Head2Head: Fair penalty?

"Y ou know Jules, there is the brink of insanity and then there is the abyss, which obviously you have fallen into!"

-- Kevin Dolenz, St. Elmo's Fire

It's been almost 25 years since those words were uttered on the big screen, and they still hold true today -- especially when talking about punishment doled out by NASCAR.

The 100-point penalty levied against driver Robby Gordon and the $100K-fine, six-race suspension handed crew chief Frank Kerr is the abyss, considering the circumstances:

• Robby Gordon Motorsports made the switch from Ford to Dodge on the eve of Speedweeks.

• When RGM received the noses from Gillett Evernham Motorsports, the company inadvertently took delivery of unproved prototype Charger noses instead of the NASCAR-sanctioned Avenger noses.

• Though Dodge racecars are running the Charger nameplate this season, they will continue using the Avenger nose until NASCAR approves the Charger nose submitted by the manufacturer. (Avenger, Charger ... whatever; no wonder comparisons to IROC remain prevalent...)

Said Cup Series director John Darby: "There's no difference, really, in the nose other than the decal outlines that complement the Charger more than the Avenger. But the nose has not finished due process yet, so they had to put one of the old noses back on the car."

RGM obviously was not trying to circumvent the rules; it had no clue that the nose was that of the yet-to-be-approved Charger.

When the Hendrick cars of Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson were cited at Sonoma last year, it was a blatant attempt to gain a competitive advantage. NASCAR, in turn, made it clear that the "gray area" was going to be eliminated in increments of 100 points, $100,000 and six races.

NASCAR wants consistency in the penalties levied for racecar infractions. That's fine -- but use common sense! Regarding Gordon, this was undeniably a case of no harm, no foul. It definitely wasn't something over which NASCAR should have gotten its nose bent out of shape.

Let me start by saying I feel bad for Robby Gordon, I really do. To finish eighth in the Daytona 500 was huge and the 2008 season couldn't have started much better for the driver and car owner.

But on the way to that top-10 finish came a bit of controversy. His No. 7 team put an unapproved Dodge Charger nose on the front of his car. As his Dodge went through its first inspection at Daytona, the team was told of the infraction and changed the nose to an approved Avenger one.

Gordon knew punishment was coming, crew chief Frank Kerr and everyone on the No. 7 team knew punishment was coming and NASCAR even said punishment likely would be handed down. Did Gordon or Kerr expect a 100-point deduction, $100,000 fine and a six-week suspension for Kerr on an honest mistake -- probably not, but kudos to NASCAR for sticking to its guns.

The governing body has said all along, mess with new car and you will be hit substantially.

Tony Eury Jr. didn't mean to improperly mount the rear wing on Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s No. 8 Chevy last season at Darlington, but they still were docked 100 points and Eury was suspended six weeks.

Chad Knaus and Steve Letarte weren't blatantly trying to cheat when they tweaked the front of their No.48 and No. 24 Hendrick cars before the road race at Sonoma; the duo thought they were well within the rules. Yet the same punishment was handed down -- a six-week suspension and 100 points lost for drivers Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon.

It's not NASCAR's job to judge intent, its mission is to make the sport as fair and competitive as possible. That's why rules are in place and why NASCAR has made such a rigid stand when it comes to the new car.

Was Robby Gordon trying to gain an advantage with the wrong nose? Probably not, but NASCAR doesn't know that, and shouldn't be expected to use "common sense" when it comes to rule violations. You either broke the rule or you didn't -- it's as simple as that.

Unfortunately for Gordon, his team broke a rule and he went from eighth in points to 40th. It's too bad, but NASCAR stayed consistent and that's what you want from the governing body of a sport.