TC Daily Pit Stop: Gray Gaulding Suspended Following Arrest; Joey Gase Fined for Bumper Throw; RFK Still Eyeing Expansion; David Starr to Run Martinsville Cup Race; Drivers Want Consistency
TC Daily Pit Stop: Thursday, April 4, 2024
Gray Gaulding Arrested on Misdemeanor Crime of Domestic Violence Charge; Suspended by NASCAR
Part-time competitor Gray Gaulding has been indefinitely suspended by NASCAR following a Tuesday morning arrest on a Misdemeanor Crime of Domestic Violence charge.
Gaulding was arrested by the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office at 7:17 AM ET and was released from jail the same day at 12:42 PM ET.
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Joey Gase Fined $5,000 Following Rear Bumper Throw at Richmond
The bumper throw heard around the world has resulted in a $5,000 fine for underdog racer Joey Gase. Gase was frustrated after being crashed by Dawson Cram in Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series Toyota Care 250 at Richmond. Gase ripped the rear bumper off of his crashed car, walked down the banking in Turn 1, and launched the bumper at the front of Cram’s car.
It was a direct hit. A direct hit that will leave his wallet a little lighter.
Additionally, three NASCAR Xfinity Series crew chiefs were fined $5,000 for unsecured lug nut infractions in post-race inspection at Richmond.
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Brad Keselowski and RFK Racing Still Eyeing Expansion; Obstacles Persist
Brad Keselowski has consistently stated that RFK Racing would like to expand past two full-time NASCAR Cup Series entries, and he continued to echo those thoughts in a media availability at the NASCAR Production Studios on Tuesday.
Keselowski says while his team even has drivers in mind for the expansion, that obstacles such as charter and partner acquisition exist before any expansion can take place.
“Yeah, we would need the right kind of storm to brew with Charter availability and partner availability,” Keselowski explained. “I think there’s some opportunities with some talent out there, but the other two pieces realistically have to come first.”
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David Starr to Run NASCAR Cup Race at Martinsville for Power Source
David Starr will compete in this weekend’s NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway in the No. 66 Power Source (MBM Motorsports) Ford Mustang. This will mark the first NASCAR Cup Series start since 2021 for the four-time NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race winner.
The MBM team made its first Cup Series start since 2022 a couple of races ago at Circuit of the Americas, scoring a 36th-place finish.
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Drivers Want Consistency in Regards to Restart Rule Enforcement
The consensus is that most of Denny Hamlin’s competitors are fine with NASCAR not calling a jumping-the-start penalty on the driver on the final restart of Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series Toyota Owners 400, but they all expect the same grace from the sanctioning body.
“I just want it to be the same every week. That’s all I want,” Joey Logano said on SiriusXM’s Behind the Wheel. “I think that’s what any competitor wants. If that’s okay, what happened this weekend, that’s fine. I’m okay with that as long as that’s okay next week, and it’s okay at Lap 200, and it’s okay at Lap 300, and it’s okay at Lap 500. I just want it the same. That’s all I look for.”
Josh Berry feels that the restart talk has been “blown out of proportion,” and feels that if the driver involved wasn’t Denny Hamlin, many wouldn’t be talking about it.
Brad Keselowski cautioned that using additional technology to enforce restarts could result in unintended consequences.