Three members of a NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series team have been suspended for the next four races due to an incident at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
CONCORD, N.C. — NASCAR suspended three members of an O'Reilly Auto Parts Series team for the next four races due to an incident at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
NASCAR suspended three members of Patrick Staropoli's No. 48 Big Machine Racing Chevrolet team for an incident in last Saturday's race. Officials found a ballast came loose from his car during the race. The car reportedly lost the ballast with 10 laps to go and came to rest at the entrance of pit road.
NASCAR determined the team violated rulebook sections 10.5.2.5.B & E, regarding a safety violation specifically address the loss or separation of a ballast. As a result, they suspended crew chief Patrick Donahue, car chief Dillon Bassett and engineer Morgan Olsen.
Teams use tungsten or lead ballast weights, which often weigh around 25 pounds. They're used to meet minimum weight requirements and help with distributing weight to ensure better handling. If a ballast comes loose, it can cause severe damage to a car that may hit it – creating a potentially severe safety hazard.
NASCAR has upped the penalties for loose ballasts over the years but come to the point of suspending the team's crew chief, car chief and an engineer. In 2020, when Denny Hamlin lost a ballast before the start of the Coca-Cola 600, NASCAR suspended crew chief Chris Gabehart, car chief Brandon Griffeth and engineer Scott Simmons for four races.
Now in 2026 with Staropoli's team penalized, Staropoli sits 16th in the driver points standings. He is 23 points below the Chase cutline and 150 points out of the points lead.
The No. 48 Big Machine Racing team sits 19th in the owner points standings. The team is 39 points below the Chase cutline and 150 out of the lead.
The team underwent a big change in the offseason as Staropoli took over the ride from Nick Sanchez. In contrast to Sanchez, who came to the No. 48 car with multiple full seasons and wins in NASCAR and ARCA, Staropoli had just nine NASCAR starts to his name before taking over for Sanchez.
So far, Staropoli has finished 18th at Daytona, 13th at EchoPark Speedway Atlanta and 20th at Circuit of the Americas. The next two races, he finished one lap down – coming up 26th at Phoenix and 21st at Las Vegas where his team was penalized.
The roster portal does not show who has replaced the crew members for Darlington.