SONOMA, Calif., June 22 (UPI) -- Cars driven by points leader Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson failed inspection Friday and were not allowed to qualify for Sunday's Toyota/Save Mart 350.
The so-called Car of Tomorrow will be used in the race over the Infineon Raceway road course, and a NASCAR spokesman said penalties for violations involving the new cars will be severe.
"The body was out of the range with what we thought was acceptable in the template inspection," said NASCAR spokesman Ramsey Poston.
If the two cars can eventually pass inspection, they will be allowed to start at the back of the 43-car field.
Jamie McMurray won the pole for Sunday's race with a qualifying lap of 77.521 miles per hour. Robby Gordon was second, followed by Dale Earnhardt Jr. and road-course specialist Boris Said.
