Aside from his announcement last week that he'd have a new home for Sprint Cup competition in 2010, it's been a season loaded down with disappointment for Martin Truex Jr.Tuesday afternoon, it took another step in the wrong direction.
Truex and his No. 1 Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing team were docked 25 points, fined $25,000 and had crew chief Kevin "Bono" Manion placed on probation through the end of the year after the car was found to be too high after Saturday night's race at Chicagoland Speedway.
Truex was one of the random selections by NASCAR to go through the post-race inspection procedure, and the sanctioning body determined that the left-rear quarter panel sat above the maximum height restriction. NASCAR then confiscated the car to do more testing on it at their research and development center in Concord, N.C., before releasing word on the penalty.
Having a car that rides higher in the rear-end than the rulebook allows could conceivably alter the car's downforce and handling in a positive manner, though it didn't seem to make much of a difference in the Lifelock.com 400. The No. 1 finished 16th.
The penalty didn't affect Truex's position in the point standings, as he remains 24th with just three Top-10s and a pole in 2009.
Prior to Chicagoland, Truex announced that he'd be leaving the only team he's raced for in Sprint Cup competition -- Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing, formerly Dale Earnhardt Inc. -- in favor of driving full-time in the No. 56 Toyota for Michael Waltrip Racing in 2010.
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