Zastava_101

Parts confiscates parts from #48 car: Crew chief Chad Knaus and other members of five-time Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson's Daytona 500 team face possible suspensions after NASCAR said it found modifications on the rear quarter panel of Johnson's #48 Chevy. The C-posts -- pillars that come down from the roof to the quarter panel -- were confiscated by NASCAR on Friday after going through an initial inspection for the 500 at Daytona International Speedway. Sprint Cup Series director John Darby said the changes were a major violation of NASCAR's policy banning alterations to the series' template. "Suspensions are not out of the realm of possibility," Darby said.
But Darby also said that it's unlikely team members will be banned from the race, because the apparent violation was found so early. "The team will be allowed to fix the car,'' Darby said. Darby said penalties could come as early as next week, but NASCAR spokesperson Kerry Tharp said sanctions are unlikely until after the February 26 race. "They found some things they didn't like and they asked us to remove them,'' Knaus said Friday. "We'll get the car fixed up and ready to qualify.'' Asked if he knew there was a chance the car was out of compliance before arriving at Daytona, Knaus said, "I haven't had a chance to take a good look at it yet. I know they just asked us to remove the parts, so we did. We've got to dig into it. It's been a hectic day.''
Ken Howes, Hendrick Motorsports' vice president for competition, said he expects the rebuilt car will be ready for practice on Saturday and qualifying on Sunday. "A helluva way to start the 2012 season,'' he said. Asked if this was an intentional attempt by the #48 team to bend the rules, Howes said, "That's a difficult way to put it. You work within the templates the best way you think. Obviously, you're trying to do a better job than the next guy. NASCAR said it wasn't right, so it's not right. We don't have an argument with that.'' Howes said manipulating the C-post creates an aerodynamic advantage, and that individual teams are allowed to work in that area. The other three Hendrick Motorsports cars did not fail inspection.(ESPN)(2-17-2012)

Moosetang

Jeez this team.

jacostang

Yeah, no penalties or nothing until after the 500???? Nacscar has no ***** what so ever!

Park him for the race and I bet you would never see them try anything again... But some say if you aint cheatin you aint tryin hard enough....

Zastava_101

I guess some things never change ...

This is ... what, 4th or 5th time that Knaus is getting suspended for cheating?

Hytek

Remember at Talladega last fall where he was caught on video before the race telling Jimmy if he won he was to wreck the back of the car. I don't remember if Nascar ever investigated the car afterwards, did they?

Zastava_101

Yeah, I remember that, but i don't think NASCAR did anything.

Zastava_101

UPDATE: NASCAR will likely penalize the crew chief for five-time champion #48-Jimmie Johnson for infractions found during Daytona 500 inspection. NASCAR president Mike Helton said Saturday its a "high likelihood" crew chief Chad Knaus will be penalized. But, Helton indicated punishment would not be doled out until after the Feb. 26 season-opening Daytona 500 race. Friday's incident "fits in the category of prerace inspection issues that we've had in the past," Helton said Saturday morning. "It will warrant a reaction from us more so than what you've seen already, . more than what we've done so far," he added.(Associated Press)
Why is Knaus still here? The question repeated most often on Saturday was, "Why wasn't crew chief Chad Knaus ejected from the track and suspended immediately, as he was in 2006?" The difference was that, in 2006, Knaus was busted for unapproved changes to the rear window after qualifying, not before. NASCAR president Mike Helton said the infractions will be addressed after the Daytona 500. In the interim, Knaus and the #48 team won't receive any more scrutiny than any other team. "Our level of scrutiny is high on everybody every time," Helton said. "So there's no way to get more scrutiny."(NASCAR WIre Service)
Hendrick comments: Hendrick Motorsports owner Rick Hendrick said before Saturday night's Budweiser Shootout that the car is the same one that Johnson ran in all four restrictor plate races last season, including the Daytona 500, and the roof had not been altered. He added that the car went to NASCAR's Research and Development Center in Concord, N.C., for inspection and was returned without any notification of being outside the lines. "That car, we've run it four times,'' Hendrick said. "It was built for this place and they never touched the roof, and it's been to the Tech Center after they won Talladega (in the spring). All that's been done is paint it, so I don't get it.'' Hendrick acknowledged that this is the same car Knaus was caught on film prior to the October Talladega race telling Johnson to damage the rear end if he won. Johnson's car was taken back to the R&D center after that race and the remaining races in 2011.(ESPN)(2-19-2012)

3Mach1

The only people that nascar is afraid of is the sponsors. The France mafia is only concerned about money and if you kick the 48 team out of the race they may sell a handful less of tickets.