NASCAR came down with some heavy penalties to the Penske Racing team for violations last weekend at Texas Motor Speedway. The cars of Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano were found with illegal parts in the rear housing and they had to change them before getting on the track. Both drivers and the owners were each docked 25 points. Both crew chiefs were suspended six races, placed on probation for the rest of the year and fined 100-thousand-dollars. Several other team members were also suspended six races. Penske says it will appeal.

NASCAR also penalized Martin Truex Jr.'s number-56 team for an infraction at Texas. His crew chief was fined 25-thousand-dollars and placed on probation until June 5th. He and car owner Michael Waltrip were docked six points each.

This week it’s off to Kansas Speedway for the first of two stops. Denny Hamlin is the defending winner of the spring race.

Ten drivers have come away winners at Kansas including Tony Stewart, Jimmie Johnson, Greg Biffle and Jeff Gordon with two each.

If you were placing bets, you might want to go with Jeff Gordon. He leads all drivers with 11 Top-10 finishes at Kansas, eight of them in the Top-5.

Officials at Kansas Speedway say fans can expect longer lines and increased security this weekend as a result of the Boston Marathon bombings. They’ll be checking bags and coolers and anything else that people normally bring with them and it might take a little longer. They’re asking for patience.

Jimmie Johnson enters the weekend with the lead in the points standings, 18 points up on Kyle Busch and with a 30 point lead on Greg Biffle.

 

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