Denny Hamlin and his No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing team have been hit with a major NASCAR penalty after an engine infraction was discovered following inspection.
The violation involved the car’s engine and has significant implications for the 43-year old’s playoff hopes and the team’s championship aspirations.
NASCAR announced that Hamlin’s car failed post-race inspection due to an issue with the engine’s connecting rods. The sanctioning body determined that the parts did not meet the required weight specifications, resulting in a harsh penalty for the team.
The penalties stem from the use of an engine that had previously powered Hamlin to victory at the Bristol Motor Speedway. Instead of being submitted for the required post-race inspection, the engine was improperly handled by Toyota Racing Development (TRD).
The engine was returned to TRD’s facility in Costa Mesa, California, where it was disassembled and rebuilt, violating NASCAR’s strict regulations that mandate engines be inspected after races.
The rules require that any engine used in a race must undergo a thorough inspection to ensure compliance with technical specifications. The failure to present the Bristol-winning engine for inspection left NASCAR unable to validate its legality, leading to the imposition of severe penalties.
Therefore, the sanctioning body docked Hamlin and the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 11 team 75 championship points and 10 playoff points, both in the drivers standings and owners standings while, crew chief Chris Gabehart was fined $100,000.
Additionally, Hamlin’s win at Bristol will not count towards eligibility for the Playoffs, advancement in the Playoffs, eligibility for non-Points Events and tie-breakers.
The timing of the NASCAR penalty is particularly critical, as the Cup Series approaches end of regular season with only a few races left before the playoffs begin. The point deduction places him in a precarious position, where he must now rely on his remaining races to secure a playoff spot.
Prior to the penalties, Hamlin was ranked second in the standings, but the deductions have now pushed him down to sixth place, 103 points behind championship leader Tyler Reddick.
While he still holds two other wins this season, he remains in the playoffs but in the case of a tiebreaker, he currently has just two eligible wins and not three.
On the other hand, Toyota Racing Development took full responsibility for the mistake.
“As the engine builder for our partner NASCAR Cup Series teams, TRD is solely responsible for the handling and disposition of all our engines pre- and post-race,” TRD said in a statement.
“Despite procedures being in place, Denny’s race winning engine from Bristol was mistakenly returned to our Costa Mesa facility, disassembled and rebuilt instead of being torn down and inspected by NASCAR per the rulebook.
“Although we know with absolute certainty that the engine was legal and would have passed inspection, we left NASCAR in an impossible position because they were not given the opportunity to properly inspect our engine.
“We have reviewed our processes and have implemented several additional steps to ensure that this never happens again.
“TRD takes full responsibility for this grievous mistake, and we apologize to Denny, Chris, Coach Gibbs, the entire JGR organization, NASCAR and our fans.”
