NASCAR has penalized Richard Childress Racing’s No. 3 NASCAR Cup Series team of Austin Dillon following Martinsville Speedway, it announced April 19.
The penalty is an L1-level infraction for violating vehicle assembly rules relating to the underwing assembly and hardware.
As a result, crew chief Keith Rodden has been fined $75,000 and suspended for two races.
The team and driver were also deducted 60 owner and driver points, as well as five playoff points.
Dillon was 21st in points prior to the penalty with two top 10s on the season.
Additionally, NASCAR has suspended Live Fast Motorsports’ rear tire changer Chris Jackson and jackman David Smith because of a wheel that came off of the No. 78, driven by Anthony Alfredo, at Martinsville.
Three NASCAR Xfinity Series crew chiefs were fined following the weekend: Mike Bumgarner, Jeff Meendering and Mike Scearce were each fined $5,000 for lug nut infractions.
Luken Glover joined the Frontstretch team in 2020 as a news writer before elevating to a columnist, where he served as the longtime writer for The Underdog House. Currently, he is an editor for the site and conducts feature interviews. Glover has covered several forms of racing for the site including NASCAR, CARS Tour, and SRX events.
A 2023 graduate of the University of the Cumberlands, Glover is a promotional writer, elementary athletic director, and basketball coach. He is passionate about serving in his church, playing/coaching a wide variety of sports, and researching motorsports history.
How many wheels came off cars when there were five lug nuts on 15″ wheels? How many since the new purty single nut wheels?