Erik Jones has been penalized 20 points following the the AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway, which was the second race of the 2018 NASCAR Cup Series round of 8.
The 40-point penalty issued to Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick following his victory in the second race of the 2018 NASCAR Cup Series round of 8, the AAA Texas 500, at Texas Motor Speedway got most of the attention on Wednesday as far as penalties are concerned, especially considering the fact that his victory no longer clinches him a berth in the Championship 4.
Overshadowed by Harvick’s penalty was the penalty issued to Joe Gibbs Racing’s Erik Jones, who drove his #20 Toyota to a fourth place finish behind Harvick and Team Penske teammates Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano in second and third, respectively, in the 337-lap race around the four-turn, 1.5-mile (2.414-kilometer) Texas Motor Speedway oval in Fort Worth, Texas.
It was announced on Wednesday that Jones and his #20 Toyota were issued an L1-level penalty for infractions pertaining to the body and package tray of his #20 Toyota
Here is what NASCAR.com had to say about why Jones was issued this penalty.
"“The No. 20 Toyota that carried Erik Jones to fourth place was found with infractions on the body and package tray. Those sections (20.4.h and 20.4.17.8.b) in the rule book note that “air cannot pass from one area of the vehicle interior to another. Vehicle package tray must remain flat and straight, front to back, with one break.’”"
As a result of this penalty, Jones, who is no longer in championship contention after he was eliminated following the round of 16, was docked 20 driver points while his #20 Toyota team were docked 20 owner points.
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Jones’s crew chief, Chris Gayle, and car chief, Jason Overstreet, were both suspended from the next two races on the schedule, which are the races at ISM Raceway and Homestead-Miami Speedway that are set to close out the season. Gayle was also fined $50,000.
Jones ended this race in 13th place in the championship standings with 2,204 points. Following his 20-point penalty, he has just 2,184 points and is now in a 15th place tie in the standings with Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Dillon. These two drivers are tied for the lowest position in the standings among the 16 original playoff drivers, as Jones dropped below Hendrick Motorsports teammates Jimmie Johnson (2,195 points) and Alex Bowman (2,187 points), who now sit in 13th and 14th in the standings, respectively, as a result of his penalty.
Erik Jones and the rest of the NASCAR Cup Series field are set to get back in action this Sunday, November 11 at 2:30 p.m. ET. They are set to compete in the Can-Am 500 at ISM Raceway in Avondale, Arizona at this time. NBC is set to broadcast this race live.