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Sprint Cup
SPEED Quotes: Kyle Petty, Despain React To Hendrick Appeal Denial
SPEED on-air personalities Dave Despain and Kyle Petty weigh in on Hendrick Motorsports’ failure to win its initial appeal...
PETTY, DESPAIN REACT TO UPHOLDING OF HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS PENALTY
The National Stock Car Racing Appeals Panel on Tuesday unanimously upheld the original penalties assessed by NASCAR against Hendrick Motorsports and crew chief Knaus for violations found in opening-day inspection at Daytona International Speedway last month. Following is reaction from SPEED on-air personalities Dave Despain and Kyle Petty regarding Hendrick Motorsports’ failure to win their initial appeal and their next and final step in appealing the decision to National Stock Car Racing Chief Appellate Officer John Middlebrook:
“I think NASCAR sent a pretty clear message when they busted the 48 team without even running the car through tech. I don't think that was intended as a message to the garage area; it was a message to Chad. I would have been shocked if the appeal had gone any way other than this."
--Dave Despain, host of Wind Tunnel
“Coming off of a unanimous decision, I really think Hendrick Motorsports has a slim-to-none chance of this being overturned by Mr. Middlebrook. As we’ve seen so many times in the court system, the Supreme Court oftentimes upholds what a lower court rules, especially in a decision like this. Mr. Middlebrook is the final answer. If it had been a split decision, I think Hendrick’s chances in the next appeal still would be questionable, but I don’t see how Mr. Middlebrook can do anything but uphold the panel’s ruling.
“I do think the failure to overturn the penalty has something to do with Chad Knaus’ past history of infractions with NASCAR. If this was his first offense, we wouldn’t see this punishment and probably wouldn’t on the second offense. But this is down the road for Chad. I defend Chad 100-percent in this particular case, and I haven’t always defended him – quite the contrary. History probably does have something to do with this ruling, but I think that tendency is across all walks of life. If you’re a teacher and have that kid who acts up all the time, his past behavior probably clouds your judgment of him at some point in time and eliminates any leniency you might have given him. In the legal system, with a habitual offender, the punishment is different than a first-time offender. With Chad, I think the punishment is different than it would be for Steve Letarte or some of the other Hendrick crew chiefs.
“I still say there was no crime committed by the No. 48 team and Knaus. This is just my opinion, and FaceBook and Twitter and the rest of the world can go off all they want, but there was no crime. No one was harmed or cheated by what they did. They presented the car for initial inspection and it failed initial inspection. It never made it onto the race track, never turned the wheel or even made it to the template room. With that in mind, the punishment doesn’t fit the crime – especially not the points penalty. But when no wheel has been turned and no points earned, it’s totally against my philosophy to penalize like this.”
--Kyle Petty, SPEED analyst
The National Stock Car Racing Appeals Panel on Tuesday unanimously upheld the original penalties assessed by NASCAR against Hendrick Motorsports and crew chief Knaus for violations found in opening-day inspection at Daytona International Speedway last month. Following is reaction from SPEED on-air personalities Dave Despain and Kyle Petty regarding Hendrick Motorsports’ failure to win their initial appeal and their next and final step in appealing the decision to National Stock Car Racing Chief Appellate Officer John Middlebrook:
“I think NASCAR sent a pretty clear message when they busted the 48 team without even running the car through tech. I don't think that was intended as a message to the garage area; it was a message to Chad. I would have been shocked if the appeal had gone any way other than this."
--Dave Despain, host of Wind Tunnel
“Coming off of a unanimous decision, I really think Hendrick Motorsports has a slim-to-none chance of this being overturned by Mr. Middlebrook. As we’ve seen so many times in the court system, the Supreme Court oftentimes upholds what a lower court rules, especially in a decision like this. Mr. Middlebrook is the final answer. If it had been a split decision, I think Hendrick’s chances in the next appeal still would be questionable, but I don’t see how Mr. Middlebrook can do anything but uphold the panel’s ruling.
“I do think the failure to overturn the penalty has something to do with Chad Knaus’ past history of infractions with NASCAR. If this was his first offense, we wouldn’t see this punishment and probably wouldn’t on the second offense. But this is down the road for Chad. I defend Chad 100-percent in this particular case, and I haven’t always defended him – quite the contrary. History probably does have something to do with this ruling, but I think that tendency is across all walks of life. If you’re a teacher and have that kid who acts up all the time, his past behavior probably clouds your judgment of him at some point in time and eliminates any leniency you might have given him. In the legal system, with a habitual offender, the punishment is different than a first-time offender. With Chad, I think the punishment is different than it would be for Steve Letarte or some of the other Hendrick crew chiefs.
“I still say there was no crime committed by the No. 48 team and Knaus. This is just my opinion, and FaceBook and Twitter and the rest of the world can go off all they want, but there was no crime. No one was harmed or cheated by what they did. They presented the car for initial inspection and it failed initial inspection. It never made it onto the race track, never turned the wheel or even made it to the template room. With that in mind, the punishment doesn’t fit the crime – especially not the points penalty. But when no wheel has been turned and no points earned, it’s totally against my philosophy to penalize like this.”
--Kyle Petty, SPEED analyst
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