NASCAR suspends Erik Jones’ crew chief 2 races

Erik Jones’ car was found to have nonconforming rear suspension parts after Sunday’s Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway.

Rookie Erik Jones will be without his crew chief for two races with NASCAR suspending Chris Gayle Wednesday after determining Jones’ No. 77 Furniture Row Racing car had an illegal rear suspension in Sunday’s Monster Energy Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway.

Gayle was also fined $50,000, with the team and Jones each losing 25 points. Jones finished eighth in the Overton’s 400 and afterward his car was randomly selected to go to the NASCAR R&D Center in Concord, N.C., for additional inspection.

The illegality of Jones’ car pertains to the truck trailing arm spacer/pinion angle shim mating surface, which must be planar and in complete contact with corresponding mating surfaces at all points and at all times. Joey Logano’s No. 22 Team Penske Ford was found with a similar issue after winning at Richmond Raceway in April, a result that he wasn’t allowed to use for postseason eligibility.

The points deduction moves Jones from 16th to 18th in the regular season standings. He is 150 points behind Matt Kenseth for the final provisional playoff transfer position, effectively meaning Jones must win one of the five remaining regular season races to qualify for the playoffs.

Gayle will miss races at Watkins Glen International (Aug. 6) and Michigan International Speedway (Aug. 13). FRR named engineer James Small to serve as the interim crew chief during Gayle’s suspension.

NASCAR also issued $10,000 fines on Wednesday to the crew chiefs for drivers Trevor Bayne (Matt Puccia), Kyle Busch (Adam Stevens), and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (Brian Pattie). Each crew chief was penalized after his respective car was found with a single unsecured lug nut during post-race inspection at Pocono.