After the Iowa Corn 350, NASCAR surprised fans and teams by selecting four vehicles, including Denny Hamlin’s, for a Denny Hamlin NASCAR R&D inspection at the Research and Development Center this week in Charlotte. This action diverges from usual practice, where typically two cars are chosen for post-race evaluation, leaving uncertainty and speculation across the garage.
Unusual Number of Cars Selected Following Iowa Corn 350
NASCAR officials took a rare step by sending four cars from the Iowa race for detailed teardown and review. The selected vehicles belonged to Ross Chastain, Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, and Alex Bowman, representing one Toyota, one Ford, and two Chevrolets—showcasing a balanced manufacturer mix. This decision follows a post-race inspection in which William Byron’s car passed and was declared the winner.
Typically, there is variation in the number of cars sent for inspection—sometimes none or more than two—adding to the unpredictability for teams. All four selected cars will undergo an in-depth teardown at NASCAR’s R&D Center, where officials search for any potential rule infractions. Following the conclusion of the Cup Series tech process at Iowa, officials announced,
“Cars to R&D: Chastain Hamlin Blaney and Bowman.”
No issues were found with the initial tech inspection, but scrutiny will continue at the R&D facility.
NASCAR’s Process for Choosing Cars for R&D Examination
The method behind NASCAR’s car selection for R&D inspection is often viewed by fans and some teams as a random process. However, Mike Forde, NASCAR’s managing director for racing communications, clarified the approach recently, aiming to address the perception of randomness compared to the actual operational procedure.
“How we kinda pick those cars, if you will, you know, fans hear the word ‘random’ and think that we have a pill bucket and we pull it out and whoever finishes, and we pull out 19 and whoever finished 19th knows that they’re coming home with us,”
—Mike Forde, Managing Director for Racing Communications
“That is not how we do it.”
—Mike Forde, Managing Director for Racing Communications
“It’s random in that the garage doesn’t know what’s coming,”
—Mike Forde, Managing Director for Racing Communications
NASCAR employs a deliberate system that considers a grid accounting for all competitors in the series, spreading R&D scrutiny across different teams and manufacturers throughout the season. Forde explained that while the process feels unpredictable from the team perspective, the organization makes calculated selections to ensure fairness and widespread compliance checks, addressing all top organizations like Hendrick, Roush, Penske, and JGR over the year.
“So, by all the teams, not just Hendrick and Roush and Penske and JGR, which is the case, but have all five, all four Hendrick cars come home. Have all three Penske cars come home throughout the season. And have different OEMs as well. So very rarely will you see two Toyotas come back or two Chevys or two Fords. This week we had a Ford and a Toyota on the Cup side come home. So, that’s kind of how we look at it. When we do it is also mildly random.”
—Mike Forde, Managing Director for Racing Communications
Potential Outcomes and What’s Next for Teams and Fans
The selection of four cars, particularly heavyweights like Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Ross Chastain, and Alex Bowman, has intensified anticipation around potential penalties or technical discoveries in the coming week. The approach reinforces NASCAR’s ongoing compliance strategy, aiming to deter teams from bending rules while reassuring fans about the sanctioning body’s commitment to fairness. Teams wait as R&D teardowns proceed in Charlotte, knowing results could affect race outcomes, driver standings, or result in future rule adjustments for the Cup Series.
