DETROIT, Oct. 15 (UPI) -- Paul Tracy of Canada was fined $50,000, placed on probation and stripped of three championship points by CART on Monday for his actions during and after Sunday's Shell 300 Grand Prix of Monterey.
CART chief steward Chris Kneifel cited Tracy for violations relating to four separate incidents of unjustifiable risk, an unsafe act, unsportsmanlike conduct and criticism of officials.
The fine is the largest assessed to a driver in the series since Alex Zanardi was fined the same amount for an on-track infraction at Mid-Ohio in 1998. Tracy is on probation for the remaining two races in Australia and at California Speedway.
"Paul's lack of consideration for the safety of fellow competitors and their crew members on Sunday is a matter of great concern and is not expected of a driver of his caliber at this level of competition," Kneifel said.
"In view of his behavior, his language and criticism of officials does nothing but demean himself and his profession, and we will not tolerate it."
The loss of three points drops Tracy from 11th to 12th in the standings with 73 points, one behind Roberto Moreno of Patrick Racing.
The initial incident occurred during a full-course caution on lap 50 when Tracy and team Penske driver Helio Castroneves of Brazil entered the pits for routine stops. On the exit, Castroneves lost slight control of his car and moved partially into the "fast (right) lane" in the path where Tracy was driving. In the opinion of the CART stewards, who reviewed the incident both at the time and in detail after the race, Castroneves did not impede the progress of Tracy and therefore committed no violation.
The video review according to CART showed that after Castroneves corrected his course, Tracy deliberately steered to the left and into the "slow lane", which resulted in contact between the two racers.
Castroneves was close to the left side limit of the slow exit lane and was within a few feet of crew members in the last three pit boxes including Tracy's and his teammate Dario Franchitti of Scotland.
The second infraction occurred on lap 53 when Tracy pitted again during a caution and drove through several pit boxes on his entry to the Team Penske pit area, where he executed a tire-smoking "burnout" before exiting pit lane. The stewards stated this represented both an unsafe act and unsportsmanlike conduct.
On the same caution between laps 53-55, CART observers around the track reported deliberate nose-to-tail contact initiated by Tracy against Walker Racing rookie Toranosuke Takagi of Japan. This act represented further unjustifiable risk and reckless endangerment in the opinion of the stewards.
Tracy retired from the race on lap 61 going into the gravel trap. In his post-race comments with ESPN following his exit, Tracy had some strong words for Castroneves and the way things are run by the CART stewards.
"What put me out was a bent suspension from Castroneves when he turned me around in pit lane," Tracy said. "What's more upsetting is the way this series is being run. Castroneves turns me around in the pit lane and he doesn't get penalized for it. I've got a bent suspension and I'm out of the race, when I had a podium car."
