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Kaulig Racing will appeal penalties from Phoenix weekend

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Steve Letarte, Dale Jarrett, and Nate Ryan review the harsh penalties NASCAR levied against Hendrick Motorsports for issues found with the hood louvers at Phoenix and unapproved modifications to the single-sourced parts.

Kaulig Racing announced Thursday that it will appeal the penalties assessed to the team by NASCAR for part modifications last weekend at Phoenix Raceway.

In a statement released Thursday afternoon, Kaulig also stated it will request deferral of the four-race crew chief suspension that was included in the penalties.

Trent Owens, crew chief for driver Justin Haley and the No. 31 team, was fined $100,000 and suspended from the next four Cup races for modification of the car’s radiator duct. The team and Haley also lost 100 points and 10 playoff points. The infraction was discovered during pre-qualifying inspection at Phoenix.

According to the Kaulig statement, “Only one of the two louvers on the No. 31 car was confiscated, showing inconsistencies in the parts provided to teams from NASCAR’s single source supplier, providing no competitive advantage.”

In a tweet on Wednesday, Kaulig president Chris Rice said, “At the end of the day, my guys did nothing wrong.”

Rice also said, “We focus on the positive stuff at Kaulig Racing. We don’t focus on the negative stuff.”

Hendrick Motorsports, which also was hit with severe penalties for parts modifications at Phoenix, said it will appeal those penalties.

Hendrick Motorsports stated: “We are disappointed with today’s decision by NASCAR to issue penalties and have elected to appeal based on a variety of facts that include:


  • Louvers provided to teams through NASCAR’s mandated single-source supplier do not match the design submitted by the manufacturer and approved by NASCAR
  • Documented inconsistent and unclear communication by the sanctioning body specifically related to louvers
  • Recent comparable penalties issued by NASCAR have been related to issues discovered during a post-race inspection.”