No Letarte at Loudon

Steve Letarte's homecoming will have to wait until the September race at New Hampshire International Speedway.

Hendrick Motorsports has decided not to appeal the suspensions levied by NASCAR this week, after the teams of Jeff Gordon's No. 24 and Jimmie Johnson's No. 48 were found in violation during pre-qualifying inspection last week at Infineon Raceway.

Included in those penalties were 6-race suspensions for both Letarte, a native of Cornish, Maine, and Chad Knaus, the crew chiefs for the cars in question. Letarte is being replaced with car chief Jeff Meendering, and he is eligible to come off his suspension with the Aug. 19 race at Michigan International Speedway.

Both drivers were also docked 100 points, as were the owners, in addition to sizeable fines.