INDIANAPOLIS, IN - JULY 24: Timmy Hill, driver of the #98 Curb Records Ford, practices for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Crown Royal Presents the Jeff Kyle 400 at the Brickyard at Indianapolis Motorspeedway on July 24, 2015 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Rainier Ehrhardt/NASCAR via Getty Images)
NASCAR has assessed the No. 98 Premium Motorsports team of driver Timmy Hill a P3 level penalty for having an unattached weight leave the car during practice on July 24 for last Sunday's Brickyard 400.
Hill, who was making just his second start with the team that recently parted ways with driver Josh Wise, caused the practice to be stopped momentarily when a piece of tungsten ballast flew out from under his car and landed on the track.
The piece of ballast was taken to the NASCAR hauler to be identified and investigated.
As a result of the infraction, crew chief Scott Eggleston has been fined $25,000, suspended from the next Sprint Cup Series points race and placed on NASCAR probation through Dec. 31.
Car chief Kevin Eagle has been suspended from the next Sprint Cup Series points race and placed on NASCAR probation through Dec. 31.
Car owner Mike Curb will lose 15 championship car owner points.
This isn't the first time this year that NASCAR has penalized a team for a piece of weight falling off of a car and onto the track.
Following an appeal, NASCAR upheld a P3 penalty last month on Obaika Racing's No. 97 Chevrolet of Peyton Sellers after a piece of ballast flew off the car during XFINITY Series practice at Dover International Speedway.
In May, crew chief Gary Cogswell with the No. 4 NASCAR XFINITY Series team of driver Ross Chastain was fined $15,000 and placed on probation through the end of the year after a weight flew off of Chastain's JD Motorsports car during practice at Iowa Speedway.
The ballast crushed the window of driver Jamie Dick, who was behind Chastain, and struck Dick in the helmet.
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