The No. 48 Big Machine Racing team in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series will be without three crew members for the next four races after NASCAR handed out penalties on Wednesday following last Saturday’s race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Crew members Patrick Donahue (crew chief), Dillon Bassett (car chief) and Morgan Olsen (engineer) have all been suspended for the next four O’Reilly Auto Parts Series events, through April 11 at Bristol Motor Speedway, after NASCAR discovered a loss or separation of ballast from the No. 48 Chevrolet driven by Patrick Staropoli during Saturday’s The LiUNA!
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RELATED: O’Reilly Auto Parts Series standings
This penalty is a safety violation detailed in Sections 10.5.2.5 B & E of the NASCAR Rule Book. Ballast added to a vehicle in order to meet minimum weight can break off the car and become a debris hazard for other competitors.
Staropoli had a couple of incidents during last Saturday’s race, one on Lap 118 where he and Dean Thompson spun out to bring out a caution, and another on Lap 132 when he and Josh Bilicki spun in the frontstretch grass. Staropoli finished 21st, one lap down, and is 16th in the standings, 150 points behind leader Justin Allgaier after five races.
The O’Reilly Auto Parts Series is back in action this weekend at Darlington Raceway for Saturday’s Sport Clips Haircuts VFW Help a Hero 200 (5:30 p.m. ET, The CW, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
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