Ok, I don’t know jack about NASCAR period, but I keep hearing that there have been bans and fines and points docked from a few of the racers. Can some Doper who’s a bit more NASCAR savvy break down what’s going on to this nominal racing fan? What’s such a crime that this kind of punishment is coming down?
Current thread in IMHO:
Generally, NASCAR’s goal is to have all of the cars set up “equally” or at least, they have strict equipment rules to ensure one driver doesn’t have a huge advantage over the other drivers. This is different than other leagues where some drivers have basically no chance of winning because they’re on an older chassis that just can’t compete with the expensive new chassis their owner can’t afford.
The crews still tweak the setup to try and get the most out of it on that day, but there’s only so much you can do legally. Putting sterno or an oxygenating gel in the carburetor goes way beyond what’s legal.