TRD issues statement, assigns blame for Denny Hamlin NASCAR penalty

Denny Hamlin and his team were just hit with a major penalty, and Toyota Racing Development (TRD) is sharing its reaction. David Wilson, president of TRD issued a statement and took the blame for Hamlin and his team being penalized for an engine inspection violation.

“As the engine builder for our partner NASCAR Cup Series teams, TRD is solely responsible for handling and disposition of all our engine pre and post-race,” Wilson said. “Despite procedures being in place, Denny’s race-winning engine from Bristol was mistakenly returned to our Costa Mesa facility, disassembled and rebuilt instead of being torn down and inspected by NASCAR per the rulebook. Although we know with absolute certainty that the engine was legal and would have passed inspection, we left NASCAR in an impossible position because they were not given the opportunity to properly inspect our engine.

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“We have reviewed our processes and have implemented several additional steps to ensure that this never happens again. TRD takes full responsibility for this grievous mistake, and we apologize to Denny, Chris [Gabehart], Coach [Joe] Gibbs and the entire JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing) organization, NASCAR and our fans.”

Hamlin and his team were found in violation of Sections 14.7.1.E&F and 14.7.1.1.B&E of the NASCAR Rule Book. This led to Hamlin and team owner Joe Gibbs, being docked 75 points and 10 playoff points, while crew chief Chris Gabehart was fined $100,000.

Denny Hamlin drops in NASCAR Cup Series Playoff standings

Along with the fine and loss of playoff points, Hamlin’s win at Bristol will not long count toward eligibility for the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. He is still locked into the postseason as he’s won two additonal races this year.

“Each race-winning engine must be inspected by NASCAR once the race team determines that its life cycle is complete,” a NASCAR statement read. “In this instance, prior to presenting the engine to NASCAR for inspection, Toyota Racing Development disassembled and rebuilt the No. 11’s Bristol-winning race engine. Per the NASCAR Rule Book, this violation results in an L2 penalty to the race team and driver. Toyota Racing Development self-reported this violation.”

Before the penalty, Hamlin was the second seed in the playoffs with 2,029 points, including playoff points for race wins and stage wins in addition to the regular-season bonus. He is now the sixth seed with 2,016 points.