RFK Racing explains Preece infraction, won’t appeal disqualification

Sunday night after the Cup race at Talladega, NASCAR dropped a bombshell as they announced the disqualification of RFK Racing’s Ryan Preece and Team Penske’s Joey Logano. Preece had finished second in a photo finish, losing out to Austin Cindric by just 0.022s. Logano was not far behind, placing fifth originally. 

However, both cars failed post-race inspection due to unrelated issues with the rear spoiler of the Ford Mustangs. As a result, Preece is credited with 38th and Logano 39th as both drivers collect a single point for their efforts. 

Penske was quick to decide against an appeal, accepting NASCAR’s decision and claiming that it was not intentional on Sunday night. “One of the 18 bolts on the surface of the spoiler that connect to the base was found to be loose, and NASCAR penalized the team as a result,” Penske explained in a statement. “This was not intentional and happened throughout the course of the race event. Team Penske accepts the disqualification.” 

RFK discusses infraction

RFK has now confirmed that they will not bring forth an appeal either, releasing their own statement on Monday: “RFK Racing acknowledges and accepts NASCAR’s decision to disqualify the No. 60 Ford Mustang following post-race inspection at Talladega and will not appeal the ruling.”

Explaining the issue, the team continued: “The infraction stemmed from an unintentional adjustment during pre-race inspection to correct a spoiler angle issue. While the change did not provide a competitive advantage, it did not meet the approved compliance method. We respect the ruling and remain committed to integrity and adherence to NASCAR’s standards.”

Preece fell from 12th to 18th in the regular season standings as a result of the disqualification, losing what was his career-best finish and falling outside of the provisional playoff grid. Logano dropped from eighth to eleventh in the standings as the defending series champion lost what was going to be his first top five finish of the 2025 season.