NASCAR QNA: Hey Bill Mullis, time for your close-up; the final appeals officer is needed

Who is Bill Mullis and why is he suddenly so important?

On paper, Bill is the president of Langley Speedway in Virginia, as well as a longtime partner in B&C Seafood in Newport News, which specializes in filling our dinner plates with Atlantic sea scallops.

In reality — these days, anyway — Bill is the Roman emperor giving the thumbs-up or thumbs-down to a NASCAR team making one final appeal to a penalty.

Mullis will soon hear Kaulig Racing’s last-ditch effort to overturn severe penalties during the recent stink about hood louvers. Hendrick Motorsports (heard of ’em?) had a big part of its identical penalty (loss of 100 driver points) overturned by a three-person appeals panel, while Kaulig had just 25 of its 100 lost points returned to its No. 31 team and driver Justin Haley.

A certain lack of balance in those appeals outcomes? Of course, but keep in mind, the two different appeals were heard by two different appeals panels, so discrepancy is no big surprise.

And now it’s on to Tiberius (oops … Bill Mullis) for an absolutely final verdict.

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Is this any way to run a railroad?

It seems pretty solid — depending, of course, on the independence of the final appeals officer.

In earlier times, NASCAR actually had a “national commissioner,” a largely ceremonial position and, frankly, we only heard about the Commish on those rare occasions he was awakened to rule on an appeal from some stubborn complainant. Harley Earl, the guy whose name is on the Daytona 500 trophy … he was commissioner in the 1960s.

But now the last stop is on the dock of Bill Mullis, who eventually has to make somebody angry. Scallops never complain, and Bill might eventually wish he was out on the boat pulling the dredge.

Keep in mind, however, regardless of thumbs-up or down, the stakes are much lower than they were in the Roman Coliseum. And yes, less severe than they are for the scallop.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: NASCAR QNA: Hendrick, Kaulig appeals differed; let's call Bill Mullis!