Ryan Newman loses 75 points and his crew chief is suspended six races after NASCAR found the No. 31 illegally modified its tires.
NASCAR heavily penalized Ryan Newman and the No. 31 Richard Childress team Tuesday for tires that were illegally modified.
Newman has been docked 75-driver points, and crew chief Luke Lambert is suspended six races and fined $125,000. Two additional crewmembers were also suspended six races.
The penalties follow NASCAR conducting an "audit" after the March 22 race at Auto Club Speedway, which determined the team had altered its tires. NASCAR cleared tires confiscated off the cars of Kevin Harvick, Kurt Busch and Paul Menard. Harvick and Busch drive for Stewart-Haas Racing; Menard is a teammate of Newman's at RCR.
"NASCAR takes very seriously its responsibility to govern and regulate the rules of the sport in order to ensure competitive balance," said Steve O'Donnell, executive vice president and chief racing development officer. "We've been very clear that any modifications to race vehicle tires is an unacceptable practice and will not be tolerated."
In recent weeks rampant speculation said teams were drilling small holes in tires to bleed air pressure, a practice that provides a better grip and allows drivers to maintain faster speeds over long runs.
Newman denied any wrongdoing this past weekend, saying he "wasn't about anything." RCR plans to appeal the penalties.
"We understand the seriousness of the penalty," the team said in a statement. "In fact, RCR has been one of the most outspoken opponents against 'tire bleeding' since the rumors began to surface last season. Once NASCAR provides us with the specific details of the infraction we will conduct a further internal investigation, and evaluate our options for an appeal."
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