DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – NASCAR XFINITY Series title contender Justin Allgaier will have to weather the same situation his JR Motorsports teammate Elliott Sadler did last year at Homestead-Miami Speedway: racing without his primary crew chief.
NASCAR announced Monday that Allgaier and the No. 7 Chevrolet team have been hit with an L1 penalty as a result of an infraction found during post-race inspection following Saturday’s Ticket Galaxy 200 at Phoenix Raceway.
The violation in question was a rear brake cooling assembly issue, covered under Section 20.15.2.2 of the NASCAR Rule Book, which states that rear brake cooling assemblies must be sealed from air inlet to exhaust.
As a result, crew chief Jason Burdett has been fined 1$0,000 and suspended from this week’s championship-deciding race at Homestead, the Ford EcoBoost 300.
In addition, Allgaier’s 10th-place finish was declared encumbered and the team was docked 10 driver and owner points, though neither of those penalties affect Allgaier’s eligibility among the Championship 4.
The 31-year-old Riverton, Ill. native ended Saturday’s race at Phoenix 30 points clear of the cut line for elimination.
Burdett has served as crew chief of the No. 7 team since 2015 and holds four series wins to his credit, including two this year with Allgaier at Phoenix in March and Chicagoland in September.
Last season, Sadler was penalized for a lug nut violation (two loose) and lost crew chief Kevin Meendering for the finale.
Allgaier will be one of three JR Motorsports drivers racing for the XFINITY title Saturday at Homestead, alongside rookie sensation William Byron and Sadler, who has finished as the series runner-up three times (2011, ’12, ’16).
That trio will be joined by Richard Childress Racing’s Daniel Hemric, who like Byron is trying to become just the second rookie to win the XFINITY Series title. Chase Elliott became the first driver to accomplish that feat when he took the crown in 2014.
The Ford EcoBoost 300 kicks off at 3:30 p.m. ET Saturday, live on NBCSN, the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.
About the Writer
Jacob Seelman is the Managing Editor of Race Chaser Online and creator of the Motorsports Madness radio show, airing at 7 p.m. Eastern every Monday on the Performance Motorsports Network, as well as a periodic contributor to SPEED SPORT Magazine.
Seelman grew up in the sport, watching his grandparents co-own the RaDiUs Motorsports NASCAR Cup Series team in the 1990s.
The 23-year-old is currently studying Broadcast Journalism at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, S.C., and is also serving as the full-time tour announcer for the Must See Racing Sprint Car Series.
Email Jacob at: editor@racechaseronline.com
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