NASCAR docked title contender Brendan Gaughan 10 driver points, Richard Childress 10 owner points and fined crew chief Shane Wilson $10,000 because Gaughan’s car was found to be too low in inspection after Saturday’s Xfinity Series race at Texas Motor Speedway.
The penalty drops Gaughan to 3,026 points – last among the eight remaining title contenders. He is 33 points out of the final transfer spot heading into Saturday’s race at Phoenix International Raceway. That race will determine the four drivers who will compete for the Xfinity title Nov. 19 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Richard Childress Racing has no intentions of appealing the penalty, a team spokesperson told NBC Sports.
Also, NASCAR fined crew chief Dave Elenz $10,000 and docked the No. 88 JR Motorsports team 10 car owner points because the car of Kevin Harvick failed inspection after the race for being too low. Harvick was not penalized points because he does not score points in the Xfinity Series.
JR Motorsports will appeal the penalty, a spokesperson told NBC Sports. NASCAR confirmed the appeal will be today.
That team also was one of five teams to receive warnings last weekend for inspection issues. It received its first warning after failing the Laser Inspection Station twice before the race.
Other Xfinity teams receiving warnings were:
The No. 18 car of Joe Gibbs Racing, which had Matt Tifft in the car at Texas, received its second warning after failing template inspection four times before the race. The team, which will have Kyle Busch in the car this weekend at Phoenix, will be docked 15 minutes of practice time.
The No. 3 car of Richard Childress Racing with Ty Dillon received its second warning after failing template inspection three times before the race.
The No. 20 car of Joe Gibbs Racing with title contender Erik Jones received its second warning after failing template inspection three times before the race.
The No. 2 car of Richard Childress Racing with Austin Dillon received its second warning after failing the Laser Inspection Station twice before the race.
