Newman could face penalties after car too low in post-race inspection

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Jared Turner

Talladega, Ala. —

Ryan Newman enjoyed a terrific Sunday at Talladega Superspeedway, leading three times for a total of 10 laps and restarting on the outside of Row 1 on the second and final attempt at a green-white-checkered finish.

Newman went on to finish fifth -- still good enough to move on to the Eliminator Round of the Chase for the Sprint Cup.

After the race, however, NASCAR spokesman Kerry Tharp said that the rear end of Newman's No. 31 Chevrolet was too low on both sides in post-race inspection, opening up the possibility of a penalty early next week.

The car will head back to the NASCAR Research & Development Center in Concord, N.C., for further review. Tharp said an announcement of any penalties on the Richard Childress Racing driver and team would likely come on Monday or Tuesday.

A penalty on Newman, one of eight remaining title contenders with four races left, could theoretically affect his Chase standing and allow Kasey Kahne -- the first driver not to advance out of the Contender Round -- to transfer into the Eliminator Round.

Kahne finished 12th in Sunday's Geico 500, 27 points behind Newman.

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Chris Estrada

NASCAR has announced that it will not penalize Ryan Newman and his No. 31 Richard Childress Racing team after Newman’s car was found to be too low in the rear on both sides during Sunday’s post-race inspection at Talladega.

The car was taken back to NASCAR’s research and development center in North Carolina for further review, but the sanctioning body says that damage sustained to the car during the GEICO 500 caused it to be too low.

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UPDATE: The No. 31 car has cleared post-race inspection from Talladega; there are no issues. Race damage caused the rear to be low. #NASCAR
9:41 AM - 21 Oct 2014
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Some observers had pondered over Newman possibly being penalized championship points for the infraction and having his Chase status impacted as a result.

A crash at Lap 102 may have been where the damage to his No. 31 Chevrolet came from. Newman was riding at the back of the field, when contact between J.J. Yeley and Aric Almirola set off the pile-up that ultimately knocked Kyle Busch out of the Chase.

Newman had to go to pit road following the melee for a check-over and new tires. He recovered for a fifth-place finish in the race to advance to the Eliminator Round of the Chase by 27 points.

Like the rest of the Eliminator 8, Newman’s points have now been reset to 4,000; he has earned the third seed to start