NASCAR Finds Kenseth Illegal

It has been learned that the engine in Matt Kenseth's race winning car from Kansas failed inspection at NASCAR's Research and Development Center. The engine failed because of one of the connecting rods not meeting the minimum weight requirement.

As a result of this violation, NASCAR has assessed the following penalties:

• Crew chief Jason Ratcliff has been fined $200,000 and suspended from NASCAR until the completion of the next six NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship points events (a period of time that also includes the non-points NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race) and placed on probation until Dec. 31.
• Car owner Joe Gibbs has lost 50 championship car owner points; the first-place finish from April 21 at Kansas Speedway will not earn bonus points toward the accumulated aggregate car owner points total after the completion of the first 26 events of the current season and will not be credited toward the eligibility for a car owner Wild Card position; has had the owner’s license for the No. 20 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series car suspended until the completion of the next six championship points events, therefore being ineligible to receive championship car owner points during that period of time.
• Driver Matt Kenseth has lost 50 championship driver points; the Coors Light Pole award from April 19 at Kansas Speedway will not be allowed for eligibility into the 2014 Sprint Unlimited; the first-place finish from April 21 at Kansas Speedway will not earn bonus points toward the accumulated aggregate driver points total after the completion of the first 26 events of the current season and will not be credited toward the eligibility for a driver Wild Card position.
• The loss of five NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Manufacturer Championship points.

Kenseth drove the No. 20 Toyota to his second win of the season Sunday in Kansas. It is standard procedure for the race winning engine to go back to Concord, North Carolina for a thorough inspection.