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NASCAR Breaks It Up: Gibbs & Keselowski Pit Crews Nearly Come to Blows at Sonoma
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- NASCAR Breaks It Up: Gibbs & Keselowski Pit Crews Nearly Come to Blows at Sonoma
Stan Szeto-Imagn Images Stan Szeto-Imagn Images
Pit stops got crazy on Sunday at Sonoma when a near miss between Ty Gibbs and Brad Keselowski 's teams turned into a pit road fight during the Toyota/Save Mart 350.
It all went down late in Stage 2 when several front-runners, including Gibbs and Keselowski, came in early to get track position for the final stage. With their pit boxes right next to each other, it was already tight. It didn't take much for things to get ugly.
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Gibbs, ahead of Keselowski on the track and in pit sequence, drove into his assigned stall by cutting through the RFK Racing pit box.
In doing so, Gibbs came within inches of RFK front tire carrier Telvin McClurkin, who was already in position and holding a tire for Keselowski's incoming №6 Ford. Gibbs' №54 Toyota clipped the tire, twisting McClurkin's wrist in the process. Despite the impact, McClurkin was able to complete his duties, but immediately after, tempers flared.
According to footage released by RFK Racing , McClurkin marched over to the Joe Gibbs Racing pit crew. The exchange quickly turned into pushing and shoving between the crews and NASCAR officials had to intervene and separate the teams before it got out of hand.
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NASCAR rules in favor of Ty Gibbs after pit road incident
NASCAR reviewed the incident mid-race and later said Gibbs did not break any rules. Drivers are allowed to go through up to three pit boxes when entering their own, and in this case, Gibbs, being ahead of Keselowski, was within his rights to cut across.
"Going in, I have the right-of-way," Gibbs told NASCAR on TNT after the race, pointing to the orange lines on the pit wall. "They're on the wall for a reason, they jump for a reason, and they kind of get out of the way. And those guys like to push it, and that's kind of the consequence you pay."
Gibbs said he had clear procedural priority and NASCAR agreed, saying RFK Racing's crew should have given him more space as he approached.
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Although Gibbs got off light, there was concern over the physical element of the confrontation, and how crew members were supposed to act and possibly be punished.
By Sunday night, NASCAR did not announce any fines or suspensions, but officials said they would further review the aftermath of the altercation.
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