Is it time NASCAR start taking wins away from drivers if their car fails post-race tech?

I'll give credit for this to ditch_dgr, who in an earlier blog, noted that if a winning car does not pass post-race inspection, "It is time for NASCAR to take the win away or do away with the rules.''

Hmmm.

This idea is not new. It's been debated for years. I believe it goes back to Bill France Jr. who, as the story goes, said it was more important for the fans to leave the track seeing who won then finding out hours or days later that a chance had been made and what they had seen hadn't actually happened.

This comes out because of what happened Sunday. Brad Keselowski won the Nationwide race at Talladega but his car failied post-race inspection. He keeps the win but was docked 50 points. His car owner lost 50 points and his crew chief was fined $20,000. Still, despite not meeting the rule book, Keselowski kept the win.

Of course, the biggest issue with this is if NASCAR took wins away from drivers, Richard Petty would not have 200 Cup wins. Recall his Charlotte win in 1983 (win No. 198), his car was found to have an oversized engine and fitted with illegal tires. NASCAR penalized Petty points and issued a stiff fine at the time but Petty kept the win. Again, the fans left the track knowing Petty had won and that didn't change hours later.

Certainly, there's something to be said for fans knowing who won as opposed to Indy Car racing where there have been a couple of times in the last 30-so years that the winner of the Indianapolis 500 was not determined for several weeks after the event because of protests and inquiry boards and such. That doesn't help a sport.

Still, this seems to be a time where NASCAR is listening more to the fans. So, what do you think? Are you comfortable knowing that the winning driver gets to keep the win if his car is found to be illegal after a race? Or would you be fine after spending all day at the track finding out hours later that the guy you saw won had the win taken away? Or should you have to determine intent? In some cases, it's obvious that a rule infraction was intended. In other cases, a team could argue, the penalty was a result of racing 400 or 500 miles and the contact that takes place.

What do you want NASCAR Nation? You have a voice. Will you use it with this?

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