NASCAR investigating failures of new pitguns after Atlanta
The NASCAR Cup Series says it will review a run of failures caused by the new-for-2018 pitguns that the series had implemented to save costs
NASCAR decided to prevent teams from continuing a development war by introducing pitguns manufactured by Paoli, which also supplies the devices to Formula 1 and Supercars.
The pitguns have caused problems at both the first two Cup rounds of 2018.
At Atlanta on Sunday, race winner Kevin Harvick had to come back through from 19th after a problematic pitstop and reigning Cup champion Martin Truex Jr's recovery drive from the back of the grid was hampered by similar troubles.
A NASCAR spokesperson told Autosport the series was "working with the supplier and immediately looked at the reasoning so that it will be fixed as soon as possible".
NASCAR executive vice president and chief racing development officer Steve O'Donnell admitted the problems were not unexpected.
"Obviously, we don't want to see failures with any part or piece," he told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
"We knew going in that this could potentially happen and the likelihood of it happening at some point during the season was fairly high.
"But we're going to have those conversations and get it right.
"It was an initiative that we worked closely with the teams on and never want to see a part or piece malfunction.
"We want it to be in the hands of the drivers and the race teams. That's something we obviously take very seriously and we'll head to Vegas to hopefully get that cleaned up."
Harvick's Stewart-Haas Racing crew chief Rodney Childers said that Paoli cannot be blamed for the problems because it had a short timeframe to produce the pitguns.
"There's no way I could sit up here and complain about anything they've done because I can't imagine taking that on during the winter, and what they did over a two-month span or a three-month span trying to get all that stuff ready for the teams," he said.
"My opinion is we're going to go through ups and downs and we need to go through them together and learn together, and [the issues] are part of it."
Joe Gibbs Racing's Denny Hamlin said the theory behind the rule change makes sense.
"They [NASCAR] could control everything," he said.
"That's probably why - amongst the competition side of things - they don't want to fail because it's a bad luck thing.
"They want it [pitstops] to fail because they [the pitcrew] did a bad job. It's your own fault then."
Atlanta NASCAR: Kevin Harvick dominates for Stewart-Haas
Old track at Atlanta hurt NASCAR's young drivers - Kevin Harvick
The ex-F1 driver taking on NASCAR with a new team
Saddled with uncompetitive Minardi machinery, Tarso Marques didn't manage to score points in his three partial seasons of Formula 1. But now the Brazilian has the chance to show what he can do in NASCAR, and explains the story of his comeback with new Cup Series entrant Team Stange
The early benefits and challenges of NASCAR's Next Gen car
NASCAR’s new stock car generation is encouraging an influx of fresh blood into its top tier. But there are concerns that parts are in short supply as the entire paddock tries to build up stocks at the same time
How Penske's rookie sensation opened NASCAR's new era in style
After holding his nerve and hip-checking his team-mate on the run to the line, Austin Cindric made a perfect start to life as a full-timer in the NASCAR Cup Series by winning the Daytona 500. Here's how the Penske Ford man emerged first across the line in the first points-scoring race for the much-anticipated Next Generation cars
Six key themes to follow in the 2022 NASCAR Cup season
There are plenty of uncertainties ahead of the 2022 NASCAR Cup season as an all-new fleet of cars take to the track for the first time. Ahead of this weekend's Daytona 500, our experts explain what you need to know
How NASCAR had to learn a harsh lesson ahead of its Next Gen arrival
The NASCAR Cup kicks off with the Daytona 500 this weekend, but a major overhaul and a subsequent mountain of work has been required to be ready for the arrival of the Next Gen cars
How Larson took the long way round to NASCAR Cup glory
From villain to hero, Kyle Larson’s journey to the 2021 NASCAR Cup title comes straight from the Hollywood blockbuster scripts. While Larson had to reach his lifelong goal the hard way and go through a very public shaming after a ban for using a racial slur, his talents shone long before his name grabbed the headlines for both the right and the wrong reasons
How NASCAR is gearing up for its "biggest change" in 2022
It’s not just Formula 1 that’s set for upheaval in 2022, as the NASCAR Cup Series adopts its Next Gen cars that will cast any in-built advantages aside and require teams to adopt a totally new way of operating. Far more than just a change of machinery, the new cars amount to a shift in NASCAR's core philosophy
Why Bubba Wallace’s Talladega win is such a big moment for NASCAR
Bubba Wallace claimed his maiden NASCAR Cup Series at Talladega on Monday to become the first Black victor in the category since Wendell Scott in 1963. Both Wallace and Scott had faced obstacles and racism in their paths to their breakthrough wins, and NASCAR is trying to put it right with its range of diversity programmes