Dodge fined Petty for driving a Chevy

By Bob Pockrass
Wednesday, February 15, 2006

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Kyle Petty did a favor for Richard Childress Racing and driver Kevin Harvick in 2004, and he paid $45,000 for it.

Dodge fined Petty $45,000 when the veteran relieved Harvick in the Sharpie 500 at Bristol in August 2004. Harvick complained that he had lost feeling in his left arm and Petty, a Dodge driver, took over for Harvick in the RCR Chevrolet.

Petty, whose car was already out of the race, did not have permission from Dodge to drive the Chevy, and Dodge promptly fined him for breaching their contract. Dodge didn't announce the fine, but it was revealed in depositions released during their recently completed trial involving Bill Davis Racing.

"Initially it was a shock just because that's just a given in the sport - if a driver is down, everybody rallies and tries to help him out," Petty said Feb. 11. "Kevin was sick; Kevin felt bad, so I drove the car.

"When I got a phone call and a legal letter that said I owed them $45,000, that was a little bit of a shock. But at the same time, they were exactly right. I have a contract to drive for Dodge."

John Fernandez, Dodge Motorsports' director of operations, said Feb. 10 he believed Petty's violation of their contract was inadvertent but that the manufacturer must protect the sanctity of its contracts.

"That was definitely a violation of the contract, and I think we took appropriate action," Fernandez said. "If you know the history of the sport, 10 years ago, that would be acceptable. These days it is not acceptable."

Mentioned Drivers: Kevin Harvick

Comments

1 response to "Dodge fined Petty for driving a Chevy".
  1. 1
    Liz Thawley said:
    Oct 8, 2008 at 7:34 PM

    I agree that it's good sportsmanship for one driver to help another driver out. That's what makes NASCAR special. No pun intended, but that was very petty of Dodge.

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