Denny Hamlin’s pursuit of his first Cup Series championship has become much harder. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver was subjected to a hefty fine by NASCAR after Toyota Racing Development “mistakenly” rebuilt his race-winning engine from Bristol before the sanctioning body could inspect it. As a result, the 43-year-old racing veteran was docked 75 points, making his regular-season championship dream impossible, as well as subjected to a 10 playoff points deduction.

But wait, there’s more! Hamlin’s crew chief, Chris Gabehart, was also fined a staggering $100,000. Under NASCAR’s rulebook, the infringements justified an L2-level penalty, prompting Toyota Racing Development to release a statement apologizing for their wrongdoing.

Denny Hamlin penalized for Toyota’s negligence

According to NASCAR rules, teams must reuse their engines in 18 out of 36 regular-season events, as long as they are sealed and untampered with. Teams competing full-time are expected to give a schedule, highlighting which events it plans to use a sealed engine at the start of the season. In this instance, Toyota Racing Development self-reported its mistake of disassembling Denny Hamlin’s race-winning engine from Bristol Motor Speedway before NASCAR had the chance to inspect it, leading to a hefty penalty.

While Toyota Racing Development President David Wilson absolved Joe Gibbs Racing from any blame, the car manufacturer took sole responsibility for their actions and any wrongdoing. A statement released by Wilson read, “TRD is solely responsible for the handling and disposition of all our engines pre- and post-race. Despite procedures being in place, Denny’s race-winning engine from Bristol was mistakenly returned to our Costa Mesa [Calif.] facility, disassembled and rebuilt instead of being torn down and inspected by NASCAR per the rulebook.” 

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

The penalty will have some significant repercussions for Denny Hamlin’s title hopes. His aim of winning the regular season championship has been wiped out, after being relegated to sixth in the driver standings, 103 points behind Cup Series leader Tyler Reddick. The biggest blow for Hamlin would be the 10 playoff points deduction, and with two races remaining before the regular season ends, he doesn’t have the time to make up ground before the postseason begins at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

All hope is not lost. With three wins in the Cup Series before NASCAR’s ruling, Denny Hamlin remains eligible for playoffs and has a chance of securing that all-elusive championship. Races at the Daytona International Speedway and Darlington Raceway will allow Hamlin to make the best out of a bad situation, and one can’t help but feel that this latest setback will make him hungrier for success. The Joe Gibbs Racing team will be hurting right now, and rightfully so, but one can’t help but feel that it’ll just make them more motivated to redeem themselves.

NASCAR’s take on Joe Gibbs Racing’s penalty?

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According to NASCAR, the sanctioning body found the No. 11 team in violation of Sections 14.7.1.E&F and 14.7.1.1.B&E of the rulebook. Each of these sections not only highlights the importance of engine inspection before it is disassembled by the manufacturers but also the proper procedure that must be followed when sealing the components, ensuring they are not altered, damaged, or tampered with in any way. The penalties given to Denny Hamlin, his crew chief, and Joe Gibbs Racing are the lowest level L2 penalties that were permissible as per the rulebook.

A statement released by NASCAR read, “Each race-winning engine must be inspected by NASCAR once the race team determines that its life cycle is complete. In this instance, prior to presenting the engine to NASCAR for inspection, Toyota Racing Development disassembled and rebuilt the No. 11’s Bristol-winning race engine. Per the NASCAR Rule Book, this violation results in an L2 penalty to the race team and driver. Toyota Racing Development self-reported this violation.”

It will be interesting to see how Joe Gibbs Racing reacts to the hefty penalty.

• Will they hold Toyota Racing Development accountable for their negligence?
• Will they hit back at NASCAR for a delayed verdict, which may have jeopardized their Cup Series hopes?

As things stand, Denny Hamlin looks to be fighting an uphill battle at the business end of the season. It remains to be seen if he rises to the challenge and finally secures the championship that has evaded him throughout his long and illustrious career.