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The latest team and driver combination to have stepped on the wrong side of the NASCAR rulebook in the 2022 season came in the form of Kevin Harvick and Stewart-Haas Racing. The #4 Ford Mustang driver and crew received L2-level reprimands after a post-race inspection of the car during the Yellawood 500 at Talladega Superspeedway.
The penalty was levied on the grounds of modifying a 'single source supplied part', which violated Sections 14.1 (vehicle assembly) and 14.5 (vehicle body) in NASCAR's rule book. As a result, Kevin Harvick and Stewart-Haas Racing were stripped of 100 driver and owner points, along with a $100,000 fine for crew chief Rodney Childers and a 4-week-long suspension.
The Kannapolis, North Carolina-based racing outfit was set to appeal against the penalties which were also seen being levied on Brad Keselowski earlier in the season. Officials from the governing body, however, confirmed on Wednesday that the team has decided to withdraw their request to do the same. Stephen Doran will continue to substitute Childer's role at the top of the pit box at the #4 team, as he did last weekend at Charlotte Roval.
With Kevin Harvick qualifying for the 2022 season playoffs, the penalties mean the 46-year-old veteran driver drops to P16 on the driver's standings table.
Kevin Harvick elaborates on his performance in 2022 NASCAR Bank of America Roval 400
The driver of the #4 Busch Light Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing, Kevin Harvick, managed to finish in the runners-up spot at last weekend's Cup Series race at the Charlotte Roval Road Course in Concord, North Carolina.
In a race that saw frontrunning drivers get negatively affected by a late caution-flag period due to an advertising hoarding on the track, Harvick also seemed to fall into that bracket. While his teammate at SHR, Chase Briscoe, managed to make the most of the yellow flag, the Bakersfield, California native was left vulnerable to attack from Christopher Bell on fresh tires, who ultimately went on to take the checkered flag in P1.
The veteran driver elaborated on how the race went in the dying stages and said:
"That caution coming out killed us there. Half a lap from coming to the white (flag) there. I never know their (the team's) strategy is until about Tuesday, so they'll tell me why."
Watch the complete interview below:
NASCAR will go live from the Las Vegas Motor Speedway this Sunday for South Point 400, marking the start of the 2022 Round of 8.
