Denny Hamlin and the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing team will officially lose their crew chief Chris Gabehart and their two pit crew members Derrell Edwards and Blake Houston following a separated wheel following a pit stop at Dover Motor Speedway on May 2nd.
The No. 11 team had their appeal heard and denied by the National Motorsports Appeals Panel on Wednesday.
The Panel, which was made up of Mr. Kelly Housby, Mr. Bill Mullis and Mr. Kevin Whitaker, decided that the team did indeed violate section 10.5.2.6 of the NASCAR Cup Series rulebook during the pit stop, which led to the wheel separation.
The NMAP did make a slight alteration to the penalties handed to the No. 11 team. Gabehart and the two pit crew members will not be suspended this weekend for the NASCAR Cup Series All-Star race. Instead, the Appeals Panel opted to make the four-race suspension take place during the next four NASCAR Cup Series points-paying events.
The three team members will be missing from the No. 11 team at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Gateway, Sonoma Raceway and Nashville Superspeedway. Gabehart and the pit crew members will return for the July 3rd event at Road America.
