Rules? What Rules?
Let's not call it cheating. That's SUCH a harsh word. Let's just call it a fiddle, and it was not even that if driver-owner Ricky Rudd is to be believed.
Rudd and crew chief Bill Ingle got slammed with a record $50,000 Friday after NASCAR inspectors discovered an illegal hydraulic system that could be used to adjust the ride height of the rear of the team's Ford Thunderbird.
NASCAR's Kevin Triplett said the device was discovered during an inspection before the first practice for Sunday's Winston Select 500 at Talladega.
Triplett said the device was controlled by the clutch pedal, which had a hydraulic line splitting off to the top of the car's springs. A set screw held the car at the proper ride height through inspection.
At speed, the rear of the car would drop down, making it more aerodynamic in the corners. The driver could then pump the car back up to the correct height using the clutch pedal as he came off the track.
The device was discovered because, Triplett said, "It's very common for an inspector to crawl under the car during the inspections. This time he saw some excess grease in an area where it was unusual. Upon closer inspection, they found the device and confiscated it."
Rudd was fined $45,000, while Ingle was fined $5,000 and place on probation for the rest of the 1995 season.
Bill Ingle paid a $100 fine last week after a post-race fist fight with driver Ted Musgrave at Martinsville, Virginia. He was also fined $1,000 at Bristol, Tennessee, after NASCAR inspectors found what they called an irregular A-frame in the construction of the chassis.
Ingle was unperturbed by the affair at Talladega: "We got caught with the rules infraction. NASCAR fined us $50,000. That's basically about it."
Ingle expressed surprise that the fine was so high because, he said, "the car hadn't even been on the racetrack or anything. And I'm even more surprised that they came straight to the car and straight to the piece. Something's going on with that and I don't know what. It don't matter, though. It's pretty plain Gary Nelson (NASCAR's Winston Cup Director) don't like me."
According to Rudd, the device was on the car for testing and never used in a race and had been welded closed. But he also said he probably won't appeal the fine: "I haven't much luck on appeals before. It would probably be a waste of $250."