Chip Ganassi, owner of Chip Ganassi Racing, has been fined and suspended for violating NASCAR’s at-track COVID-19 protocol, NASCAR announced Feb. 22.
Ganassi is suspended for one race and has been fined $30,000.
According to NASCAR, Ganassi brought a “non-essential individual” into the competition area at Daytona International Speedway last weekend.
CGR owns the Nos. 1 and 42 for Kurt Busch and Ross Chastain in the NASCAR Cup Series.
The news accompanied the revelation that two Cup crew chiefs were fined $10,000 each after their cars were found with unsecured lug nuts after last weekend’s event at the Daytona road course: Adam Stevens, from Christopher Bell‘s race-winning No. 20 team, and Jeremy Bullins (Brad Keselowski).
Kevin Rutherford is the executive editor of Frontstretch, a position he gained in 2025 after being the managing editor since 2015, and serving on the editing staff since 2013.
At his day job, he's a journalist covering music and rock charts at Billboard. He lives in New York City, but his heart is in Ohio -- you know, like that Hawthorne Heights song.
For years NASCAR has been letting in “non-essential individuals” (babies, kids, moms, dads, girl friends and wives). How about those individuals I see on my TV who are not wearing a mask or not covering their nose and mouth?