I am wondering what is going through NASCAR’s mind regarding the #99 team.
I guess they are having a difficult time trying to figure out what penalty to hand out for the failed post race inspection by the 99 team.
Surely they are not even going to consider NO penalty. If they only take away 25 points it would be like no penalty. Nothing would surprise me though.
I saw the NASCAR rule book on TV at the race at California. I forget who was showing us the little black and yellow book but at the same time he was telling us, “no, you can’t have a copy.” Does that surprise us? NASCAR will never allow us to own a copy. It is too “wishy washy” to begin with. I have always compared their rule book to the game for kids called “Etch a Sketch.” You keeping shaking it until you see what you want to see and not how things should be. Granted if we did have a copy it would be interpreted thousands of different ways. As with NASCAR the rules are not carved in stone therefore, the rule book can be interpreted any way they wish. I guess that is called the ‘gray area.’
I feel the penalty handed out to the driver, crew chief and team owner is not enough. The only way that might possibly put a stop to all of the cheating is to take away the win along with points and paying hefty fines. We all know that some crew chiefs have repeatedly cheated and got the usual slap with a fine, points taken away from driver/team owner along with a 6 week probation. NASCAR can continue to do this but as we all know, it does not change anything. Take away the win. This might change the integrity of the team as a whole. It might change how we fans feel about NASCAR and how they handle cheating.
I remember a commentator a few weeks ago during Speed Week at Daytona making a statement about cars going through post race inspection. He said “teams have been known to make a obvious mistake that stands out like a sore thumb to the officials. They do that to steer them away from checking in other areas where they have done something else to the car to effect it’s performance.” This does not surprise me nor would it most fans.
If the winner’s car does not pass post race inspection NASCAR needs to take away the win. This is with no doubt is the only way to stop the cheating. Only then would a penalty really hurt the team for they hurt their driver more then the fines and minus points taken away. If I were a driver who won a race in a car that had been tampered with, I would want to hold my head up high and admit least that what was done was wrong.
Any crew chief that deliberately cheats even once should be ashamed. They apparently have no faith in their driver to win legitimately or they would not try to cheat their way to a win or at least a better finish. A cheating win is not a real win to anyone. I do not blame the drivers for the underhanded tactics that are done to their cars to make them perform better by their crew chief’s but in my eyes it still puts a cloud over their win.
Until NASCAR steps up to the plate and begins taking away these wins, cheating will keep going on like the Energizer Bunny. The penalties are just not severe enough.
Nascar is a prime examplw te the inmates running the asylum’ They weigh the owners and fans opinion plus the effect that the penalty will have on revenue. If you are smart enough to plead not guilty. Carl`s plea of innocence was sickening.You cheat you loose, not you
just loose somethong!! Will they get the points for winning? insane. Maybe all of the drivers should make the penalty rules. He could win the championship while the guy with the most points finishes behind him INSANE
Did this oil tank cover being off have any difference with the performance of the car? Was it intentional or was it just something that someone on the crew forgot? Seems to me to be more questions than answers at the moment. Would taking away Carls win and giving it to Jr. really please Jr. or his fans. I think if and when Jr. wins it needs to be a true win to show he really has what it takes, not just be given it because someone else’s crew screwed up royally.
Here’s what I don’t understand… The car was inspected before the race right? The cover must have been there then right? Where did it go? Could a crew member have deliberately taken that cover off with an official standing right there and no one noticed? I realize rules are rules and if all the pieces weren’t there after the race it’s a tough break for the team but I think the penalty should be based more on whether or not it was done intentionally or not. I highly doubt someone took that cover off on purpose knowing full well it was going to get noticed missing in post race inspection. And I’ve seen conflicting reports on whether or not it would really give a car that much of an advantage to have that cover off. I think there’s a big difference between being handed a penalty because of a tough break (rules are rules after all) but to be branded a “cheater” for something that happened by accident isn’t fair either.
Ya hit the nail right on the head …NA$CAR wont give you a rule book because you dont have any SPONSORS, and thus bring NO MONEY to mr FRANCES pocket !! Also if everyone knew the rules it would be hard to SCREW with folks like robbie gordon . NA$CAR thinks all us folks at home watching on tv are MORONS and cant figure out the little things . Like how it was pouring in fontana yet half their cameras showed blue sky and other half showed grey and clouds ,WE the feeble minded fans were supposed to stay tuned in hopes the race would continue … AS a lifelong fan ive given up ….wont go to anymore races and wont watch races firsthand ..( dvr doesnt figure in their ratings ) i invite all other longtime fans to join me and send a message to MR FRANCE and his band of MERRY MORONS
I find it interesting that Jack Rausch has complained about many teams over the years and now has been caught cheating as well. I think that this is poetic justice and am sure that Ray Evernham and Rick Hendrick are grinning their butts off.
Roush has complained many times in the recent past about their competitive disadvantages; ie Toyota and their money, Hendrick and their COT testing, and Ford with the oldest engine design currently running – Fact
This leads one to assume that they are pushing the rules to get back some advantage.
This isn’t being covered as much as it should but in California the #99 team had noticably different wheel-well openings than the other teams. Which nothing came about from NASCAR. One may ask so what, it’s about downforce and making these cars stick to the track. It’s probably an area that NASCAR needs to enforce too. If the bodies are a certain spec. then the wheel-wells should be too. Point being, they are messing with stuff and not getting penalized.
The cover to the oil tank is required by NASCAR to be held on by 4 bolts(not quick-connects) and tape. This is according to Rusty Wallace – Fact as per <–
So 4 bolts failed okay, but why the tape as well. It’s apparent that NASCAR intends on their being a fail-safe to the securing of that lid. Both of methods to secure it did not do their job. The #99 could have had larger holes drilled for the bolts thus taking most of the threads away leading to these bolts to come out. But the tape not doing it’s job either. Come on, it’s blatent and quite frankly not hard to induce this type of failure.
Regardless the intent, Race car oil temps are in the 250-350 degree range. Race car oil pressure is roughly 10psi per 1000prm the engine is at. That lid being off will raise the temps inside the car even more than usual. Leading to fatigue for the driver. Potential track debris can get into the car easier as well. Fumes from the track have another way of getting in their (yes they have filters in their helmets too). God forbid Carl Edwards, aka “The Flipper, aka “Eddie Haskell, wrecked and broke his oil tank; That oil is going everywhere inside the cockpit especially if his engine is still running. I’m counting on whatever the penalty is, it won’t be enough.
Thank you for your very informative reply. To avoid the oil lid from coming off in the future and duct tape failure too perhaps they need to weld locking nuts on the bottom of the part. Then they should drill holes in the head of the bolt and put lacing wire through the holes to lock them securely in place. No way could they come up with a loose or MIA lid anymore.
If Carl got the 10 winning points taken away, did NASCAR give them to Dale Jr? Or was their no winning points given for the Vegas race? Is it true a picture circulated showing Carls flip and you could see inside the car that the lid was not there????