Denny Hamlin penalized, crew chief Chris Gabehart hit with $100,000 fine for inspection violation
Following last week’s race at Michigan, Denny Hamlin and his No. 11 team have been given an L2-level penalty from NASCAR. The penalty comes with a deduction of 75 driver and owner points, 10 playoff points, and crew chief Chris Gabehart will be fined $100,000.
Denny Hamlin finished P9 at Michigan. It turns out his team violated the engine inspection requirements.
Joe Gibbs Racing attempted to use an engine for a second time. That is allowed, but race-winning engines must be inspected by NASCAR. TRD failed to let NASCAR inspect the engine prior to tearing it down and rebuilding it again.
This will effectively take Denny Hamlin out of contention for the regular season championship. 75 points is a lot to be hit with this late in the year. Those 10 playoff points could come back to bite him as well. If we see Hamlin exit the Round of 8 by a handful of points, we can turn and point at this penalty as the reason for that.
Hamlin was hit with a penalty last season that stripped him of 25 driver points. He lamented that penalty last season, blaming it for keeping him out of the regular season championship race.
If he was upset about 25 points, 75 points is going to make him livid. For it to be something that amounts to an oversight in quality control makes it even harder to accept.
Denny Hamlin is lucky to have multiple wins
With three victories on the season, Denny Hamlin won’t have to worry about the harshest component of his penalty. Had Bristol been his only victory on the season, he could have lost his spot in the playoffs.
The winning engine in question was the engine used at Bristol. The playoff eligibility that Bristol win earned him, does not count any longer. Good news for Hamlin, he has two other wins and a ton of points overall.
So, it’s not like he was in danger. Hamlin was going to make the NASCAR Playoffs one way or another. Still, it is a penalty that comes with a lot of consequences, obvious and unforeseen.
For what it is worth, Toyota Racing Development took full responsibility for the mistake. The Toyota engine provider did not get the engine torn down by NASCAR. Ultimately, it falls on them. But JGR and Hamlin are the ones who pay.