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Busted!
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Biggest penalties handed down by NASCAR for rules violations, with name of person penalized, team, reason for penalty, date, racetrack where violation occured and penalty:
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1. Ray Evernham, crew chief, Hendrick Motorsports (Jeff Gordon), unapproved suspension parts, May 1995, Charlotte Motor Speedway, $60,000.
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2. Michael Kranefuss, Penske-Kranefuss (Jeremy Mayfield), altered fuel, April 2000, Talladega Superspeedway, $50,000, Mayfield loses 151 championship points, crew chief Peter Sospenzo suspended for one month.
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3. Scott Eggleston, crew chief SABCO Racing (Sterling Marlin), July 1999, Daytona International Speedway, illegal insert in intake manifold, $50,000.
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5. Ricky Rudd, Rudd Performance Motorsports (Rudd), Hydraulic lift in rear deck lid, April 1995, Talladega Superspeedway, $45,000, crew chief Bill Ingle $5,000.
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6. Junior Johnson, Junior Johnson & Associates (Brett Bodine), Feb. 1995, Daytona International Speeday, unapproved intake, $45,000, crew chief Mike Beam $100.
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7. Robin Pemberton, crew chief Roush Racing (Mark Martin), Feb. 1990, Richmond International Raceway, carburetor spacer, $40,000 and 46 championship points.
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8. Bill Davis, Bill Davis Racing (Randy Lajoie), Feb. 1995, Daytona International Speedway, hydraulic lift in rear deck lid, $25,000, Lajoie $10,000, crew chief Chris Hussey $100.
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9. Richard Petty, Petty Enterprises (Petty), Oct. 1983, Charlotte Motor Speedway, oversize engine, $35,000 and 104 championship points.
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10. Robin Pemberton, Penske Racing South (Rusty Wallace), May 1996, Sears Point Raceway, car too low, $25,000.
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The Penske-Kranefuss team was hit with a major penalty by NASCAR
for what the sanctioning body said was illegal fuel used during the
April 16 race in Talladega, Ala.
Driver Jeremy Mayfield was stripped of 151 points in the season
standings. Michael Kranefuss, who operates the team co-owned by
Roger Penske, was fined $50,000, matching the second largest in
NASCAR history. Crew chief Peter Sospenzo was suspended until June
6.
"There isn't a whole lot you can say under the circumstances,"
Kranefuss said. "Mistakes were made and there were certainly some
grave errors in judgment."
Mike Helton, senior vice president and chief operating officer
of NASCAR, said Tuesday fuel samplings after the race found a foreign
substance.
"The sample from the No. 12 read consistently different than
the sample that was taken from our fuel source on the site," he
said.
All the Winston Cup cars used gasoline provided at the track by
Unocal.
Kranefuss said the team has taken disciplinary action, and he
apologized to fans, sponsors, NASCAR and other teams.
"We will make sure nothing like this will ever happen again,"
he said. "We will continue to work to put the best possible race
car on the track each week within the rules."
Mayfield won last Sunday's race in Fontana, Calif., while under
NASCAR investigation for possible illegal fuel.
"We're all embarrassed and we're all going to make sure nothing
like this happens again," he said. "Everything we've accomplished
so far we've accomplished within the rules."
Sospenzo, who took over as Mayfield's crew chief early in the
1999 season, was not available for comment.
Talk of an investigation began immediately after the Talladega
race. But NASCAR did not acknowledge it until last Friday in
California.
Helton said NASCAR sent the fuel samples to outside laboratories
for additional testing.
"It is up to NASCAR to ensure that the competitors in the
garage area know that everyone is playing on a level playing
field," Helton said.
The victory Sunday had moved Mayfield into seventh place in the
standings. The loss of the points from his 14th-place finish in
Talladega dropped him to 14th in the standings.
The largest fine by NASCAR came in 1995. Ray Evernham, then crew
chief for Jeff Gordon, was fined $60,000 for using an unapproved
suspension part in the May race in Charlotte, N.C.
Scott Eggleston, crew chief for Sterling Marlin, was fined
$50,000 for using an illegal engine part in the July 1999 race in
Daytona Beach, Fla.
In a separate matter, Mayfield also is under investigation after his victory Sunday in Fontana, Calif. Mayfield's Ford Taurus failed a post-race technical inspection by Winston Cup officials because the roof height of his car was too low.
"Everything on the car passed inspection except for the height of the roof of the car," said Danielle Humphrey, a NASCAR spokeswoman. "You may have seen as soon as Jeremy got out of the car in victory lane, he jumped on the roof. There is where our problem is. We are going to look at that."
Humphrey said Mayfield's victory is unaffected, but Winston Cup officials need to investigate the car to see if the problem was from him jumping on the roof rather than a blatant rules infraction. The measurement is taken on the roof, 10 inches behind the windshield.
Humphrey said a decision on the roof height investigation was expected Wednesday.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
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AUDIO/VIDEO
 NASCAR V.P. Mike Helton describes the events leading to Mayfield's penalty.
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RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
NASCAR official Gary Nelson considers the infraction a very serious penalty.
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RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Kyle Petty discusses NASCAR's decision to penalize Mayfield.
wav: 154 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Ray Evernham sympathizes with Jeremy Mayfield and his crew.
wav: 139 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Wallace crew chief Robin Pemberton has mixed feelings about the penalty.
wav: 163 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Former WC crew chief Andy Graves feels NASCAR should be strict on ruling.
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RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
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