Stewart-Haas Racing drops appeal of No. 4 penalty – Nascar

Stewart-Haas Racing officials have withdrawn their request for an appeal of penalties against the No. 4 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series team of driver Kevin Harvick and crew chief Rodney Childers, the Appeals Commission confirmed to NASCAR.com.
 
Harvick hinted at the decision during his SiriusXM NASCAR Radio show Tuesday evening. 

“Rodney’s a racer, he wants to be at the race track every week,” Harvick said Tuesday. “He’s obviously not too thrilled about not being at the race track this week. But sometimes that happens … and that’s what I want them to do. I want them to push everything on that car. Sometimes you’re going to get in trouble, but those guys have been the best in the business for the last three years. 

“It’s kind of like growing up as a kid; sometimes you get in trouble and you have to suffer the consequences, but it is what it is.”

SHR, which fields four full-time teams in the Monster Energy Series, has not announced who will serve as interim crew chief for the No. 4 team this weekend when the series travels to Martinsville Speedway for Sunday’s STP 500 (2 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
 
NASCAR penalized the No. 4 team for use of an unapproved track bar slider assembly following the March 19 Camping World 500 at Phoenix Raceway. The infraction was discovered during final inspection at the NASCAR Research & Development Center on March 22.
 
Childers was fined $25,000 and suspended for one Monster Energy Series race. Harvick was assessed a 10-point penalty while the No. 4 team was penalized 10 owner points.
 
NASCAR officials declared Harvick’s sixth-place result as an encumbered finish, meaning neither the driver nor team can receive any benefits associated with the result. Those benefits include, but are not limited to, use as a qualifier for the 10-race playoff when the finishing position is a win; or any tie-breakers that might come into play during the 26-race regular season or the 10-race playoff.
 
SHR officials announced a request for an appeal shortly after the penalties were announced as well as a deferral of the penalties assessed “until the appeal process is complete.”
 
That request for deferral, which the Appeals Panel granted, allowed Childers to serve as the team’s crew chief for last weekend’s Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway.
 
Harvick finished 13th at Auto Club and currently is ninth in points.