RFK, Team Penske opt against appealing Talladega disqualifications

RFK Racing and Team Penske will not appeal their disqualifications from Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway. Ryan Preece and the No. 60 RFK Racing team were disqualified from second place for violating section 14.5.8.F of the NASCAR Rule Book, which covers the spoiler. The car must have two shims on the spoiler, and the team put on three.

Preece was moved to 38th position in the finishing order and received one point. The original second-place finish would have netted him 40 points and put him 12th in the championship standings. Instead, Preece is 14th in the standings.

“RFK Racing acknowledges and accepts NASCAR’s decision to disqualify the No. 60 Ford Mustang following post-race inspection at Talladega and will not appeal the ruling,” the team said in a statement. “The infraction stemmed from an unintentional adjustment during pre-race inspection to correct a spoiler angle issue. While the change did not provide a competitive advantage, it did not meet the approved compliance method. We respect the ruling and remain committed to integrity and adherence to NASCAR’s standards.”

Joey Logano (main image) and the No. 22 Team Penske team crossed the finish line fifth. However, Logano’s car violated sections 14.5.8.E and 14.1.P, which are for the spoiler and overall assembled vehicle rules. The car had a missing spoiler bolt.

Logano was moved to 39th in the running order and received one point. This negated Logano’s first top-five finish this season and the 41 points that came with it. He fell from eighth to 11th place in the championship standings.

A statement from Team Penske read, “One of the 18 bolts on the surface of the spoiler that connect to the base was found to be loose, and NASCAR penalized the team as a result. This was not intentional and happened throughout the course of the race event. Team Penske accepts the disqualification.”

Cup Series teams return to action Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway.