Carl Long is living the life most NASCAR fans can only dream about.
He works as a crewmember for a Sprint Cup Series team, as a spotter for Nationwide teams, and has competed in 45 NASCAR events. He’s never really been a contender but he has done more than most in the sport all on a shoestring budget. 
On May 16th however Long’s world began to slowly come apart. During practice for the qualifying race for the All-Star event, the engine in Long’s racecar failed. As they are supossed to do, after changing it the team handed the engine over to NASCAR inspectors who found that the engine Long’s car was too big.
According to NASCAR the engine was 0.17 cubic inches beyond the 358-cubic inch limit spelled out in the rules. Later that week they gave Long a twelve-week suspension from all NASCAR competition, docked him 200 points, and fined both him and crew chief Charles Swing $200,000 - the largest amount in NASCAR history.
For a guy who makes his living as a journeyman in NASCAR, not being allowed to go into a NASCAR garage was a huge blow to Long.
Long naturally appealed the punishment.
Long insisted that there was no deliberate intent to cheat. He said he bought the engine from a reputable builder and was told that the heat generated when the engine blew up possibly could have caused the change in the size.
Many in NASCAR and fans across the nation expected NASCAR’s appeal board to take into consideration Long’s status and lack of financial backing and ease up or perhaps rescind the penalties altogether.
The National Stock Car Commission though held up NASCAR’s original penalties changing only the suspension to allow Long to go into the Nationwide and Truck Series garages to continue working.
As part of their statement the Commission said:
NASCAR has and continues to consider an oversized engine to be one of the most egregious of rules violations, warranting the harshest of penalties. The last penalty notices issued in NASCAR's top series for an oversized engine were in 1991 and included 12-race suspensions in the series and a sizeable fine for its day.
The Rule Book gives 8 cubic inches of flexibility in engine construction from a minimum of 350.000 cubic inch displacement to a maximum of 358.000 cubic inch displacement. Measurements on the engine in question calculated to a total cubic inch displacement of 358.197. According to the NASCAR representative, even the largest amongst the many, many engines inspected over the years usually allowed ample buffer below the 358.000 c.i.d. line.
The Commission reaffirms that the race team is ultimately responsible for all components on the racecar, including any supplied by third-party vendors.
The Commission notes that during the hearing, the driver expressed a strong love of racing and a desire to compete at the highest levels of the sport. His testimony came across as genuine and heartfelt.
While it is tempting to consider penalties that this driver and team can more-readily bear, the sport would not be well served by having a sliding scale of penalties calibrated to a given team or member's resources. Penalties of this magnitude for this type of infraction are warranted in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.
In essence the Commission said that the sport can’t allow a sliding scale when it comes to penalties and fines. That punishments have to be administered the same to everyone.
So now it’s your turn; what do you think? Was Carl Long’s penalty fair? Should NASCAR issue fines and other penalties on a sliding scale depending on the financial resources of the team?
Comments
If this was Kyle Busch, people would be screaming with joy. If it was Jeff Gordon or Carl Edwards, people would say justice was served.
You don't say that someone is immune to murder charges because he was homeless and had a rough childhood.
Rules are rules. You may not have meant to run the red light, but you still get the ticket.
JMHO
No, he wasn't treated fairly. He was given capital punishment for jaywalking. One thing I don't understand is his banishment from the Sprint Cup Series. NASCAR has conveniently claimed the teams/drivers are "independent contractors." I understand how they can keep him out of tracks, but does that mean Carl can't work at all for Front Row Motorsports? If so, what business do they have dictating who can and cannot work for an independent contractor?
Yes he was treated unfairly! For so many reasons. It was a practice not a race and the practice was for the ALLSTAR race, not a regular season race. They fined him the largest ever.
NASCAR has gotten NASTY- I have lost all my respect for them after 30 years of watching.
I sincerely think they have sunk to a new low. Srre I have complained and whined in the past- But I always felt they should be respected. I always felt they had the drivers in the best interest first. But since Brian took over- its all about his pocket!
He takes sponsorship from the teams to make more money. Its just all crazy now.
Thats my opinion of it.
NASCAR loves people like Kyle Bush so that they get headlines. But obviously they just proved that the NICEST of guys finish last and they don't want them.
The fact that the engine overheated ALOT caused the cylinder expansion. nascar is just being their stupid ironfisted favorite-playing selves again. I am done with them
I think they went way overboard trying to make a point. I just see it as another way they want to get rid of the start & park cars. NASCAR, BOO! The fine was just ridiculous, you greedy bas____s!
Nascar could have handling this so much better - especially knowing that he has to get his motors from an engine builder and doesn't have the equipment to 'check' to make sure the guaranteed engint is within specs. Nascar could have gone up to him, told him of the issue they found and warned him to make sure it doesn't happen again. After all, was he any sort of threat to win a race??? He just wanted to race. They have lost all of my respect and I sincerely hope those empty seats keep showing up - maybe they will wake up and realize they aren't the only game in town.
DO THE MATH
BORE STROKE
ALLOWED 358.0000 4.03360 3.5000
AS FOUND 358.1700 4.03572 3.5000
0.00210
BORE 0.0021 OVERSIZE
OVERHEATING COULD HAVE CAUSED THIS
This was Nascar's way to send a message to all teams not to mess with the car. Does anyone honestly think that if these violations were found on Jimmie Johnson's car, or Jeff Gordon's or heaven forbid, Jr's car, that any of them would have gotten a 12 race suspension? No way!! Nascar found some poor schmuck, with no sponsor to prove their point. Need evidence that Nascar would never suspend a superstar? Just look at Nascar's corporate welfare system, aka, the Top 35 Rule. Helton, France, Hunter have all said that they would never get rid of the Top 35 because Nascar needs their stars to run every week, they need the star's sponsors to be seen every week, and they said the fans pay good money to see the big stars every week. So if anyone thinks Nascar would ever sit out any of the Top 35 drivers, needs to get their head examined. Carl Long was the pansy Nascar needed to get their point across to every team that if you cheat, this is what you could get.
I think the penalty should stand on its own, not be applied to his work in other series', or other types of work.
He is penalized as a car owner/driver. Fine, but what has that to do with his work at Frontrow? Or any other area not related to his own business.
it was, as stated, capitol punishment for jaywalking. The penalty shouldn't be cut his legs off. At least they could leave him his livelihood.
David Reutiman has pledged $5,000. to bailing him out and others can contribute by going to www.carl-long.com or, Carl Long
156 Painted Bunting Drive
Troutman, NC 28166
Marybeth
he got robbed !!!!!!!!!!!!!
if it was Johnson,Gordon,Jr, or any of the TOP DRIVERS they would NEVER have gotten that type of fine and points deduction... If one of them got that type of fine just imagine how many fans would NOT show up too the track during the races that driver could not run accept the fans PROTESTING NASCAR.... i think there should be fans PROTESTING for CARL LONG AND MAYFIELD every race.... NASCAR is getting way out of hand!!!!
Boy, I don't know who Carlos p---sed off, but it was obviously the wrong person. Message received NASCAR. But next time Robbie, Mikey, Carl or Jimmie are CAUGHT, let the punishment fit the crime. If you want to send a REAL message, suspend some names and fine a name crew chief an amount that can't be paid. Maybe fine Chad $10 million or so.Suspend a name driver. Suspend Jr.'s crew chief, whoever it may be this week. Don't even get me started on the Mayfield drug conspiracy. TV ratings, race attendance, sponserships. And they have to bust Carlos..... Sad world we live in.
Some time in the future, when we look back, the name Brian France will have become to Nascar what Tony George's has been to open wheel. The sport is a shell of its former self. Striving to become more "mainstream" and politically correct all the while pushing away the long time fans and abandoning the tracks that have given the sport its popularity. As far as some kind of president, Nascar has always done what it wanted when it wanted.The could have given this man a brake. In a court of law, there needs to be intent. In this case there was no intent only a guy struggling to compete. In my opinion this morally wrong and has become a bit of an embarrassment to the sport. Only time will tell of Brian France's legacy but I don't think it will be that of the one that took the sport higher but more of the one that started its downward turn.
This fine to Carl Long is the latest in a long list of stupid decisions by Nascar. I have followed this sport since the 60's listening to it on the radio before the first race was ever televised. It is sad what Brian France has done to a once great sport in such a short time. I will never buy another ticket and it is getting hard to watch on TV with the stupid Digger commercials and childish antics. It is all about the money now. Bring back real racing.
Let's hope all who hear about this ridiculus punishment and fine boycott nascar (notice nascar in lower case that what they deserve)and their sponsors, Has anyone ever questioned why nascar should take or should we say seize equipment from a team and also fine them? That to me is just plain gangter acts, I have followed nascar since the early 70's ,i have spent my money and Sat and Sundays either at the tracks or in front of TV or radio , no more it's getting to where i check Jayski one a week or so then get so fed up with the ridiculus actions of nascar or the ongoing trouble with Jr.or Jeff's back ,
Got me going better stop i could go on for hours about what is causing the demise of nascar, Anyway thanks for reading
JC -- exactly. You don't let a Richard Petty keep a win with a way over sized engine, but Nascar did.
Fair chance for all to qualify? No.
Rough driving? That's racing. Well, if your Robby Gordon, you get screwed.
$200,000 to Long is $20,000,000 to Jimmy Johnson.
If Nascar wants to be fair, why not force their TV partners to give the same amount of (TV) time to Morgan Shepard as they do to Jimmy Johnson?
Lets help Carl Long! Donations are being taken- carl-long.com/donations.html
Carl Long got screwed.....period!
As will Mayfield.
I understand rules and the need for them, but do you think old Mr. France would really approve of NASCAR not only putting a team out of business, but bankrupting his family in the process? It shouldn't be NASCAR's place to do that, especially since Carl really did not reap any benefit from that "oversized" engine!
PLEASE visit www.carl-long.com/donations and give what you can, if for no other reason than to send NASCAR a message---that we're behind Carl on this.
I have raced in nascar and know how they suck at being fair on rules infraction, Carl was totally screwed, we had him do a call in on our race show and talked about it, I hope that nascar will get their head out of their butt and fix the problem, they started double file restarts for the fans, well nascar fix your screw up with Carl Long, cuz the fans are speaking out as well on this issue!!
racing sucks
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