NASCAR takes its rules regarding how racecars are maintained and prepped ahead of races very seriously. So much so that when an infraction is discovered, the response is often both swift and heavy-handed.
Sometimes, the infractions are an honest mistake. In other instances, like the recent issue involving Furniture Row Racing crew chief Cole Pearn, there seems to be a pattern of behavior that NASCAR probably feels they can't rightly ignore.
NASCAR announced this week that Pearn had been suspended for one Sprint Cup Series points race and fined $50,000 for a rules violation that came as a result of an infraction involving the roof flaps on Martin Truex Jr.'s No. 78 car prior to a race at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
"Due to the severity of the P3 penalty levied against Furniture Row Racing and its crew chief Cole Pearn today (Wednesday), the No. 78 Sprint Cup team has informed NASCAR it will appeal the decision," NASCAR stated. "The infraction, which was immediately corrected following technical inspection at Atlanta Motor Speedway last week, was safety related and not competition related."
This was the second consecutive race in which NASCAR discovered an issue with the roof flaps on the Furniture Row Racing machine. The penalties were escalated due to the fact that the team also had an issue with illegal roof flaps during qualifying for the Daytona 500.
Furniture Row GM Joe Garone said however, that the two infractions were actually separate issues and that neither would affect the performance of the car, only Truex Jr's safety.
"If that was something that had been on the track, I'd completely understand," Garone said. "It's a safety issue. It's not a competition issue at all."
Garone and Furniture Row plan to appeal the penalties. NASCAR has approved the team's request to defer the suspension pending their appeal.
The 15-point infraction has caused Truex Jr. to drop from second to ninth ahead of the looming Kobalt 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The two races prior to which the roof flap issues occurred, Truex Jr. finished seventh (Atlanta) and second (Daytona).
Truex Jr.'s Daytona loss was especially memorable, as it was the closest finish in NASCAR race history.
