DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- NASCAR has penalized three Cup Series teams ahead of Thursday night's Duel races that will set the lineup for the Daytona 500.
According to two inspection reports, NASCAR penalized the No. 34 team of Front Row Motorsports, the No. 51 team of Rick Ware Racing, and the No. 66 team of Garage 66/MBM Motorsports. These penalties led to multiple ejections.
The No. 66 of Garage 66 and the No. 51 of Rick Ware Racing both failed pre-qualifying inspection two times on Wednesday. As a result, NASCAR ejected No. 51 engineer Chris Stanley and No. 66 car chief Dylan Roberts through the end of the Duel races.
Stanley will be eligible to return to the garage on Friday to continue with the Daytona 500 weekend. Roberts will be eligible to return on Friday if Chandler Smith races the No. 66 into the Great American Race. The No. 66 is one of seven open entries battling for the final two spots on the starting grid.
According to a report issued Thursday morning, the No. 51 of Rick Ware Racing and the No. 34 of Front Row Motorsports both had improper weights. NASCAR responded by ejecting Front Row crew chief Chris Lawson and Rick Ware crew chief Billy Plourde for the rest of the weekend.
Kevyn Rebolledo will take over as crew chief for Todd Gilliland and the No. 34 team starting with Thursday's Duel races and continuing into the Daytona 500. Tommy Baldwin will take over as the crew chief for Cody Ware and the No. 51 team.
NASCAR stated that the rest of the cars trying to qualify for Sunday's season-opening race avoided penalties. Twenty-three passed on their second inspection attempt. The rest passed on the first attempt.
With the inspection sessions complete, the teams will prepare for the two, 60-lap Duel races on Thursday night. These events will set the lineup for the Daytona 500 and will determine which open drivers join Jimmie Johnson, Martin Truex Jr., and Helio Castroneves on the starting grid.