Race Weekend Central

Joe Gibbs Racing Penalties Reduced Following Appeal

Joe Gibbs Racing had many of their penalties for the No. 20 team reduced during the appeal process on Wednesday.

Driver Matt Kenseth and owner Joe Gibbs had their points penalties reduced from 50 to 12 points.

Crew chief Jason Ratcliff’s suspension has also been dropped from seven races to one, though he will still be forced to pay the $200,000 fine.

Not all of the penalties were reduced, however. Toyota Racing’s manufacturer points penalty was increased from five points to seven.

All other penalties were dropped, including the suspension of Joe Gibbs’ owners license, the loss of bonus points for the Chase earned at Kansas Speedway, and the loss of eligibility into the Sprint Unlimited garnered from the pole at Kansas Speedway.

JGR has accepted the penalties and will not appeal further.

Following a dominant win at Kansas Speedway a few weeks ago, Kenseth’s car failed post-race inspection when it was found that a connecting rod was 2.7 grams below the minimum weight. Toyota Racing Development accepted the blame for the incident.

The reduction moves Kenseth up to fourth in points, 66 points behind leader Jimmie Johnson.

JGR has not announced who will replace Ratcliff this weekend in Darlington.

The appeal was heard by Mark Arute, Dennis McGlynn, and Jack Housby.

NASCAR cannot appeal the revised penalties.

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