Entering the AT&T 250 at the Milwaukee Mile last Saturday, rookie Busch series driver Aric Almirola was a relatively unknown driver. He had two career poles, but he was probably most known for being nicknamed the "Cuban Missile" by his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Tony Stewart. Needless to say, it was a quite a surprise when Almirola picked up his first career win Saturday night, but the biggest surprise was that he wasn't behind the wheel of the car when he crossed the finished line.

In a strange scenario, Denny Hamlin relieved Almirola mid-race and came from a lap down to win the race. Under NASCAR rules, the driver that takes the green flag at the start of the event is credited with the finish and in this case the victory. The last time a relief driver won a race took place on April 13, 1985 when Jack Ingram turned his car over to Harry Gant at Darlington Raceway so last weekend's events were a rare occurrence. So rare that the events leading up to the bizarre finish read like a move script, and they deserve a second look.

For starters, can someone buy Denny Hamlin a reliable alarm clock? This whole debacle could have been avoided if Hamlin woke up in time for the first practice session at Infineon Raceway on Saturday. Instead, Hamlin overslept and was forced to run nearly the entire Happy Hour session to make up for lost time. The original plan was for Hamlin to leave after a few laps in Happy Hour and then take a helicopter from California to Milwaukee in time for the race, a strategy that Carl Edwards utilized and arrived at the Busch race with time to spare. Hamlin gets paid millions of dollars to drive in the Cup and Busch series and has tons of people that work hard to help him succeed on the track. Accidents can happen, but would it kill Hamlin to set more than one alarm when the day's itinerary is so time sensitive?

Management personnel at Joe Gibbs Racing didn't exactly help the situation with the travel plan they had set up for Denny. Announcers reported that Hamlin's helicopter had to stop and fuel three times during the trip, which obviously slowed things down. JGR is one of NASCAR's super teams with more than enough money to spare. Why not shell out the extra cash to get Hamlin a larger, faster helicopter or use a private jet instead of going with the AAA low-budget special?

There is plenty of blame to go around, and officials at the Milwaukee Mile are responsible for the most inexplicable complication with this whole mess. Despite everything that went wrong, Hamlin's helicopter actually arrived at the track about 10 minutes before the scheduled start time. Unfortunately, track officials had failed to notice that several cars had parked on the helipad, preventing Hamlin's helicopter from landing and forcing Denny to hover helplessly above the track as the race began.

It's not like Hamlin's arrival was a big surprise. Everyone knew he was coming and coming via helicopter. Would it kill someone to check the helipad to make sure it is in working condition, and for that matter what are cars doing parking on the helipad? Whoever dropped the ball on this one should just be happy that Hamlin's helicopter had plenty of fuel and that there wasn't a wreck during the early stages of the race requiring a medical helicopter to land.

On top of everything else that happened, the determining factor in pulling Almirola from the car was probably the sponsor. Rockwell Automation has sponsored the No. 20 Chevy for several seasons now, and unfortunately for Aric, the company happens to be based in Milwaukee. With company executives and other VIPs all attending the race, it was more than likely suggested/demanded that Hamlin – the star driver – be put in the car. Sponsors do pay the bills, and on lap 57 they got their wish when Hamlin jumped behind the wheel.

As far as JGR and the sponsors are concerned, the weekend was a success and everything worked out in the end. Rockwell Automation got its car in victory lane at its home track and the No. 20 car gets credit with the victory. Meanwhile, Aric Almirola was totally disrespected and given the proverbial shaft.

After all, Almirola qualified the car on the pole and led the first 44 laps of the race and was running a strong third when he was forced to get out of the car. Nothing like rewarding Aric for all his hard work in practice, qualifying and the early stages of the race by yanking him from a race he might have won on his own. Even worse, Almirola had the excitement and joy of his first career Busch win ruined because he is given credit for the victory as the driver that started the race. A driver's first win is probably the most memorable moment of their career and Almirola has had that taken from him. Imagine telling the grandkids how he won his first race sitting in his trailer in the pits.

Credit Almirola for handling the situation with as much class as humanly possible. He was noticeably upset when leaving the car and returning to his trailer. After the race he declined comment and simply left the track. He had every right to rant and rave about how he just got screwed but managed to take the high road. I give him even more credit for refusing to go to victory lane afterwards and take part in the charade that will go down in NASCAR history as his first win.

Aric Almirola got a raw deal last Saturday night and everyone involved knows it even if they're not saying it publicly. NASCAR is a business, and like any other business the dollars often dictate the way things are done which is not always fair. Almirola showed a remarkable amount of restraint Saturday and has already proven he has a future in NASCAR. Hopefully, he can win a race for himself in the near future and experience taking the checkered flag from inside the car – he deserves it.