NASCAR: Chase Elliott hit with massive penalty at Watkins Glen
By Asher Fair
Chase Elliott has been penalized ahead of Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Watkins Glen International, a track where he is the two-time reigning winner.
Hendrick Motorsports’ Chase Elliott will be forced to start Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Watkins Glen International from the rear of the field as a result of a pre-race infraction.
Elliott was set to start this 90-lap Go Bowling at The Glen around the eight-turn, 2.454-mile (3.949-kilometer) natural terrain road course in Watkins Glen, New York in 11th place behind the wheel of his #9 Chevrolet based on the starting lineup formula.
This penalty comes as a result of window air deflector issue, and it includes more than Elliott dropping to the rear.
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He has also been docked 10 points in the driver standings, and the #9 team has been docked 10 points in the owner standings. Elliott still sits in sixth place in the standings, but with just 701 points as opposed to 711. He is now just five points ahead of Joe Gibbs Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. in seventh.
Additionally, crew chief Alan Gustafson has been suspended for today’s race and fined $25,000 for the infraction. Engineer Tom Gray is set to replace Gustafson for this race.
The same penalty was issued to Joe Gibbs Racing’s Christopher Bell and #20 team crew chief Adam Stevens for the same infraction. Both Elliott and Bell are set to drop to the tail end of the inside lane at the start.
As a result, here is the updated starting lineup for the 2021 Go Bowling at The Glen at Watkins Glen International.
Starting Lineup
1st – Brad Keselowski
2nd – Joey Logano
3rd – Ryan Blaney
4th – Kyle Larson
5th – Kevin Harvick
6th – Denny Hamlin
7th – Martin Truex Jr.
8th – Aric Almirola
9th – Tyler Reddick
10th – Alex Bowman
11th – William Byron
12th – Ross Chastain
13th – Kurt Busch
14th – Matt DiBenedetto
15th – Cole Custer
16th – Austin Dillon
17th – Daniel Suarez
18th – Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
19th – Ryan Preece
20th – Kyle Busch
21st – Michael McDowell
22nd – Erik Jones
23rd – Chase Briscoe
24th – Chris Buescher
25th – Corey LaJoie
26th – Bubba Wallace
27th – B.J. McLeod
28th – Ryan Newman
29th – Cody Ware
30th – Justin Haley
31st – Josh Bilicki
32nd – Anthony Alfredo
33rd – Quin Houff
34th – James Davison
35th – Christopher Bell
36th – Garrett Smithley
37th – Chase Elliott
Tune in to NBC Sports Network at 3:00 p.m. ET this afternoon for the live broadcast of the Go Bowling at The Glen from Watkins Glen International.