NASCAR enthusiasts have shared their opinions on the significant L-2 level penalty imposed on Denny Hamlin and Joe Gibbs Racing. Although neither the driver nor the team was directly at fault, they faced consequences due to a serious error made by their engine builder, Toyota Racing Development (TRD).
The trouble began when TRD self-reported that they had rebuilt Hamlin’s race-winning engine from Bristol without obtaining prior inspection from NASCAR officials. As a result, the #11 Toyota driver and JGR each received a hefty penalty of a 75-point deduction in the regular season standings and a loss of 10 playoff points. Furthermore, crew chief Chris Gabehart was hit with a $100,000 fine. This situation arose after Toyota acknowledged the infraction, which breached several regulations outlined below.
According to Section 14.7.1.E (as per NASCAR):
All race-winning engines “Will be long block sealed by NASCAR and must be completely inspected by NASCAR before the engine may be disassembled by the team. If the team chooses to use the long block sealed race-winning engine again before being inspected, the engine must be used in the same vehicle number the next time it is used.”
Section 14.7.1.F specifies that the long block engine assembly seals of a long block sealed engine must not be altered, removed, or replaced.
Additionally, the team violated Section 14.7.1.1.B&E, which states:
“Seals must not be removed without prior approval by NASCAR,” and “if a race-winning engine is sealed and presented for post-race inspection at a later date with damaged, altered, or missing seals, an L2 Penalty will be assessed.”
Once the life cycle of a race-winning engine is deemed complete, it must undergo a thorough teardown and inspection by NASCAR before the builder is allowed to disassemble and rebuild it. In a misstep, Toyota rebuilt Denny Hamlin’s engine from Bristol without waiting for NASCAR’s inspection, leading to penalties being imposed.
Bob Pockrass broke the news on his X (formerly Twitter) account.
The announcement of the penalties quickly spread, sparking a flurry of opinions from fans.
“Denny Hamlin Caught Cheating Again,” one fan remarked.
“That’s what he gets for cheating!!” another chimed in.
However, some fans felt the situation was more complex than it seemed, directing their criticism at Toyota.
“TRD has navigated this process over a thousand times; they know the rules. This was a deliberate act to conceal something they were pushing the limits on. These ‘mistakes’ don’t just happen unless they were intentional. You can’t pin this on the rookie,” a fan stated.
“There’s a lot more to this story! Something else is definitely happening!” another fan added.
Many fans were taken aback, not anticipating such a dramatic turn of events for Denny Hamlin ahead of the Daytona race.
“Holy cow,” one fan expressed.
“What the heck,” another fan reacted.
Denny Hamlin has slipped to sixth place in the regular season standings, paying the consequences for a significant error made by Toyota.
With three victories, 11 top-10 finishes, and nine top-5 results, Hamlin was sitting comfortably in third place, just 28 points shy of the leader, Tyler Reddick. However, after a deduction of 75 points, the JGR driver has seen his position drop, complicating his quest for his first regular season championship.
While Hamlin’s wins at Richmond Raceway and Dover Motor Speedway will still count towards the playoffs, his Bristol win will not. Toyota has taken full accountability for the turmoil within JGR’s garage, with David Wilson, president of TRD USA, publicly acknowledging the mistake.
“We left NASCAR in an impossible position because they were not given the opportunity to properly inspect our engine. We have reviewed our processes and have implemented several additional steps to ensure that this never happens again. TRD takes full responsibility for this grievous mistake, and we apologize to Denny, Chris, Coach Gibbs, the entire JGR organization, NASCAR and our fans,” Wilson stated in a release from NASCAR.
According to the rule book, the penalties imposed on Denny Hamlin and his team were the least severe possible.
