NASCAR: Kenseth suspended for two races

Two days after his controversial crash with Joey Logano at Martinsville, NASCAR announced it was suspending Matt Kenseth for the next two series events and putting him on probation for six months for his part in the incident with Logano late in Sunday's race at Martinsville Speedway.

While Kenseth claimed the crash was caused by a deflating tire or other mechanical issue, it was widely perceived to have been payback: At Kansas two weeks earlier, Logano had tipped Kenseth into a spin during their late-race battle for the lead. At Martinsville, Kenseth was multiple laps down folllowing an earlier altercation with Logano's Penske teammate Brad Keselowski, while Logano had been leading.

"Based upon our extensive review, we have concluded that the No. 20 car driver, who is no longer in the Chase, intentionally wrecked the No. 22 car driver, a Chase-eligible competitor who was leading the race at the time," said Steve O'Donnell, NASCAR executive vice president and chief racing development officer. "The No. 20 car was nine laps down, and eliminated the No. 22 car's opportunity to continue to compete in the race.

"Additionally, we factored aspects of safety into our decision, and also the fact that the new Chase elimination format puts a premium on each and every race. These actions have no place in NASCAR."

The supension is the first by NASCAR since Kyle Busch was parked for the Sprint Cup and Xfinity Series races at Texas four years ago, after he deliberately wrecked Ron Hornaday Jr. in the Camping World Truck Series race at that track.

Meanwhile, Danica Patrick was fined $50,000, assessed with the loss of 25 series championship driver points and placed on NASCAR probation through Dec. 31 for her altercation with David Gilliland at Martinsville.