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Toyota Racing Development has had some highs this season, like signing Chase Briscoe and mainstream moments with Michael Jordan in attendance for Tyler Reddick’s win at Talladega. However, there have been quite a few low points for TRD this season.
The spring race at Richmond saw tensions boil over for teammates Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. The two had recently battled fiercely at Bristol, though there was no drama.
However, at Richmond, on the overtime restart, Hamlin jumped the restart, leaving Truex unable to catch up on the short track.
After the race, the normally mild-mannered Truex ran up to catch his teammate and shoved the No. 11 several times before peeling off onto pit road. Truex, now in his final season, had led 228 laps that day; Hamlin led 17.
While the beef didn’t last too long, this was not a good look for the team. However, it would be far from the last headline that Hamlin would have this season.
Beyond Richmond, the summer months would be less fruitful for TRD, with Christopher Bell’s two trips to victory lane being the manufacturers only wins from June to late August when Tyler Reddick won at Michigan.
However, finishing a race would be much more of a challenge than winning for some Toyota drivers.
Christopher Bell was contending for the win at Gateway and suddenly had what he thought his engine was blowing up. With the help of a push from Martin Truex Jr., he rallied to a seventh-place finish. It was a disappointment as Bell led 80 laps that day.
The next race weekend, Denny Hamlin blew his engine at Sonoma in dramatic fashion.
Nothing else happened for five races until at Pocono when pole sitter Ty Gibbs blew his engine with 29 laps to go. This once again happened in Indianapolis one week later, with Gibbs still able to bring his Camry home in 23rd.
Even after the Olympic break, TRD had troubles. This time, Martin Truex Jr., extremely competitive at Richmond, lost his engine after starting second. However, while this was happening, TRD saw a change in management.
On August 7, TRD President David Wilson stepped down. A sudden retirement is not necessarily a bad thing. However, it was an abrupt announcement.
Under Wilson, TRD saw three Daytona 500s and three NASCAR Cup Series championships. They also harnessed one of the most complete driver development systems, with names like Bubba Wallace, Christopher Bell, and Ty Gibbs going through TRD.
Wilson’s other success was expanding TRD’s reach in the Cup Series.
When he arrived, Toyota had Michael Waltrip Racing, BK Racing, and its flagship team, Joe Gibbs Racing. Upon leaving, Toyota has three competitive teams: Legacy MC, 23XI, and JGR.
Wilson also saw some major losses during his time: Carl Edwards’s early retirement, major prospects like William Byron going to other manufacturers, and most importantly, the loss of Kyle Busch and Kyle Busch Motorsports to Chevrolet.
Tyler Gibbs, a long-time TRD employee, is set to take over for Wilson. However, in his last few months with the team, Wilson has had to do some leg work aside from the engine failures.
Thursday afternoon, NASCAR assessed an L2 penalty to Denny Hamlin, JGR, and Crew Chief Chris Gabehart. Hamlin lost 75 points and 10 Playoff points, JGR lost 75 Owners points, and Gabehart was fined $100,000.
The reason for this, however, was, to public knowledge, not the fault of any of those three. Instead, TRD sent Hamlin’s race-winning engine to its facility for tear down rather than to NASCAR as required.
The engine in question was from Hamlin’s win at Bristol. That race had been a banner day for Toyota, with five TRD drivers in the top ten and a fierce battle between Hamlin and Truex. Six months later, it is a tough memory.
Once their lifetime is over, race-winning engines are sent to NASCAR to be un-sealed, unassembled, reassembled, and re-sealed.
“Each race-winning engine must be inspected by NASCAR once the race team determines that its life cycle is complete. In this instance, prior to presenting the engine to NASCAR for inspection, Toyota Racing Development disassembled and rebuilt the No. 11’s Bristol-winning race engine. Per the NASCAR Rule Book, this violation results in an L2 penalty to the race team and driver. Toyota Racing Development self-reported this violation.” – NASCAR
While NASCAR did not disqualify the win, the penalty became far more crucial as NASCAR also stripped Hamlin’s win of its playoff implications. This means that Hamlin will drop substantially in Playoff points, Regular Season points, and Owner points and lose important tie-breakers in the Playoffs.
This was a crucial mistake in a difficult yet successful year for TRD. While Toyota took the wrap, JGR and Hamlin’s team will suffer the consequences.
With the playoffs right around the corner, can Toyota and its team keep it together on and off the track?
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