Roush: Team stole sway bar, inquired about making copies
By David Newton
ESPN.com
(Archive)
Updated: March 28, 2008, 1:53 PM ET
MARTINSVILLE, Va. -- Jack Roush said on Friday that a Toyota team stole a sway bar made specifically for Roush Fenway Racing from one of his Sprint Cup teams last season at Dover.
"A theft did occur," the co-owner of Roush Fenway said during practice at Martinsville Speedway. "The part was recovered. ... We are still considering what if any legal action to seek."
One of the options is having a restraining order taken out to guarantee the team in question does not duplicate the bar, which has been determined legal by NASCAR, for a competitive advantage.
"It's lawyer time," Roush said.
These were Roush's first comments since he was quoted in ESPN The Magazine as saying a proprietary part was found missing from his inventory and discovered with a Toyota team.
Roush did not identify what Toyota team he was accusing of taking the part.
He discounted comments made by Jim Aust, the president of Toyota Racing Development, that a spring was found during a teardown inspection, identified as belonging to Roush and returned.
Roush said the theft occurred in the garage area at Dover in September. He said the sway bars, of which about 12 were built by the team specifically for NASCAR's new car, were bigger than the old bars and unable to fit in the toolbox storage bin.
He said the bar in question was placed under a Roush Fenway toolbox that was backed up against the toolbox of another team.
"The other team, a non-descript Toyota team, went behind the toolbox and took my bar and put it with their bars and took it home," Roush said. "That is a fact."
Roush said he became aware of the theft in early January when the vendor that produced the product for Roush Fenway was contacted by the Toyota team in question about duplicating the bar.
He said his manager then checked inventory and verified that a bar thought to have been misplaced was missing.
Subsequently, Roush said a mechanic hired from the Toyota team verified that he'd seen the bar in a locker at his former shop. Through several inquiries it was determined the bar still was there.
"When I found out I wanted to go supersonic," Roush said.
While considering whether to get a search warrant and search for the bar Roush said one of his managers called the Toyota team and received confirmation that "somebody had stolen the bar."
He said the manager of the Toyota team then found the bar and returned it at an arranged 6 a.m. meeting. Serial numbers confirmed it was the missing piece.
Roush was considering whether to go public with the information when Carl Edwards' team was fined $100,000 points and his crew chief was suspended for six races after NASCAR discovered the oil can lid in Edwards' car was off during his win at Las Vegas.
He became infuriated when Lee White, the general manager of TRD, suggested the violation was intentional.
Admittedly angry over what Roush considered a personal attack he launched a few bombs at White and Toyota. Among them was the stolen part.
Roush said he's had several discussions with NASCAR officials about the theft. He was alarmed when Ryan Pemberton, the vice president of competition for the series, said thefts are a common occurrence and the teams needed to work it out amongst themselves.
"There's a lot of people ready to sweep dirt under the rug," Roush said. "I don't want to embarrass the sponsor. I really don't want to embarrass the team. But I also don't want to be made to look stupid."
Roush said there is something fundamentally wrong if NASCAR doesn't intercede, reminding they have no problem reacting when somebody uses an illegal part whether on purpose or not.
"But they don't have rules when it's related to theft," he said. "Maybe they should."
Roush, noting he has been in the business 22 years, and said this is the first time he's heard of such a situation. He declined to respond to a question in which Michael Waltrip Racing was insinuated as the Toyota team.
"I don't substantiate," he said.
Waltrip said he would not comment on Roush's comments until he sees the transcript of what Roush said.
David Newton covers NASCAR for ESPN.com.