It has been a few days since the Daytona 500 and NASCAR is penalizing Floyd Mayweather’s The Money Team Racing.
Now, it’s not just TMT Racing that is getting penalized. There were a number of incidents that happened at the track last Sunday that had fans wondering if there would be repercussions. Right after the field was set, Team Penske and RFK Racing had wheels confiscated from their garage by NASCAR. However, that’s not what this story is about.
While on the track and in the middle of the big race, Kaz Grala’s No.50 Chevy Camaro had a wheel come off. That also happened with Justin Haley in his No.31 for Kaulig Racing. This season might feature brand new cars, but NASCAR President Steve Phelps has already made it clear that the rules would be abided by.
So, what is the penalty for losing a wheel mid-race? According to Sections 10.5.2.6 of the NASCAR Rule Book, the punishment is pretty serious. Both drivers are going to lose their crew chief as well as crew members for the next four Cup Series races. So, Floyd Mayweather’s team will lose Tony Eury Jr., Chris Zima, and Aaron Powell over the next month or so.
Kaulig Racing will have to do without Trent Owens, Jacob Nelson, and Marshall McFadden. That could be a big blow to the beginning of the season for these drivers. Both of them are young, Grala just 23, and Haley, 22. So, they are looking to make a name for themselves. Fellow youngster and Cup Series rookie Austin Cindric went on to win the Daytona 500. It can be done, and they know that it can.
The NASCAR Cup Series is filled with some great young drivers. Those mentioned above and many more.
NASCAR Makes Statement About Wheels
Of course, NASCAR talked about the penalties by releasing a statement. In that statement, there was news about the Team Penske and RFK Racing situation. When the league takes your wheels from the garage, that’s never a great sign. It seems that the league has realized that the issue was more of a misunderstanding in this situation.
“NASCAR met with NextGen suppliers and several race teams this week to discuss wheel specifications. Following that discussion, NASCAR made small adjustments to increase the upper tolerance on pin and pilot bores for Fontana. NASCAR will reevaluate with suppliers and race teams and determine a path forward following this weekend’s race,” an official statement reads.
So, no mulligans here it seems. If these Next Gen cars are hard to figure out, teams need to get on it and fast. You don’t want to lose your crew for a month or more just because a wheel wasn’t fastened the right way. Hopefully we see some great driving this weekend as NASCAR heads to the Auto Club 400.
