It’s not just the valve springs troubling Toyota Racing Development engines this season. After finishing P9 at Michigan, NASCAR penalized championship contender Denny Hamlin & the #11 team on Thursday for a logistical blunder with their Bristol-winning engine in March. The sanctioning body took away 75 regular-season points, and 10 playoff points from them, while fining crew chief Chris Gabehart an additional $100,000.

As for the penalty? NASCAR punished the #11 team for failing to produce the engine from their March 17th win at Bristol. According to David Wilson, the President of TRD, “Denny’s race winning engine from Bristol was mistakenly returned to our Costa Mesa facility, disassembled and rebuilt instead of being torn down and inspected by NASCAR per the rule book.” As a result, the #11 team will now face some dire consequences. And with no persuasion, the sport’s voice of reason, Dale Earnhardt Jr., has stepped up to back his Dirty Mo Media colleague after learning about the troubling developments.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. is skeptical of penalties for the #11 Team

TRD and Joe Gibbs Racing have had their fair share of engine troubles this season. Martin Truex Jr.’s Richmond woes are the most recent example. That was the soon-to-retire #19 driver’s first DNF in almost a year. With MTJ’s valve spring issues, all JGR drivers have dealt with engine troubles in 2024. But back at Bristol, Hamlin was stirring up controversy for “jumping” the final restart on Martin Truex Jr. Barring that, the 2024 Food City 500 also made headlines for unpredictable tire wear on its concrete after giving up on three years of the ‘Dirt Race’ experiment.

The #11 squad managed tires and came out on top in a race where their Toyota Camry XSE engine was the least of their worries. Hamlin even made appearances on his podcast, Actions Detrimental, and the Dale Jr. Download (both under the banner of Dirty Mo Media Network) to clarify his perspectives towards the end of the race.

However, it was TRD who ended up having to admit their harmless-on-surface mistakes post-Bristol. As Wilson explained in an official statement, “Although we know with absolute certainty that the engine was legal and would have passed inspection, we left NASCAR in an impossible position because they were not given the opportunity to properly inspect our engine.” 

Dale Jr. backed these statements by the TRD President with his own expert opinions on Twitter. Junior retweeted a post from journalist Matt Weaver that aimed to explain the “engine seal violation penalty” put on the #11 team. In the caption, he wrote, “Wild. Happened in March. And at Bristol where motor don’t really matter (gives me confidence there was no real intention). Also considering what was going on with the tire management during the race. Big big disappointment for DH and crew.”

After the race, Dale Jr. applauded Goodyear for the “insane” tire wear at Bristol, among other topics of discussion on the post-race release of his podcast. But as for his final opinion on the whole #11 team engine debacle? “If you gonna trick the engine you ain’t risking it at Bristol,” said the reply to his initial tweet. And when a fan reminded him that “rules are rules,” Jr. responded to their message, simply writing, “They sure are,” as if to outline the irony of that statement in NASCAR’s brand of racing.

Strangely, these bearings come only days after TRD General Manager, Tyler Gibbs, expressed ‘confidence’ over finding a fix for the faltering engines under the hoods of their Camry XSEs in 2024. But in the grander background of Denny Hamlin’s partially botched season, the OEM is now left apologizing for their hefty mistake.

Apology issued after hefty self-reported infraction

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With only the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona standing between himself and the Regular Season championship race at Darlington, Denny’s third place at the top of the points table will now fall to sixth. Previously, he held 21 playoff points to help his chances in the playoffs. Now, he has only 11. Earlier With 3 wins, he was the second seed behind Tyler Reddick in the eliminators. With his Bristol win rescinded from playoff eligibility, he stands as the sixth seed for the post-season immediately.

The implications have been heavy for Denny Hamlin & his #11 team. However, one has to feel for Chris Gabehart, who would normally not have any role in the logistical proceedings at Joe Gibbs Racing or TRD. He must now present $100,000 to the sport’s governing body for an infraction that does not look too likely to be the fault of a crew chief. David Wilson clearly stated in the official statement: “As the engine builder for our partner NASCAR Cup Series teams, TRD is solely responsible for the handling and disposition of all our engines pre- and post-race.”

“We have reviewed our processes and have implemented several additional steps to ensure that this never happens again,” he promised, and announced, “TRD takes full responsibility for this grievous mistake, and we apologize to Denny, Chris, Coach Gibbs, the entire JGR organization, NASCAR and our fans.” 

Regardless, as per NASCAR, the L2 infractions violated sections 14.7.1.E&F and 14.7.1.1.B&E of the NASCAR rule book, which governs the handling and modifications of race-winning engines. The #11 team and JGR technically tampered with the seals on the engine, which are supposed to remain intact before inspection to ensure fair competition.

Albeit a comedic faux pas, it is also important to note that TRD reported themselves to NASCAR over this incident. So, do you think these penalties for Denny Hamlin & the #11 team were completely justified? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.