Three Cup Series teams have lost pit stall selection for Sunday's Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway after multiple inspection failures.
According to NASCAR's pre-race update, three cars failed inspection two times each. The No. 1 of Ross Chastain, the No. 31 of Daniel Hemric, and the No. 38 of Todd Gilliland made up this group. All three cars passed on the third attempt, so these drivers will be able to qualify on Saturday morning at the 2.5-mile track.
Along with taking away pit stall selection, NASCAR also ejected a crew member from each team. Trackhouse Racing lost car chief David Fero, Kaulig Racing lost car chief Jaron Antley, and Front Row Motorsports lost car chief Will Norris.
All three penalized teams are winless through 20 races this season. Hemric's best finishes this season are ninth at Talladega Superspeedway, Dover Motor Speedway, and Nashville Superspeedway. Gilliland's best finish is seventh on the streets of Chicago.
Chastain has come the closest to winning this season. He finished fourth at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and fifth at Sonoma Raceway. Chastain was also on the front row for an overtime restart at Nashville Superspeedway before contact from Kyle Larson led to a crash.
Six races remain in the regular season, providing the winless drivers with six more opportunities to lock up a playoff spot. Pocono is also a potential wild card event considering that the weather and fuel strategy have both played roles in determining past winners. For example, Chris Buescher won his first Cup race back in 2016 due to heavy fog.
Chastain doesn't have much success at The Tricky Triangle in his Cup career. He has eight starts with only one top-20 finish and an average finish of 27.6. Though he celebrated a Truck Series win at Pocono in 2019.
Hemric only has two Cup starts at Pocono, both of which were during the 2019 season. He finished 13th in one Pocono race and seventh in another while driving for Richard Childress Racing.
Like Hemric, Gilliland only has two Cup starts at the 2.5-mile track. He finished 25th in the 2022 race and 15th last season while driving for Front Row Motorsports.