Tommy Joe Martins Crew Chief Daniel Johnson Suspended After Rear Axle Issue in Indianapolis

It was already a bad day last Saturday for underdog racer Tommy Joe Martins and his No. 44 Martins Motorsports team as the rear axle on their machine flew out of the car forcing an end to their race. However, insult to injury occurred on Tuesday when NASCAR handed down penalties to the team for the infraction.

Team crew chief Daniel Johnson has been suspended for the next NASCAR Xfinity Series event at Kentucky

According to the weekly penalty report, the team broke section 12.5.2.7.4e of the rule book. The report noted the reasoning of loss or separation of improperly installed real axle.

No word on who the crew chief will be, just yet, but Kevyn Robolledo has recently joined the team as car chief after a stint with RSS Racing’s No. 93 team. He could be a potential fill-in.

Also on the penalty report, the No. 22 Team Penske NASCAR Xfinity Series team crew chief Brian Wilson was issued a $5,000 fine for an unsecured lug nut during Saturday’s race as well.