Greg Biffle, Roush Racing Penalties Upheld

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Oct. 6, 1999) The National Stock Car Commission on Tuesday upheld the penalty notice to NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series crew chief Randy Goss of Roush Racing, who was fined following the Sept. 24 running of The Orleans 250 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The decision, which was reached after a hearing in Charlotte, N.C., was confirmed by Tom Deery, chairman of the National Stock Car Commission.

The Commission upheld a fine of $46,860 against Goss, along with the team's loss of 120 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series championship points. The fine and loss of points represented the difference between first- and last-place money and points, respectively.

The penalties were levied following a postrace inspection, which disclosed an unapproved intake manifold on the engine of the team's race-winning No. 50 Grainger Ford truck driven by series point leader Greg Biffle.

The infraction was deemed a violation of Section 12, Rule 4, Articles A&Q in the 1999 NASCAR Touring Series Rule Book: Actions detrimental to the sport of automobile racing and use of equipment that has not been approved or does not conform to NASCAR rules. Specifically, the portion of the intake manifold unapproved was the internal modifications to the plenum (Section 20B -5.9E(4)), as well as the length of runners inside the plenum (Section 20B-5.9E(1)).

The maintenance of the penalties leaves Biffle with a 10-point lead in the series championship race over 1997 series champion Jack Sprague, driver of the GMAC Financial Services Chevrolet, heading into Friday night's Kroger 225 at Louisville Motor Speedway. The championship battle is now a four-man race with three races remaining, as third-place Mopar Dodge driver Dennis Setzer is 41 points behind Biffle and RC Cola Dodge driver Stacy Compton is 95 points behind Biffle in fourth.

The victory by Biffle at Las Vegas was his series record-setting ninth of the season.

Source: NASCAR Online