Appeal Denied Hendricks

via NASCAR press release

National Motorsports Appeals Panel Statement

(June 9, 2015)

The National Motorsports Appeals Panel today heard and considered the appeal of a P1 penalty issued on May 27, 2015 to Hendrick Motorsports relative to NASCAR Sprint Cup Series vehicle #48 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

The penalty concerns the following section in the 2015 NASCAR rule book:

12.5.3.1 – Warnings and P1 penalty options:

.b: Multiple warnings issued to the same team member or team will result in one or more P1 penalties.

.c: If the same team receives two warnings during the same event, or two warnings during two consecutive events, whether the events are championship or non-championship, then this may result in one or more … P1 penalties at NASCAR’s discretion.


The original penalty assessed was the last choice in the pit selection process for the next event.

Upon hearing the testimony, the decision of the National Motorsports Appeals Panel is:

·         Warnings are not appealable. NASCAR acted correctly in issuing a P1 penalty after the second warning.

·         But, the panel must also decide if there has been a violation of the rules (Section 14.15.1.b).

·         In the hearing, there was a preponderance of evidence presented that the side skirt violation which led to a warning did occur. There was conflicting evidence about the inspection violation which led to the second warning instead of preponderance.

·         Since only one of the two violations were shown by a preponderance of the evidence, the panel rescinds the P1 penalty.

The panel consisted of the following three individuals:

Richard Gore
David Hall
Jay Signore

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Email:

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Hendrick Team Points and Penalties Overturned By Appellate; A Few More Points

Today we saw NASCAR's Appellate court in action... when Rick Hendrick and NASCAR faced off the last time in regards to the car body rules infraction that was incurred at Daytona.

On the line were a huge collective of points for both driver and owner, a lengthy "vacation" from the track for a few, and, for you or I, a hefty fine.

But after hearing both sides of the story, with Rick Hendrick showing 20 different photos and almost 20 pages of documentation and affidavits as to the legality of the car, he seemed to have made a point.  He had also added to his testimony how the car had sat in the R&D center in January and Hendrick had written proof that the car wasn't altered after being in the center.

With that all said and done, the man making the final judgement surprised the entire NASCAR fan community when he overturned the ruling, giving the driver and owner points back to the team, BUT, leaving the $100k fine in place.

By Jimmie Johnson getting his points back, he's now 11th in the driver standings, 36 points out of first.

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But fans are going crazy because the want to know how one can drop the points penalties and suspensions, yet keep the fine in place?  When NASCAR was asked about the fine remaining, they jumped on that one, saying it proves that the car wasnt right.

BTW:  John Middlebrook has heard 4 appeals now and has reduced portions of all of them.  And if I heard right on SiriusXM this morning, Middlebrook and Hendrick go way back because he used to work for GM.

That's probably not related, but it's out there.

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Now the questions of the day are how can NASCAR enforce car inspections if they only going to get turned over?  To be honest, I think they still can.  This was an eyeball call where no template sits.  With that said, I'm guessing there might be fewer judgement calls and more templates on the horizon!

But as to his reasoning, we'll never know what was going on in Middlebrook's mind.  The press was not given access to the man.

Albeit, that's all she wrote.  Jimmie is back in the hunt, Chad is still on the box and it's business back to normal.

Asked how he feels this will impact his image, Chad says it's not about image, it's about winning.  And that's what makes these two, Knaus and Johnson, a force to be reckoned with.  Chad Knaus does what he can to win in this day and age of such close parity.  And he does it often enough that he finds himself in hot water every few years.  Jimmy is the man who can drive the cars Chad squeaks out onto the track.

I'm betting they'll be playing it safe for a little while now.  At least though Fontana.  That's for sure.

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Bad News for Jimmie?

Though you have to wonder with two of Jimmie Johnson's championships having come in seasons where Chad had to sit out a few weeks each.

I thought this would fire them up when Chad was gone.  But now that Chad is not gone...  just saying!

Sources, All Twitter, All the Time
http://twitter.com/:
nateryan
jim_utter
jeff_gluck
dustinlong
bobpockrass
MartySmithESPN

The No. 48 Penalties Lifted, Points Returned & Fine Stays in Place Though

I'm surprised by this final verdict because I think like all of us, we were expecting to see Chad Knaus take a quick 6-week vacation.  Be it as it may, NASCAR's Chief Appellate Officer granted the No. 48 teams points back, in both driver and owners points and pulled the suspension that was looming over Knaus's head.  But...  the fine remains in place.

Most interesting.  Here's the press release that just came out, the very same time that the news was announced at the R&D center:

On March 20, 2012, the Chief Appellate Officer heard and considered the appeal of the penalties resulting from the #48 Hendrick Motorsports NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team.  This stemmed from an opening day inspection for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Daytona International Speedway on February 17, 2012.

The penalties concern Section 12-1 of the NASCAR Rule Book "Actions detrimental to stock car racing;" Section 12-4(J): "Any determination by NASCAR Officials that the Race Equipment used in the Event does not conform to NASCAR rules detailed in Section 20 of the NASCAR Rule Book, or has not been approved by NASCAR prior to the Event;" and Section 20-2.1(E): "If in the judgment of NASCAR Officials, any part or component of the car not previously approved by NASCAR that has been installed or modified to enhance aerodynamic performance, will not be permitted: Unapproved car body modifications."

The results of the appeal hearing were as follows:

-          Rescinding the loss of 25 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship Car Owner points (for Jeff Gordon).

-          Rescinding the loss of 25 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship Driver points (for Jimmie Johnson).

-          Rescinding the six (6) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship Events suspension for the Crew Chief (Chad Knaus) and Car Chief (Ron Malec), however both will remain on NASCAR probation until May 9, 2012.

-          $100,000 fine remains in place for the Crew Chief (Chad Knaus).

John Middlebrook – Chief Appellate Officer

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Chad Knaus Could Be Looking At Another Six-Week Sabatical!

The appeals board heard the appeals of the Hendrick Motorsports No. 48 team on their Daytona infraction.  And despite the team's urging of the matter and trying to get the penalties rescinded, it was to no avail.  Of course the team will be appealing the appeal hearing, but I'm pretty sure it's not going to matter.  I think if this team and particular crew chief didn't have a history of pushing the boundaries, maybe, just slightly maybe, it would be different.  Don't know though.

Below is the press release on the NASCAR Appeals Panel Statement:

NATIONAL STOCK CAR RACING APPEALS PANEL STATEMENT

On March 13, 2012, the National Stock Car Racing Appeals Panel heard and considered the appeal of the #48 Hendrick Motorsports NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team.

The penalties concern Section 12-1 of the NASCAR Rule Book "Actions detrimental to stock car racing;" Section 12-4(J): "Any determination by NASCAR Officials that the Race Equipment used in the Event does not conform to NASCAR rules detailed in Section 20 of the NASCAR Rule Book, or has not been approved by NASCAR prior to the Event;" and Section 20-2.1(E): "If in the judgment of NASCAR Officials, any part or component of the car not previously approved by NASCAR that has been installed or modified to enhance aerodynamic performance, will not be permitted: Unapproved car body modifications." 

This stemmed from an opening day inspection for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Daytona International Speedway on February 17, 2012.

The original penalties assessed prior to the deferral were:

-          Car Owner (Jeffrey M. Gordon) – Loss of 25 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship Car Owner points;

-     Car Driver (Jimmie K. Johnson) – Loss of 25 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship Driver points;

-          Crew Chief (Chad A. Knaus) - $100,000.00 fine.  Suspended from the next six (6) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship Events.  Suspended from NASCAR until April 18, 2012.  Placed on NASCAR probation until May 9, 2012. 

-          Car Chief (Ron P. Malec) - Suspended from the next six (6) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship Events.  Suspended from NASCAR until April 18, 2012.  Placed on NASCAR probation until May 9, 2012. 

Upon hearing the testimony, carefully reviewing the facts and historically comparative penalties, the unanimous decision of the National Stock Car Racing Appeals Panel was to uphold the original penalties assessed by NASCAR. 

The Appellants have the right under Section 15 of the Rule Book to appeal this decision to the National Stock Car Racing Chief Appellate Officer. 

 

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Keselowski Gets A 2-Shot Cup Tryout

Brad Keselowski is going have a chance to take a shot at 2 Cup event before the year is out, with Hendrick Motorsports giving him that shot.

He'll be given the wheel of the No. 25 car at Lowe's next month and at Texas in November.

In case you're wondering about the math NOT adding up to 4, it's new math!!

Actually NASCAR rules do permit a team to enter a fifth car in events if:
A: It's a rookie,
B: It's within the limit of 7 races allowed for that rookie.

Right now Brad has 2 wins, 10 top-fives and 16 top-10s in the Nationwide series in a team that is owned by JR Motorsports and Rick Hendrick.

Go Brad... Let's see how you tackle those uber-powerful Cup cars.

source

Keselowski Reported to Turn Down the No. 12 Ride

I've always said that the No. 12 team under the Penske roof is the tolerated bastard child of the Penkse Racing garage, with no one ever really ever doing as well as they could in that car, if indeed, they were capable.

Now, it seems that Brad Keselowski is reportedly turning down an offer to jump in the No. 12 Dodge seat for next year.

He does have planned the return to drive the No. 88 Nationwide ride, owned by Dale Jr and Hendrick.

At this point, does this mean that Keselowski has plans already in place for the Cup league, or is that No. 12 ride just not that compelling of an offer? There's two ways to look at it and I'm not sure which it is.

Drivers don't want to just take a ride when offered. They want to be competitive when they get in a car, or they run the risk of a getting a label that arises from not being able to just get the job done. I think Kenny Wallace is an example where I think if given the consistent, long term chance in a good car, he'd prove himself. And the list can go on.

On the other hand, the word on the front stretch is that Keselowski is lined up for a Hendrick ride once Mark Martin is done with the No. 5 Chevy and I am sure he would not want to have anything interfere with that opportunity if indeed, it is there.

Meanwhile, on the back burner, you have to wonder how David Stremme feels. It was thought that he was the front runner for the No. 12 seat, but now is he 2nd string pick? That should really set a wonderful mindset headed into the 2009 season if he does indeed get the green light for the No. 12 seat.

source

The 2008 Hendricks Stable

Well, 2008 is here.

And here is the Hendrick Motorsports lineup, in suit, ready to rumble.

With 2 champions on the team, the focus will be on Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the media, and probably from within the team.

See Sports Illustrated for the article this image comes from.

Earnhardt Jr is Sad for his Father

Dale Earnhardt Jr is closing out his DEI career at Homestead this Sunday.
This also closes out his on-track association with Budweiser.

But Dale Jr. is sad. Sad for the dream his father originally had for him and DEI. The hopes of Dale Jr. winning a championship at DEI is gone, and so is his tenure at his dad's place.

People blame Teresa Earnhardt. They blame the system. But really, fate had a hand in this and with Dale Jr. being the same age his dad was when Dale Sr started at RCR - so maybe this is fate waiting to happen.

We'll see. But we need to give it this first year for him to gel with the HMS system.. then, for me, all bets are off.

scenedaily.com

Illegal Manifolds, Inconsistent Penalties

In an apparent reversal of NASCAR practice, Hendrick Motorsports will escape harsh penalties for the violation found on Kyle Busch's winning car after Saturday's Busch Series race at Kansas Speedway.

The intake manifold was confiscated following Busch's victory and, at the time, officials said the manifold failed to meet NASCAR specifications.

Read the rest at thatsracin.com

Hendrick Officials not Happy with Busch

To put it simply, the end of the article I read had this quote:

Duchardt said the words will soon have to stop.

"Obviously you can't continue the way it's going with his comments," he said. "Our goal was to finish out the season working just like we had at the beginning of the season. And if he's choosing to not be a teammate, then we're going to have to address how his role is going to be within the team and what he's going to need to do.

"It's a difficult situation being made more difficult than it needs to be."

See the whole article at SceneDaily

Budweiser will not by Primary for Jr

brigning you the latest updates in the NASCAR world - by Bruce Simmons

Budweiser will not be Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s primary sponsor next year, Hendrick Motorsports confirmed Friday morning.

"We have agreements in place with sponsors for the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup season which prevent us from having a relationship with Budweiser," team owner Rick Hendrick said in a statement.

Tony Ponturo, vice president of global media and sports marketing for Anheuser-Busch, said Budweiser will remain "an active sponsor" in NASCAR.

"Budweiser has sponsored Dale Jr. for nearly a decade, and we wish him the very best," Ponturo said. "We look forward to building upon the legacy of the iconic Budweiser red car in 2008 and beyond."

And the fan crowd hangs it's head in despair. It is going to be an odd sight to see Jr in a car that is not all red with Budweiser as the primary sponsor on the sheet metal.

Read the whole article by David Poole at:
http://www.thatsracin.com/247/story/5431.html

Earnhardt, Budweiser, Kahne

Over on ESPN, Terry Blount and David Newton put together an article addressing the issue that Budweiser is possibly looking at Kasey Kahne's red #9 car to sponsor next year.

On top of that, it would seem (Or expected, as they write) that PepsiCo Inc., possibly with the Mountain Dew brand or a combination of Pepsi products, will sponsor Dale Earnhardt Jr. next season in the No. 5 Chevrolet for Hendrick.

The Dodge dealers, Evernhams sponsor would have to sign off on the move to allow Budweiser to move to Kahne's car.

One source close to the negotiations told ESPN.com that it's still possible Budweiser could stay at Dale Earnhardt Inc., depending on whom DEI signs to replace Earnhardt.

Budweiser officials now have targeted four other drivers they would consider sponsoring next season, including Kahne. The other three drivers are not known.

The aritlce, in it's detailed enirety is here on ESPN, because this writer is taking this with a grain of salt.

Kyle Busch Springs Confiscated

I was listening to Sirius today and in the background, (I admit it, the radio was on, but I was lolly-gagging about) I heard that springs from a Hendricks car was confiscated after a race.

Not sure if it was the Busch race or Cup race. Will let you know if I find anything out!

Ahah!! found it -

Following postrace inspection, NASCAR inspectors confiscated the front springs of Kyle Busch's winning No. 5 Busch Series car and dispatched them to NASCAR's Research & Development Center in Concord, N.C., for further evaluation . . .

It's at the bottom of the boston.com page: boston

Bruce

More Penalties for Hendrick

If NASCAR can determine that the Hendrick crew chiefs that were suspended a week previous, were actually at the track, (New Hampshire) for the race, running things from their motor coaches, they may look at taking more action in regards to such a bone head move.

We'll see.... ocregister.com

DEI, the #8, Hendrick Motorsports

With the opinion about the numbers and the little dance the story took over the last few weeks, it got me to thinking.

At first, we were all thinking the number 8 was a potential sale item between race teams. Then we heard it was out of their hands, and then this last week, NASCAR declared it could be bartered between teams. A most exciting prospect indeed, for teams and fans alike.

But there is one hurtle that needs to be dealt with in this whole number 8 scheme, and that, may very well be Teresa Earnhardt.

It goes without saying that the fans want to see Budweiser and the number 8 go to Hendrick Motorsports. What Budweiser does is something unto themselves and will do what they need to do to position themselves best within the industry.

What Teresa needs to do is consider the idea of letting the number go. The number is DEI's to use for the moment, and it does have marketing appeal to retain it. A smart team would retain it. But a smarter team may ponder the very idea of making a gesture to the fans and letting the number go.

I'm not saying for them to give it away, but for them to make whatever financial arrangement that would be amicable to everyone, without making it a prohibitive maneuver.

Teresa's image is mediocre at best with the fans. Not being at races, making the hard business decisions that the fandom didn't agree with, and having her public differences with Jr, to the parting of ways that I'm sure some might believe to be her fault entrely. Business decisions, based on a business basis and not an emotional or public pressured one, are tough all around.

Here's hoping the 8 ends up where it truly belongs.

Bruce Simmons, the Fan Reporter.

Hendrick Picking Interim Chiefs

Which means that Hendrick Motorsports will not be filing appeals in response to the infractions his teams incurred last weekend at infineon.

http://sports.espn.go.com/rpm/news/story?seriesId=2&id=2919384

The Panalties on the Hendricks Teams

Up until now, I was on the fence about these gray areas of the rules that Hendrick and others keep noting, versus, what does the rule book say to make it seem so gray to everyone. Ahh, the gray may be in the rose tinted glasses used to read the rules!!

David Poole of the Charlotte Observer and Thatsracin.com, over on his blog, The Turn Lane, expressed the infractions like this:

You’ve got people looking at the rule book and deciding that if something isn’t prohibited, by actual word printed in that book, it’s legal. This "gray area" is where they try to make a living, but what it shows me is a lack of "gray matter" in their brains.

Here are the salient portions of the rule governing penalties against Hendrick Motorsports at Infineon Raceway:

Rule 20-2.1
The car body must be acceptable to NASCAR officials and meet the following minimum requirements:
-Streamlining of the contours of the car, beyond that approved by the Series Director, will not be permitted.
-If, in the judgment of NASCAR Officials, any part or component of the car not previously approved by NASCAR that has been installed or modified to enhance aerodynamic performance, will not be permitted. All cars must remain standard in appearance.
-Fenders may not be cut or altered except for wheel or tire clearance, which must be approved by the Series Director.

--- end of quote from David's post---

Here is my response to part of his post:

First: It's awesome to see the penalty compared directly to the much referenced, but little seen rulebook of NASCAR. Thank you David.

In the context of the matter, with the fenders flared outside the tolerances you mentioned this morning, then obviously, they were hoping they'd get by with this gray area tinkering, but the text does say no aero adjustments.

(Someone presented the idea that the 2 Hendrick teams accidentally installed test fenders)
I don't buy the premise of a test fender being put on accidentally. These guys, being the seasoned professionals, knew what they were doing.

As far as the penalty goes, it is consistent. It's these teams first COT penalty, and hence, treated the same as Jr.'s fiasco.

Excessive? That's why I don't think it was escalated.. this time. It seems excessive, but the message is being delivered unto the minions of the sport. Is it not?

Race on boys!

Dale Earnhardt Jr's Sony Contract - A Nit

Yesterday I posted the note about Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s new PERSONAL Services Contract with Sony. Today, while scouring the web for you, my readers, I came across a FoxSports web article that seems to be titled to garner attention, rather than attest to fact. The title of the article is:

Dale Jr. signs with Sony for Hendrick ride.

It seems fishy to me that they would title it that, but then I've seen reports posted, for example, with Jr.'s first press conference that he was leaving DEI, that dealt with THE fact that he was leaving DEI, but this article was posted at least 15 minutes before the press conference even started!! So I'm developing some suspicion as I review the web for information.

The article about the Sony contract does indeed clarify the following:

"His deal with Sony is a personal services contract that gives the company use of his name, likeness and voice for promotions. He also has a similar deal with Budweiser that will continue next year, regardless of what's on his car.

Budweiser has been Earnhardt's primary sponsor since 1999, and the beer manufacturer wants to continue its relationship with him at Hendrick. But car owner Rick Hendrick isn't actively pursuing new sponsors, and it's possible Bud could get shut out."

A curious note in the article says that Earnhardt's move to Hendrick is expected to clean up his sometimes scruffy image - which I don't get either, being that on TV, in an interview more than a week ago with Marty Snider, Hendrick himself said he doesn't want him to change.

OK, I'm done nit picking... There some other interesting tidbits in article.
Read the entire article at: foxsports

by Bruce Simmons, the Fan Reporter

Earnhardt Jr - Unsubstantiated Sponsor RUMOR

RUMOR

I've come across tidbits that Hendrick Motorsports is in conversation with Pepsi (Mountain Dew Product) and Monster Energy about sponsoring Jr for 2008.

Monster Energy is sponsoring JRMotorsports late Model car of Jeremy McGrath, so that could make more sense, and it would be a perfect soci-economic fit with the young Dale Jr, as he represents all that is new, and fresh in the industry today, across differing markets of auto sales, jeans, 'beverages' and such. (Or at least I think so) (See captainthunderracing)

It's also been seen that sponsorships for Daytona need to be in place by August of the previous year, so this type of news should start shaping up into some form of reality soon, so I can quit using my RUMOR disclaimer when I report these things.

But as you may know, I don't want to mislead anyone, so I like using the RUMOR tag when and where it seems necessary to not get up too many hopes of the fans.

Bruce Simmons, the Fan Reporter

Dale Earnhardt Jr AD - Bruce's Opinion

I don't know if anyone else has coined the term, but AD: After DEI.

Now that Jr has announced probably what anyone who 1/2 way knows him had expected anyway, it's time to see who his fans really are.

I've heard different perspectives about fans who may or may not follow him to HM.

If these fans are on the bubble about this, then they ARE NOT Jr fans. They are DEI fans riding the coat tails of their preferred DEI driver. Shame on youuuuu!

For the true Jr fan, worry yourself not. If you don't have any tolerance for Gordon or Johnson, don't worry. Do you like everyone you work with? No, you are just working for the same company. That's what this is.. He's just working at the same company some of the 'dark side' drivers are at. (I jeard that, it's not my term!)

On the other hand, as Jr recounted to the press this morning, he pointed Jimmie to his first motorhome, and other first things and Gordon has been a business partner of Earnhardt Sr. in the past, so they probably know each pretty well too.

Yet I have to wonder, on NASCAR.com, there's this pic headlining one of the stories, just how Johnson and Gordon feel, being back rowed to the 2 buddies, the newer drivers.

Well, to be honest about it, they're probably just fine, but still, who wants to take a back seat?

(This image courtesy of NASCAR.com)

According the the NASCAR.com statistics website page, the drivers ranked over the last 6 races, Gordon is ranked #1, and Jr is ranked 7th. (One spot behind Truex by the way.)

I think this will make a an interesting team. With Mears on his way up, and the other 3 drivers, just which 4 or 5 races will Hendricks Motorsports not win in 2008 because as they've proven this year, they have the COT thing down like it's nobody's business!!

As for "The Shrub", Kyle Busch made this press statement at the same time Jr was having his press conference: (I guess he didn't need to hear it, since he knew about it.)

"We had been working on a contract extension for me to remain at Hendrick Motorsports, but after prolonged negotiations, we mutually agreed that a fresh start was in order. I have been granted a release after the 2007 season," said Busch, known for being a fierce competitor on the track and his somewhat childish tantrums off of it. (nascar.com)

It will be a matter of time before we see or hear where he'll go, because officially, silly season is well under way, is it not?

Take care all, Bruce