NASCAR suspends 3 RFK Racing crew members for 4 races post-Nashville inspection

Chris Buescher during the NASCAR Cup Series Ally 400 at Nashville Superspeedway (Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images)
Chris Buescher during the NASCAR Cup Series Ally 400 at Nashville Superspeedway (Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images)

On Tuesday, NASCAR issued penalties to the RFK Racing team after Chris Buescher's #17 Ford Mustang lost a wheel during the recently concluded Ally 400 at Nashville Superspeedway.

Officials handed suspensions to Buescher’s crew chief Scott Graves and crew members Seth Gajdorus (rear tire changer) and Matthew Wilps (jackman) for the next four races.

On Twitter, motorsports journalist Bob Pockrass confirmed the news by posting:

“As expected, Chris Buescher crew chief Scott Graves, rear tire changer Seth Gajdorus and jackman Matthew Wilps suspended four races for wheel coming off at Nashville.”

The infraction falls under Section 10.5.2.6 in the NASCAR Rule Book, which penalizes teams for the loss or separation of an improperly installed tire/wheel from the vehicle.

The incident took place on Turn 4 on Lap 255 at the Nashville Superspeedway when the right-rear wheel came off from Buescher’s #17 Ford. It bought the 11th of the 12 caution periods in the 300-lap race. The 29-year-old limped back to the pits on the way and finished in 30th place with the technical problem, three laps down.

The #17 RFK Racing will be without a crew chief and crew members for the next four races at Road America, Atlanta Motor Speedway, New Hampshire Motor Speedway, and Pocono Raceway. The respective members of the team will be eligible to return on July 31 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Brad Keselowski and Jack Roush, who own the RFK Racing team, have not determined who will fill Scott Graves’ role for the next four Cup Series races.

This is the 11th occasion of the 2022 season a team has been suspended due to tire loss issues on the Next Gen car.


NASCAR imposes fines on crew chiefs of Xfinity Series teams at Nashville Superspeedway

In Saturday’s Xfinity Series race, NASCAR handed down $5,000 fines to the crew chief for four teams for lug-nut violations at the Nashville Superspeedway.

The following crew chiefs were penalized for the infraction of having one lug nut not secure in their cars in a post-race check:

  • #6 JD Motorsports Chevrolet’s crew chief Alex Bird
  • #10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet crew chief Jason Trinchere
  • #31 Jordan Anderson Racing Chevrolet crew chief Shane Whitbeck
  • #44 Alpha Prime Racing Chevrolet crew chief Michael Brandt

Meanwhile, NASCAR Cup Series returns on July 3, 2022, for the Kwik Trip 250 at Road Americas.

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Edited by Anurag C