Can there be any drama or conspiracy theory in NASCAR that doesn’t involve Jimmy Johnson?
Earlier this week, NASCAR hit Penske Racing hard. Penske drivers Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski both had to replace their rear housings before last week’s NRA 500. This was after NASCAR confiscated the casing of both cars, along with other parts.
It was later decided that the plays were not within the limits of the regulations and both teams were punished.
Logano and Keselowski’s crew chiefs were both suspended. The suspension must last six points races. However, they will also miss the All-Star race. The two crew chiefs were also placed on probation until Dec. 31 and fined $100,000.
NASCAR didn’t stop there.
The car chief and crew engineer of the No. 22 and No. 2 were also suspended for six points races and placed on probation until Dec. 31. Additionally, the crew chief of both cars was given the same suspension and probation. Keselowski and Logano were additionally penalized 25 championship driver points and 25 owner points.
So how does Johnson fit into all of this?
Well, it turns out that Johnson and his No. 48 team were neighbors with the Penske cars in the garage this race weekend. During a media interview (seen in the video below) leading up to the STP 400 at Kansas Speedway, Johnson was asked if he “turned Penske in.” Johnson had the following response:
The best judge in the garage business has always been your neighbor.
That being said, the Hendrick Group and Team 48 did not evaluate the Penske cars. Teams face two decisions in the garage area. When the team sees something, they have two options.
First, they go home and try to adapt it to their car and see if they can make it work. Or they get in the (NASCAR) truck and say something. We don’t say anything. We are a company built on performance. Under no circumstances did any member of Team #48 say anything.
I have to say that of all the Johnson conspiracy theories in recent years, this one may be the most plausible.
Think about it like this. A NASCAR garage consists of a lot of people and a lot of moving parts, if you will. That being said, everything done in the garage is out in the open.
So if anyone from Team #48 was looking the other way, it’s plausible they would have noticed something fishy in the Penske area. If they had actually seen something, they very well could have sent someone to warn NASCAR.
However, every argument has two sides. One could just as easily argue that the No. 48 team would have been far too busy with their own tasks to notice anything in the Penske garage. Plus, when it comes to suspension parts and such, we could literally be talking about inches.
Is it fair to say that anyone in camp #48 would be able to notice such an adjustment or modification with the naked eye?
Media – I’m missing something here, regardless if a team “reported” us. Clearly, we were under the impression that the coins were legal to begin with…#Let go
– Brad Keselowski (@keselowski) April 19, 2013
These are just a few arguments. Depending on which side you take, you might easily find a few more.
We’ll probably never know if Johnson and the No. 48 team had a role in any of this. Personally, I prefer the fact that they are not involved.
I have to imagine the last thing Team #48 wants to be known as is a bunch of snitches. Johnson also seemed to look pretty good in the interview when asked about the topic.
Plus, you can’t forget the No. 48 crew chief, Chad Knaus. Knaus is known for pushing the boundaries himself in the past. If he were to discover such knowledge, it would make more sense for him to store it. This way, he could try to use it in his garage instead of reporting a competitor.
Keselowski addressed this situation better in his tweet above: Let’s let it go.
