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MBM Motorsports Breaks Silence on NASCAR’s Daytona Xfinity Disqualification, Pleads Guilty for “Honest Mistake”

Published 02/17/2024, 11:50 PM EST

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USA Today via Reuters

For many of the smaller teams that take part in the season-opening weekend in NASCAR, it can be hard to get things right. That’s not just in terms of on-track racing action; the off-track elements can sometimes be tricky. Mistakes over getting the car ready as per the rules are not the easiest of things, and teams can unintentionally get them wrong, which ruins their whole weekend. That is exactly what happened with MBM Motorsports, as they shared an update on their situation on X.

The team was supposed to field one car in the Xfinity Series season-opening race, which has been postponed due to rain. The #66 Chevy Camaro was supposed to be driven by David Starr, but failure to meet the requirements set by NASCAR saw the team get disqualified even before the action began. Definitely, it was heartbreaking for everyone involved with the team.

MBM Motorsports reveals a makeup race at Talladega after heartbreaking DQ

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The team worked incredibly hard to make the most of the weekend, but it was just not meant to be. The car looked quick in qualifying for the Xfinity Series race as David Starr earned a P29 starting position. However, later in the day, news came that the track bar height was not as required by NASCAR, and the team was disqualified from the event. It was a rather harsh decision considering that they had passed pre-qualifying tech that very morning before the session.

In an emotional message on X, MBM Motorsports laid out exactly what happened to them and called it an honest mistake on their part. The team revealed that they would be running a makeup race at the Talladega Superspeedway for everyone involved with the same car, same engine program, and same driver. The tweet also said that MBM Motorsports would be running a limited schedule this season, so there will be more to look forward to from a team that will feel like it has something to prove.

Somehow, in the normal qualifying adjustments, we exceeded the maximum three inches of split allowed for the track bar. This was an honest mistake. We are not making excuses, but to paint the picture for you all, our entire crew was working today on one hour of sleep after our last lap crash while running in the Top 5 of the ARCA race last night,” the team’s statement read.

“MBM has experienced extreme highs and lows during this Speedweeks. We demonstrated in the last several days what we can accomplish with the proper funding. We will be running a limited schedule for the remainder of the season, competing only when we have the funds to run at the highest level,” it added.

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But as one door closes, another opens, and MBM Motorsport’s disqualification meant that someone had to take their spot. That someone was Dawson Cram, driving for JD Motorsports.

JD Motorsports’ Dawson Cram will get his Xfinity Series start

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Cram had not qualified for the Xfinity Series race in terms of speed but David Starr’s disqualification meant that the JD Motorsports man would start the race in an unexpected but welcome turn of events for everyone involved with the team. However, the JDM driver did not make too big a deal out of it as he was respectful of MBM Motorsports when asked about his inclusion.

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“It’s not the way we wanted to do it. I really hate it for Carl Long and his guys. You know David [Starr] has always been super helpful to me, and helped me in the past. Always been there to give me advice. And Carl has given me opportunities. I was telling these guys, as we were standing around, I was like, ‘I would never wish that upon anybody.’ Because they did their job and brought a fast car. They came here, and something went wrong, and they got thrown out,” Dawson Cram said in an interview with Toby Christie.

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Fans could have seen Dawson Cram racing around the Daytona International Speedway today had it not rained. It seems like NASCAR’s opening weekend has been marred with bad weather, as the forecast for Sunday is not the best either. The Xfinity Series race, therefore, has been postponed to Monday, and hopefully, the rest of the season won’t unfold like the opening weekend.

WATCH THIS STORY: Toni Breidinger returns to Venturini Motorsports for the 2024 ARCA Series 

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Written by:

Nilavro Ghosh

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One take at a time

Nilavro Ghosh is a NASCAR Writer at EssentiallySports, where he is known for his creative yet easy-to-read writing style. Before taking up his role as a sports journalist at ES, Nilavro has written for some of the top publishing houses, like The Telegraph. While most journalists stop at covering live events and taking the news to the readers, Nilavro goes the extra mile to give fans a platform for them to express their thoughts through his 'race reaction' pieces.
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Edited by:

Shivali Nathta