NASCAR issued a written warning to the No. 48 team of Jimmie Johnson on Tuesday for modifying a side skirt during last weekend’s Sprint All-Star Race.
No penalty was issued.
NASCAR stated before the season that it would punish teams that adjusted the side skirt during an event. At issue with Johnson’s case, though, was that he had had contact earlier in the event. A crew member was modifying the side skirt because he was fixing the damage, crew chief Chad Knaus said, according to NASCAR.com.
Section 10.7.1.1.d in the Rule Book states:
“If any crew member(s) is observed/involved in the cause of the unapproved vehicle/mechanical adjustment(s), modification(s), or failure(s), whether to his/her team’s vehicle or to another Competitor’s vehicle, that member and the team will be subject to a written warning (and any resulting Penalty, if applicable) per Section 12.5.3.1 Warnings and P1 Penalty Options, as determined by the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Managing Director.”
NASCAR also confirmed that the All-Star cars of Denny Hamlin and Kevin Harvick passed inspection and the R&D Center without any issues.
