On their second attempt to pass NASCAR Cup inspection at Kanas Speedway, the No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet team was observed making unapproved adjustments to the splitter.
After officials caught this, NASCAR says “the struts were reinstalled, and the car was rerun over the OSS and failed due to the adjustment.”
As a result, crew chief Travis Peterson has been ejected for the remainder of the weekend — however, this is not the end of the penalties.
Driver Michael McDowell will have to start from the rear of the field and perform a stop-and-go penalty at the start of the race. They have also lost their pit selection, which means they will get whatever stall is left after the rest of the field chooses.
McDowell entered this race 25th in the championship standings.
While all of the remaining 12 playoff drivers made it through without issue, there was another inspection failure involving the No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Ford of Cody Ware.
The car failed twice before passing on the third attempt, so car chief Dave Jones has been ejected from the event and they have also lost their pit stall selection. However, they will be allowed to qualify.
