NASCAR: Officials hammer Hendrick Motorsports again

Editor’s Note: The amount of cheating NASCAR officials have found over the years is shocking. Not until teams caught cheating get suspended for an entire year will it stop completely.

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NASCAR handed out L1-level penalties on Thursday to the Nos. 24 and 48 Hendrick Motorsports teams in the Cup Series after last weekend’s races at Richmond Raceway.

As a result, William Byron (No. 24) and Alex Bowman (No. 48) each lost 60 driver points and five playoff points. The teams also lost 60 owner points and five playoff owner points. In addition, the team’s respective crew chiefs (Brian Campe and Greg Ives) were fined $75,000 and suspended for two points events starting April 13.

The section referenced in the NASCAR Rule Book was 14.1.D Overall Assembled Vehicle Rules, 14.1.2.B Engineering Change Log and 14.5.6.B: Greenhouse. A NASCAR spokesperson confirmed that the penalty was for a modification to the greenhouse area on each car that was discovered during post-race inspection. The greenhouse is the roof of the car, along with the front and back windows.

Here is the specific rule Hendrick was found to have violated: “The greenhouse may be modified to accommodate a windshield wiper motor where required; these modifications will be permitted for all racetracks. The greenhouse modification must conform to the following drawing:”

Before the penalties, Bowman was atop the Cup Series standings while Byron was in fourth place, 35 points behind but with two race wins to his credit this season.

Hendrick Motorsports did not immediately issue an appeal, indicating it would determine its next steps after Sunday’s race at Bristol Motor Speedway.

OTHER PENALTIES

In the Craftsman Truck Series, NASCAR levied L1-level penalties against the Nos. 4 and 51 teams of Chase Purdy and Jack Wood for Kyle Busch Motorsports and the No. 2 team of Nick Sanchez for Rev Racing for unapproved engine oil reserve tanks found in opening day inspection at Texas Motor Speedway. Each team will incur a loss of 10 driver points and 10 owner points.

In addition, NASCAR suspended Jeff Shoaf and Ronnell Wilson indefinitely for behavioral violations. Jordan Anderson Racing listed Shoaf as a tire carrier on the No. 31 team’s roster for the Richmond Xfinity Series race, while the No. 20 team of Joe Gibbs Racing had Wilson on its roster as a fueler for the same race.