was the runner-up in Homestead-Miami.

However, now that Smith is out of the playoffs and can't fight for an Xfinity Series title, he doesn't have as much at stake as his rival Custer. And considering the heated altercation that ensued between the two, the defending Xfinity champion is at significant risk of losing out on a second consecutive title, if Smith decides to hinder the former's bid.

The JGR driver wasn't shy about mentioning that Custer will enter the Phoenix race with more stakes, hinting at a possible payback.

"Cole said, 'Well you have a mirror and all that,' I was like, 'That's great, I'm just letting you know what the situation was.' He can think we're even and all but he's the one that got more stakes than I do next weekend," Smith said via NASCAR (1.59).

Chandler Smith is placed fifth in the Xfinity standings while Cole Custer is up in third place.