Section 7: Violations & Penalties
7.1 Penalty Assessment Authority
NASCAR has sole and exclusive authority to assess penalties for violations of the NASCAR Rule Book, NASCAR Bulletins, and any NASCAR-issued directives. Penalties may be assessed before, during, or after a NASCAR-sanctioned event. The NASCAR Penalty Review Committee reviews all potential violations identified by Technical Officials and Race Control and determines the appropriate penalty. Penalties are communicated to the affected team's Crew Chief and are publicly announced by NASCAR.
7.2 Technical Violations (Car Inspection)
Cars are subject to inspection before and after each event. Technical violations are classified by severity:
- P1 (Minor Violation): Typically a small monetary fine and/or loss of practice/qualifying time. Examples include minor body tolerances exceeded, improper signage, or minor equipment infractions.
- P2 (Moderate Violation): Fine, points deduction (driver and/or owner), and possible crew chief or team member suspension. Examples include body modifications outside approved tolerances or unapproved parts.
- P3 (Major Violation): Significant fine, major points deduction, and suspension of team members. Reserved for significant attempts to circumvent the Rule Book's intent.
- P4 (Severe/Charter-Level Violation): Maximum fine, maximum points deduction, extended suspensions, and possible loss of charter or other significant privileges. Reserved for egregious or intentional cheating.
Cars that fail post-race inspection and are found to have a non-approved performance advantage may be assessed an "encumbered finish," meaning the official finishing position is retained for points purposes but the team is subject to the full applicable penalty, which may include loss of race and/or stage points, playoff points, and associated bonuses earned in that event.
7.3 On-Track Penalties
NASCAR Race Control may assess on-track penalties during a race event, including:
- Drive-Through Penalty: The car must enter pit road at pit road speed and drive through its pit stall without stopping. Common for pit road speeding, too many crew members over the wall, and improper tire disposal.
- Stop-and-Go Penalty: The car must enter pit road, stop in its pit stall for a minimum time period (typically 1 second of complete stop), and then exit. Assessed for more serious on-track infractions.
- Black Flag (Disqualification): A car displaying the black flag must immediately report to pit road and cease competition. Failure to comply results in the scoring loop being turned off for that car (the car is no longer scored).
- Loss of Laps / Pass-Through: In certain situations, NASCAR may require a car to serve a pass-through penalty during a green-flag period, effectively costing the car time and track position.
7.4 Pit Road Violations
Common pit road violations and their standard penalties include:
- Pit road speed violation: Drive-through penalty for the first offense. Repeat violations in the same event may result in a stop-and-go or further penalty.
- Too many crew members over the wall (more than 5): Drive-through penalty.
- Unsafe release: Drive-through or stop-and-go penalty.
- Tire not retained in pit stall (tire off pit road): Drive-through penalty.
- Jackman or fueler over the wall before the car enters the pit stall: Drive-through penalty.
7.5 Restart Violations
Jumping a restart (accelerating before the restart zone) results in a drive-through penalty. The car may also be required to restart at the tail of the field in addition to the drive-through, at NASCAR's discretion, if the violation is deemed to have materially affected the restart.
7.6 Appeals Process
Teams wishing to appeal a NASCAR penalty must submit a written notice of appeal to NASCAR within the timeframe specified in the Rule Book (typically within 48 hours of the penalty announcement for post-event penalties). Appeals are heard by the NASCAR National Motorsports Appeal Panel (NMAP), which consists of independent members. The NMAP may uphold, reduce, or overturn a penalty. NMAP decisions are final and binding. On-track (during-race) penalties assessed by Race Control are not subject to the formal appeals process but may be reviewed by NASCAR's series officials for future consideration.
7.7 Substance Abuse Policy
NASCAR maintains a strict Substance Abuse Policy applicable to all licensed participants. Testing may be conducted at any NASCAR-sanctioned event or facility. Any participant found to have a prohibited substance in their system at a level exceeding NASCAR's defined thresholds is subject to immediate suspension of their NASCAR License and must complete a NASCAR-approved substance abuse program before reinstatement. The specific substances and testing protocols are defined in the NASCAR Substance Abuse Policy document, which is incorporated by reference into the Rule Book.