NASCAR revealed the penalty report following this past weekend’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Series and Cup Series doubleheader features at Las Vegas Motor Speedway between March 14-15.
Per the March 18 report, the only team penalized across both series was Big Machine Racing’s No. 48 Chevrolet Camaro, driven by Patrick Staropoli and competing in the O’Reilly division. During the Las Vegas event this past Saturday, March 14, Staropoli’s entry had ballast that fell out of his entry. The fallen ballast violated Sections 10.5.2.5 B & E, pertaining to Safety Violations of the NASCAR rule book.
As a result, Big Machine Racing crew chief Patrick Donahue, car chief Dillon Bassett and engineer Morgan Olsen have been barred from participating in the upcoming four O’Reilly events, beginning this Saturday at Darlington Raceway. The trio’s suspensions will also include Martinsville Speedway (March 28), Rockingham Speedway (April 4) and Bristol Motor Speedway (April 11). No additional penalties involving points or fines were levied against Staropoli and Big Machine Racing.
Staropoli, who is campaigning in his first full-time stint in the O’Reilly division with Big Machine Racing, finished in 21st place during the Las Vegas event. He is currently ranked in 16th place in the driver’s standings and trails the top-12 cutline to make the Chase by 23 points.
At the conclusion of this past Sunday’s Cup event at Las Vegas, the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry XSE entry piloted by Christopher Bell and the No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota Camry XSE entry piloted by Erik Jones were both taken to the NASCAR R&D Center for further evaluation, but have cleared.
The NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series and Cup Series divisions return to action, along with the Craftsman Truck Series division, this upcoming weekend at Darlington Raceway. The Truck Series commences the triple-header action at Darlington with the Buckle Up South Carolina 200 that will occur on Friday, March 20, at 7:30 p.m. ET on FS1, NASCAR Racing Network and SiriusXM.
The O’Reilly Auto Parts Series races at Darlington on Saturday, March 21, at 5:30 p.m. ET on the CW Network, MRN Radio and SiriusXM for the Sport Clips Haircuts VFW Help a Hero 200. The Cup Series caps off the weekend with the Goodyear 400 on Sunday, March 22, at 3 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN, SiriusXM and HBO MAX.
