DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — NASCAR officials handed out two sizable penalties Tuesday for rough driving, docking William Byron and Ty Gibbs for their roles in separate incidents during Sunday’s Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway.
Gibbs was fined $75,000 and Byron hit with a $50,000 penalty.
Gibbs, in his 10th Cup Series start for 23XI Racing in place of the injured Kurt Busch, who is hopeful to return this season, was fined for veering into the No. 42 Petty GMS Chevrolet of Ty Dillon on pit road. That aggressive contact came in close proximity to pit-crew personnel and NASCAR officials working in a nearby pit stall.
Gibbs, 19, was not issued a points penalty since he is an Xfinity Series regular who does not collect Cup Series points. But his No. 23 Toyota team was handed a 25-point deduction in the owner standings.
It’s the second time this year that Gibbs has been penalized for unsafe driving on pit road. He was fined $15,000 for making contact with Sam Mayer’s car in the pits after an Xfinity Series race at Martinsville in April.
In addition to the fine, Byron was levied a 25-point penalty in both the driver and team owner standings for bumping Denny Hamlin out of position during a late-race caution period.
Byron, who drives for Hendrick Motorsports, was third in the Cup Series Playoffs with a 17-point cushion above the elimination line before the penalty. He’ll now enter Sunday’s YellaWood 500 at Talladega Superspeedway ranked 10th out of the 12 remaining title-eligible drivers and eight points below the provisional elimination line.
NASCAR officials acknowledged missing the incident between Byron and Hamlin during Sunday’s race.
Additionally, competition officials indefinitely suspended Patrick Briody for violating the NASCAR Substance Abuse Policy – Sections 4.1 and 10.1.A in the NASCAR Rule Book. Briody is listed on the official team rosters portal as a mechanic on the road crew for the Our Motorsports No. 02 team in the Xfinity Series.