NASCAR released its weekly penalty report Thursday, a day later than usual given the rain delayed Pocono race that took place on Monday. The Stewart-Haas Racing team of Kurt Busch was hit with a P2 penalty after NASCAR officials found the right rear quarter panel had been modified after pre-race inspection. Crew chief Tony Gibson was fined $10,000 and put on NASCAR Probation through Dec. 31.
Busch, who won the June race at Pocono, was sent to the rear of the field Monday. He finished the race 10th. The finish clinched a spot for Busch in this year’s Chase.
There were several other penalties announced Thursday.
• Josh Patch, the gas man for the No. 34 team of race winner Chris Buescher, was fined $1,000 and the team was assessed a P1 penalty for safety violations at Pocono. NASCAR pit-road officiating said Patch was “on the service side of the pit wall with face shield up.” Sections 12.1 and 12.5.3.2.1 of the NASCAR Rule Book apply.
• The cars of Regan Smith and David Ragan failed pre-race laser inspection twice Sunday. The cars of Casey Mears and Michael McDowell failed pre-qualifying laser inspection twice on Saturday. The Smith, and Regan cars and the No. 42 of Kyle Larson failed pre-qualifying template inspection twice. All received written warnings.
• Three teams received written warnings and a loss of 15 minutes of practice time after having inspection trouble. The No. 18 of Kyle Busch, No. 20 of Matt Kenseth and No. 78 of Martin Truex Jr. all failed pre-qualifying template inspection three times on Saturday.
Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.
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