Rumor: NASCAR to Slap Cup Series Driver With Big Penalty as Illegal Daytona 500 Tactics Come Out

In true NASCAR fashion, there has been a lot of chatter before the season’s first race. Drivers have been divided on the new rule that could give Helio Castroneves an automatic berth in the Daytona 500 as well as NASCAR’s changes to its practice and qualifying formats. Then there are many underlying narratives heading into the ‘The Great American Race.’ Kyle Busch is looking for his first Daytona 500 win in his 20th start while underdogs such as Erik Jones and Todd Gilliland will be looking to replicate Ricky Stenhouse Jr.’s win from two years ago. But among these compelling stories, another story is stealing the spotlight.

Cody Ware is writing a daily Daytona 500 diary, giving a peek into the NASCAR life during Speedweek as he prepares for his return to full-time Cup Series action for the first time since 2022. But the son of Rick Ware could also be documenting his less-than-ideal return after NASCAR came down hard on the No. 51 car after the team was sanctioned for tech violation on Wednesday.

Ware replaced Corey LaJoie in the No. 51 Ford for Rick Ware Racing after results last year in the last seven races failed to convince the team’s hierarchy. However, it seems like his new campaign couldn’t have begun on a worse note after his team was penalized for the improper weight of the car.

An Instagram post by ‘nascarrumornostalgia’ read, “I hear you should expect penalties coming to the 51. Didn’t get caught with their pants down but lead in their pants.”  In addition to Cody Ware’s No.51, Front Row Motorsports driver Todd Gilland’s No. 34 car was also found guilty of the same violation and Fox Sports’ Bob Pockrass later confirmed the infringement and the punishment by NASCAR.

According to Pockrass, NASCAR has ejected Cody Ware’s crew chief, Billy Plourde as well as Todd Gilland’s crew chief, Chris Lawson for the rest of the weekend with replacements named.

“NASCAR has ejected crew chiefs for Todd Gilliland (Chris Lawson) and Cody Ware (Billy Plourde) for tech violation yesterday. Lawson replacement is engineer Kevyn Rebolledo; RWR competition director Tommy Baldwin replacing Plourde (engineer ejected Wednesday is back),” Prockass posted on X.

NASCAR is doubling down on OEMs as well this season and earlier this month updated its rulebook around potential violations and ensure fair play. Competition officials noted in a January update a formal penalty structure would be implemented for rules violations made by OEMs.

The changes highlight penalties such as deducting 25 to 50 manufacturer points, removing between 30 to 60 wind-tunnel testing hours, limiting 250 to 500 Restricted Computational Fluid Dynamics test runs, and loss of 2-4 vehicle tests.

Meanwhile, for Ware and RWR, this is an early blow and it remains to be seen if further punishment comes their way.

Cody Ware struggled for speed during qualifying at Daytona International Speedway. The racer clocked in a lap of 51.835 seconds, finishing rock-bottom in the standings and significantly slower than JJ Yeley from the NY Racing Team. Ware finished 2.617 seconds behind leader Chase Briscoe at the 2.5-mile oval and will have to desperately scramble to turn his circumstances around to salvage a result.

Ware didn’t impress in the Duel 2 on Thursday night as well as he finished 15th. He would have hoped for a smoother comeback than this and losing his crew chief could further dent his chances of a good show on Sunday. Still, Tommy Baldwin, who will step in for Plourde, brings over two decades of experience and will be expected to bring stability.

During the 2024 season, Ware ran nine Cup Series races and put together an average finish of 21.0. His best finish was fourth in the summer race at Daytona International Speedway, which was also a career-best finish and his first top-five finish in the series.

The North Carolina native has been making on-and-off appearances in NASCAR’s premier series since 2017 and has plenty of experience. In many ways, this might be a make-it-or-break-it season for the driver, who is competing in short tracks to improve his racing skills.

Ware has also faced accusations of favoritism with fans alleging that he is in his current position thanks to his father, with comments such as “Let’s be honest, if his family didn’t own the team he would not have a ride.” Well, Ware will have a lot to prove this season against NASCAR heavyweight, but he is determined to make the most of the opportunity.

Ware hopes short-track results will fuel Cup Series success

Cody Ware is leaving no stone unturned. While his full-time seat in the Cup Series is guaranteed, the racer is eager to change the narrative and show his critics that he has earned a spot amongst NASCAR’s heavyweights. To hone his craft, the driver will be competing in several short-track events this year at venues such as Florence Motor Speedway and Nashville Fairground Speedway to develop his skills.

Sharing his plan before the 2025 campaign begins, Ware candidly said, “I think that this helps me with the Cup program, short track racing, Martinsville, Bristol, things like that. I think all this stuff, these cars have a ton of horsepower. I think there’s a lot of translation for the aggression of racing in these compared to short-track racing in NASCAR. I think it’s a lot of good seat time and we’re just here to have fun. If we can have a good night that’s a bonus too.”

Rick Ware Racing overachieved last year with Justin Haley at the helm. Cody Ware will hope that with crew chief Billy Plourde’s guidance, the racer can carry forward that momentum this year. The North Carolina native is quite optimistic about his chances, going on to say, “I’ve improved as a driver and RWR has improved as a team.” However, the 29-year-old will ultimately need to let his results do the talking to end the ‘nepotism’ narrative once and for all.