Joe Gibbs Racing did not file an appeal before the deadline, after Sunday’s post-race disqualification of race-winner Denny Hamlin and second-place finisher Kyle Busch.
With both drivers disqualified, third-place finisher Chase Elliott was awarded the victory in the M&M’s Fan Appreciation 400 at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway.
The infractions on both Toyota’s were aero related to the front fascia of the car.
“There was some issues discovered that affect aero of the vehicle,” Cup Series director Brad Moran said on Sunday. “There really was no reason why there was some material that was somewhere it shouldn’t have been, and that does basically come down to a DQ. It is a penalty, both for the 11 of Denny Hamlin and the 18 of Kyle Busch have been DQed. Their vehicles are being loaded in the NASCAR hauler. They’re going to go back to the R&D Center.”
NASCAR Senior Vice President of Competition Scott Miller discussed the issue today on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
“It was on the lower fascia and it was extra layers of vinyl that deviated the part from the approved CAD files,” Miller said. “It’s standard procedure for post-race inspection to peel vinyl off parts of the car that we feel are critical. We had no inclination prior that there was anything there and were very surprised at what we found.”
Wally Brown, Director of Competition for JGR, also released a statement on the issue.
“In our review of the post-race infractions on the 11 and 18 cars at Pocono it was discovered that a single piece of clear tape was positioned over each of the lower corners of the front fascia ahead of the left-front and right front wheel openings on both those cars. The added pieces were 2 inches wide and 5 1/2 inches long with a thickness of 0.012 inches and installed under the wrap. This change in our build process was not properly vetted within our organization and we recognize it is against NASCAR’s rules. We apologize to everyone for this mistake, and we have made changes to our processes to ensure that it does not happen again.”
Despite the disqualification, both Hamlin and Busch are still in the 16-driver playoffs, with five races left before the cutoff. Hamlin has two victories (Richmond, Charlotte) while Busch has one (Bristol Dirt).