A Hendrick Motorsports spotter for the No. 9 car of Chase Elliott was suspended from his position earlier this week after he was arrested and charged with misdemeanor battery of an unborn child and misdemeanor assault of an adult woman.
On May 12, Eddie D’Hondt, was served a warrant on May 12 in Catawba County, N.C. Bob Pockrass from FOX Sports received an affidavit noted the case ties back to an argument D’Hondt had with this woman over jet ski rentals, during which time the employee alleged that D’Hondt made “full body contact and yelled in my face pushing me back multiple times with body” and “hit my arm away” and “swung a fist at me.”
There was a criminal summons for assault at the time, but the warrant for arrest for battery on an unborn child was issued two weeks ago. The case has been postponed several times.
The North Carolina Judicial Branch website shows D’Hondt scheduled for two court appearances on June 7 (battery of an unborn child) and June 30 (assault of a woman). The victim in the case has chosen to remain unnamed in the media—but some publications have received copies of the criminal summons that not only name the victim but include sensitive information such as her social security number, drivers license number, and address. We have opted against posting her name here.
Hendrick Motorsports released the following statement:
We became aware of the situation this morning and have immediately and indefinitely suspended Mr. D’Hondt’s role with our company. We are taking this matter very seriously and will continue to seek additional information about the alleged incident.
NASCAR also suspended D’Hondt for failing to report his arrest on criminal charges for 72 hours.
D’Hondt has worked in motorsport for years, previously serving as general manager of Evernham Motorsports. He’s served as a spotter for drivers like Bill Elliott, Kyle Busch, and Jeff Gordon before his pairing with reigning champion Chase Elliott took place. Earlier this week, the Hendrick Motorsports team roster shows Trey Poole as taking on the role of Elliott’s spotter.
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