Kyle Busch's crew chief suspended for Kansas lug nut violation
UPDATE (6 p.m. ET): Joe Gibbs Racing will not appeal the suspension. Stevens and front tire changer Josh Leslie will serve their suspensions this weekend at Dover.
"The 18 team utilized unaltered stock lug nuts during Saturday night's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Kansas Speedway and each wheel had all five lug nuts attached to the wheel at the conclusion of the race," the team's statement said. "The team does acknowledge that not all lug nuts were tightened to the wheel."
-------
Adam Stevens, the crew chief for Kyle Busch, has been suspended for the No. 18 team's violation of the new NASCAR lug nut rule after Saturday night's race at Kansas.
After the sanctioning body was called out by Tony Stewart (and then subsequently fined Stewart for his comments), NASCAR mandated teams in the Sprint Cup, Xfinity and Camping World Truck Series have all five lug nuts fastened to each wheel and hub at the end of the race. NASCAR no longer monitors lug nut fastening during pit stops – leading teams to put fewer than five lug nuts on for faster pit stops –It's and now enforces the rule with a check on pit road immediately following the conclusion of each race.
Front tire changer Josh Leslie has also been suspended for a race.
According to NASCAR's penalty report, the team violated Sections 12:1; 10.11.3.4; 12.5.3.4.1 g, o of the rule book. If you're not familiar with the intricacies of the NASCAR rule book – and quite honestly, you shouldn't be unless you work in NASCAR – 12.5.3.4.1.o is defined as "Parts or system configurations of importance not meeting the NASCAR rules but of a nature rising to a higher level penalty."
It's worth noting that "p" just below is defined as "Any identification of missing lug nuts on a wheel post race" so, yes, Busch had all five lug nuts on either of his front wheels. We know it's the either the left or right front wheel given Leslie's suspension.
10.11.3.4.a notes that "all tires, wheels and all five lug nuts must be installed in a safe and secure manner at all times during the event." So while the 18 team had 20 lugnuts fastened to the car, they clearly didn't meet NASCAR's specifications for tightening.
Stevens was also fined $20,000 and placed on NASCAR probation through the end of the season. We were able to find video of Busch's final pit stop of the race from Saturday night. While the camera feed from the right side of the car doesn't give a clear view, here's what it looked like as the left-front wheel was fastened to the car.
Leslie and Stevens are both be eligible to return for the Sprint All-Star Race and the Coca-Cola 600, the next two races in May.
When NASCAR announced the lug nut rule after the race at Richmond, there was some public consternation among teams that the rule could be inadvertently violated because lug nuts have been known to come off the studs during the course of a fuel run. While Busch's team had all five lug nuts on each of the front wheels after the race, it didn't take long for that wonder to become reality.
Busch still keeps the win and the bonus points associated with it for the Chase. The win at Kansas was Busch's third of the season and he's the only driver with more than two wins through the first 11 races.
- - - - - - -
Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
