Did Keselowski 'skirt' rules? Dale Jr. road manager raises suspicions
Late in Sunday's race at Chicagoland Speedway, where Brad Keselowski kicked off the Chase for the Sprint Cup with an impressive win, Dale Earnhardt Jr. road manager Mike Hoag sent the Twitterverse a-chatter with a tweet claiming that Keselowski's Team Penske pit crew "cheated up" the right side skirt on Keselowski's No. 2 car during a pit stop.
Keselowski, who used a bold move up the middle of Kevin Harvick and Kyle Larson to grab the lead for the final time with 16 laps to go, certainly could've benefited from having his car's side skirt pulled out -- which Hoag's since-deleted tweet alleged -- at a track where aerodynamic efficiency is critical to maximizing speed.
Keselowski hit back at Hoag on Twitter, firing off a response not long after the accusation was made.
Ever heard of glass houses @MikeHoag88 ?
— Brad Keselowski (@keselowski) September 15, 2014
Then, in an odd twist, Hoag and Earnhardt Jr. both revealed on Twitter Tuesday evening that the two are going their separate ways.
Wont forget the last few years working with you @MikeHoag88. Your a great friend and youll be missed by all at @JRMotorsports. Safe journey.
— Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) September 16, 2014
It's with a heavy heart, but I will no longer be with Dale Jr or JRM. It's been a fun ride, enjoyed every moment, on to something new. #KCCO
— Mike Hoag (@MikeHoag88) September 16, 2014
NASCAR had no issue with Keselowski's Ford during post-race inspection, although the car was one of three vehicles the sanctioning body took back to its R&D Center this week for standard post-race evaluation.
The right side skirt on the No. 2 Ford. pic.twitter.com/sPEnOUeXdH
— Marty Smith (@MartySmithESPN) September 14, 2014
Asked after the race if the No. 2 car had incurred damage, crew chief Paul Wolfe suggested it hadn't -- although the side skirt looked to be flared out a bit on the right side.
"I haven't seen it," Wolfe said. "There wasn't any damage from the wheel. Maybe something from going down on the apron on the restarts here. When you go down on the flat, a lot of times that will cause a little bit of damage. That could have been what you were seeing there."
Was the damage on Keselowski's race-winning car a result of foul play or simply hard racing?
Perhaps more importantly, did it provide the No. 2 with an aerodynamic advantage that helped Keselowski become the first driver to secure automatic entry into the Chase Contender Round?
Certainly, there is no love lost between Team Penske and Hendrick Motorsports, which have dominated much of the 2014 season and collectively have six cars in the Chase.
Earnhardt Jr. is a Hendrick driver, of course, so it's not totally surprising that his road manager would be on high alert for any potential wrongdoing by a rival team that likely represents Hendrick's biggest obstacle to a championship.
So did Penske bend the rules at Chicagoland, or was Hoag just trying to stir the proverbial pot?
We may never know for sure, but it's pretty clear where the various parties stand, and the glaring tension between the Hendrick and Penske camps should make for fascinating fodder in the final nine weeks of the season.
