In the final set of corners at Martinsville Speedway last fall, Ross Chastain pulled off a move that will live on in history and in legend, a move affectionately known as “the Hail Melon.” 

If you have somehow never seen or heard of this (where have you been?), the Hail Melon was a move that could only be described as straight out of a video game. Chastain needed to gain just a couple more positions to secure his spot in the championship four heading to Phoenix Raceway to compete for the title. So he decided to see if something he’d been thinking of would actually work.

Chastain floored the accelerator, shifted into fifth gear, and leaned his Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet Camaro against the outside wall. The move worked and Chastain zipped around the outside of multiple cars, putting in the fastest lap ever seen by a Cup car at Martinsville in the process. Chastain passed Denny Hamlin at the line to eliminate Hamlin from the playoffs.

THE MOVE THAT SENDS ROSS CHASTAIN TO THE #CHAMPIONSHIP4! pic.twitter.com/67Ku712XZf

— NASCAR (@NASCAR) October 30, 2022

But would you believe it wasn’t the first time a video game-esque move was tried? Believe it or not, Kyle Larson tried a similar move in the final corner of the 2021 Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. Ironically, the person Hamlin tried to pass with this move was also Hamlin, but this time Hamlin was able to block it and hold on to keep the win.

Larson said on the radio right after the race ended that he “tried to video game it.” Larson’s feelings toward the move must have changed in the months that followed because he called Chastain’s move a “bad look” for NASCAR, and also added that he was being hypocritical for calling it out.

“I’m glad I did not win, because I would not have been able to sleep at night and be proud of it, just like I don’t think I’d be proud to be in the final four with a move like that,” Larson added.

the fail melon 🍉 https://t.co/Ojp0SxhA13

— Ross Chastain (@RossChastain) August 31, 2023

NASCAR on NBC’s official page on social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter) shared video of Larson’s wall-ride from 2021 on Wednesday evening. Chastain reposted it with the caption “the fail melon.”

Over the offseason between the 2022 and 2023 season, NASCAR banned the move, meaning we will never see anything like that ever again.

The 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs kick off Sunday evening with the Cook Out Southern 500 from Darlington Raceway live on USA. 

NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out Southern 500 Entry List