[jks812]

Junior docked 100 points for illegal rear mounting

Crew chief Eury Jr. suspended six races, fined $100,000

By Jenna Fryer, The Associated Press
May 15, 2007
06:30 PM EDT

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. was docked 100 points Tuesday, and his crew chief, Tony Eury Jr., was fined $100,000 and suspended for six races for an illegal part at Darlington Raceway.
The penalty is a significant setback in his team's bid to win a Cup title before racing's most popular driver leaves after the season.
Dale Earnhardt Inc. will appeal, team president Max Siegel said.

"We are not disputing the ruling," Siegel said. "But we are appealing the severity of the penalty because the penalty itself is not spelled out in the rule book."
According to NASCAR, the No. 8 team was found to have violated Sections 12-4-A (actions detrimental to stock car racing), 12-4-Q (car, car parts, components and/or equipment used do not conform to NASCAR rules), and 20-3.1.3B (the NASCAR-approved upper and lower rear wing mounting brackets must not be modified to obtain a rear-wing angle of less than zero degrees or more than 16 degrees) of the 2007 NASCAR rule book.
Eury Jr.'s suspension begins immediately and would include this weekend's Nextel All-Star Challenge and the next six points events, but if DEI appeals he'll be allowed to work until the appeal is heard. If he does ultimately miss races, car chief Tony Gibson will replace him on top of the pit box.
The penalty knocked Earnhardt from 12th in the standings -- the final qualifying position for the Chase for the Nextel Cup -- to 14th. He's now 721 points behind points leader Jeff Gordon, and 54 points out of Chase contention.
"The team is like a family and they are pretty resilient," Siegel said. "I met with them all this morning and I didn't get any sense at all that anybody was freaking out. Everyone went into a 'What do we do now?' mode. It is what it is -- it was a mistake, and it's unfortunate. But we'll move on."
Earnhardt announced last week he will leave DEI, his late father's company, after the season. He was not available for comment Tuesday, but Siegel said he met with the crew earlier in the day and the driver was present. Although the team has been in turmoil since Earnhardt's announcement, the driver and crew have promised to race hard for the rest of the year.
NASCAR inspectors said Earnhardt's rear wing was improperly mounted when it was checked Saturday at Darlington. The brackets used to mount the piece were confiscated.
The infraction was the first on the NASCAR-designed Car of Tomorrow, which has strict templates that leave little wiggle room for a crew chief. The severity of the penalty was likely NASCAR's way of informing teams it will not permit any alterations to the COT.
Eury has never had a major infraction during his seven years as a Cup crew chief. He has maintained the problem with the wing was not intentional, and the brackets were an old set that had been used during a test session.
Following his eighth-place finish Sunday, Earnhardt said he would pay any fine levied against Eury, who is also his cousin.
"Whatever he needs me to do," Earnhardt said.
This is the most significant penalty Earnhardt and his team have received. He was docked 25 points and fined $10,000 for cursing during a television interview after a win at Talladega in 2004. That deduction knocked him out of the points lead. It was the last time Earnhardt has seriously challenged for the championship

[simple simon]

Originally Posted by jks812

The penalty knocked Earnhardt from 12th in the standings -- the final qualifying position for the Chase for the Nextel Cup -- to 14th.

i really hope this doesnt lead to fan retaliation at the next race (beer cans tossed at/on the track

[Racer Duck]

Good old Section 12-4-A .. just gotta add that one as a CYA 'cause they don't have to explain it.

I think the penalty is excessive, they didn't dock JJ 100 points when Chad intentionally modified the car for an advantage at Daytone. Using brackets that had been used in testing is simply a stupid mistake but not a crime at the level of Knaus'. That both are suspended 6 weeks is also excessive in Eury's case.

Just another case of NA$CAR's uneven execution of the rules and punishments.

[Mike24]

NASCAR IS KEEEPING THEIR WORD!!! They said they would dock points and a huge fine if someone broke the rules with the COT! And OMG, they docked Jr points! And I thought NASCAR played favorites.

[simple simon]

Originally Posted by Mike24

And I thought NASCAR played favorites.

they do .... who won all the COT races ?

[Mike24]

Originally Posted by simple simon

they do .... who won all the COT races ?

ANYWAYS, about the Jr fine.

I'm glad NASCAR kept their word. Hopefully they are consistent with the rules, but knowing NASCAR, that is a hard task for them.

[simple simon]

Originally Posted by Mike24

ANYWAYS

nice comeback

but yeah, the rules and penalties have to be the same for everyone

[casa]

Originally Posted by Mike24

ANYWAYS, about the Jr fine.

I'm glad NASCAR kept their word. Hopefully they are consistent with the rules, but knowing NASCAR, that is a hard task for them.

Apparently they are NOT being consistent. If they were then JJ would have also been docked points, 100 would have been nice.

[PenelopePitStop]

My word! No backlash for MW ... let's see what happens with Jr.

Here again, do we think Jr. knew?

[simple simon]

Originally Posted by PenelopePitStop

do we think Jr. knew?

i dont think he did ...... i dont think he is very involved at the shop at all and i would think it was like this when they put it on the hauler

[LSC9901]

Now there is a difference between Jr and Nit Wit. Nit is an owner and Jr is a driver who is halfway out the door. My feeling is that Jr was not aware and there is no reason he should be. He is neither an owner or crew chief.

Since this is the first COt penalty situation we'll now get to see if the next one is on equal footing as this. I don't like th e6 week penalty but if they are consistent then so be it.

Now for Jr being the golden boy of NASCAR ... Guess all of you who think that are again proven wrong. He may be their money machine but he is no more special than my main man Kevin Lepage ... right ... who is he ?????

[Bob Tanner]

I agree with Duck, in that Johnson and Co. got away with a whole lot prior to this season. That might have been the most obvious example of possible NASCAR bias toward specific teams.

I honestly don't know IF NA$CAR has/had any bias which extended into its rule enforcement. But one thing I do know is that it is an indication of how far NASCAR's credibility has slipped when so many of its fans voice doubts about preferential treatment.

That was in seasons past...

Starting this season it appears to me that NASCAR has decided to try and change this doubt. They nailed Kenseth, Kahne and Sadler with penalties which, in the past, many would have thought adequate for major rule infractions.

Then Mikey got caught with his hand in the intake and <<WHAM!!>>

Today, in a Ray Everham interview I heard, Ray said that within the past month all teams received a memo from NASCAR stating that alteration, manipulation, etc., of the COT's wing assembly and/or the front air splitter would be dealt with by the punishment given today to DEI. They promised the next incident would be even more punitive?

I doubted that NASCAR would deal with DEI the way it has but...? I guess this is a brave new NASCAR and it's trying to make a point.

[jks812]

I don't have a problem with penalizing them, but be consistant. They also got Gordon at Daytona, crew chief said it was a mistake, all he had to do was start at the back not lose points and not fined. I don't care if it's the COT or the other car, an infraction is an infraction. If you're gonna fine one, fine em all. And another thing I think, if they fail the inspection after the race they just won, take the win and all away from them.

[LSC9901]

For myself I'm not really as concerned about what the penalty, but I am definitely concerned that the justice is passed out equally. Time will tell.

After learning that Tony Jr gets this major fine and that Jr is paying, it becomes even moer clear that $100K is nothing compared to the $40 million that Jr is reported to be making per year.

[Smoke+GibbsFan]

Only time will tell if NASCAR will dole out punisment fairly, but I think they did send out a message LOUD and clear. As far as these people making mistakes with these cars......... does anyone think that as much time and effort that goes into every square inch of a race car that anyting slips under the radar?