Ross Chastain’s crew chief set to be fined after NASCAR Truck Series inspection post-Pocono race 

Before kicking off his 21st Cup Series weekend on the Pocono Raceway, Ross Chastain stinted in the CRC Brakleen 175 Truck Series Race. It was the fourth truck race of the season for the Niece Motorsports driver wherein he bagged his third top-5 with a fifth-place finish despite starting from the rear of the field in 27th.

But soon after the #45 Chevy went for the post-race inspection, a disappointing outcome surfaced for Chastain's crew chief Phil Gould. It was discovered that the Niece Motorsports truck had one unsecured lug nut and as per Section 8.8.10.4a of the 'Tires and Wheels of the NASCAR Rule Book,' Gould is set to receive a penalty of $5000 for the omission.

The most recent example of lug nut infractions was at the Xfinity race at the Sonoma Raceway where Shane van Gisbergen and Ryan Sieg's crew chiefs were each slapped with a $5000 fine for one unsecured lug nut.

Speedway Digest shared the post-race inspection status, outlining the ensuing penalty for Ross Chastain's crew chief.

"Inspection in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series garage is complete. Heim is the winner. The 45 truck had one lug not secured. No other issues," the message read via X.

Ross Chastain lost multiple opportunities for a podium finish at the Pocono Raceway to settle in fifth

Chastain couldn't showcase signs of speed during the qualifying run, settling for a 27th-place start. But as the battle furthered, the #45 Chevy driver gained momentum and swerved past his rivals.

He improved his track positions, finishing Stage 1 in 15th place but didn't slow down and kept on scrounging for the lead. Thus, Stage 2 witnessed Ross Chastain inside the top 10 in seventh place. On Lap 48 restart, while Corey Heim dominated the 70-lap dash, the Niece Motorsports driver ran behind him in second place. However, he couldn't hold his runner-up spot and lost the position to Grant Enfinger.

Soon after Ross Chastain lost the second place to Enfinger, the field was repeatedly reset as the race was red-flagged two times combined with several yellows. Chastain had another shot at coming home with a podium finish when the final restart was green-flagged with just three laps until the checkered flag dropped.

He restarted his #45 truck from the third place but was overtaken by Christian Eckes and shortly after #17 Toyota driver Taylor Gray also passed Chastain. However, after losing Eckes' final overtake move over the Florida native, the latter held onto his fifth-place run until he crossed the start/finish line.

From four Truck Series races this season, the 31-year-old has collected two fifth-place finishes- at the Circuit of The Americas and Pocono and has emerged victorious on the Darlington Raceway.