NASCAR clarifies possible penalties to OEMs with new rules

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Yesterday at 04:02 PM

On Wednesday, NASCAR added lines to the rule book for the 2025 season

Last season, we saw major NASCAR manufacturer drama at Martinsville Speedway. It has brought new rules and possible penalties for the 2025 season.

William Byron (Team Chevy) and Christopher Bell (Team Toyota) were just a point apart in the closing laps of the race at Martinsville Speedway. It was an elimination race that would see one of them eliminated at the checkered flag.

Ross Chastain and Austin Dillon, both Chevy drivers lined up side-by-side behind William Byron. They were clearly faster but elected not to pass Byron.

At the same time, Bubba Wallace (Team Toyota) slowed drastically in the closing laps. He stated over the radio that he had an issue. On the final corner, Christopher Bell drove right by Wallace, giving him the one point he needed to advance.

NASCAR stepped in. They ruled that Bell rode the wall, docking him to the tail end of the lead lap. Bell was removed from the playoffs.

Christopher Bell penalized; Removed from NASCAR championship (Video)

Later, NASCAR issued steep penalties to multiple teams. In total, $300,000 in fines were issued in relation to the incidents.

NASCAR penalizes Bubba Wallace, Ross Chastain, Austin Dillon

Ahead of the championship race, NASCAR issued a warning to all three manufacturers. They noted that any race manipulation in the championship race could cause NASCAR to remove them from the Daytona 500 for this season.

NASCAR 'threatened' to park drivers for Daytona 500 if they manipulated the championship race

NASCAR also stated that new rules would be put in place. Those rules would allow NASCAR to penalize manufacturers, instead of just teams.

Now, NASCAR has clarified those penalties:

NASCAR Rulebook

Section 5.5.A: "Any member who attempts to improperly influence the outcome of the event or encourages, persuades, or induces others to do so shall be subject to penalties, as outlined in Section 10 Violations and Disciplinary Action. Prohibited actions include, but are not limited to, intentional planning or conduct that prioritizes objectives other than achieving the best possible competitive result for their team."

10.5.2.8.A: "NASCAR reserves the right to determine if an OEM has violated the NASCAR Rule Book and may impose penalties on the OEM or its representatives accordingly. The following framework serves as a general guideline for assessing OEM penalties. The examples provided are illustrative and not exhaustive, offering clarity on the types and ranges of infractions that may result in penalties, should NASCAR determine enforcement is warranted."

Section 10.5.2.8.c, including but not limited to the following possible reprimands:

– “Loss of 25-50 manufacturer points.”

– “Loss of 30-60 wind-tunnel hours.”

– “Loss of 250-500 RCFD (restricted computational fluid dynamics) test runs.”

– “Loss of 2-4 vehicle tests.”

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