Following his Daytona 500 penalty, Chase Briscoe faces mounting pressure in his new role at Joe Gibbs Racing, with significant consequences hanging in the balance.

The No. 19 team received penalties for modifying a single-sourced supplied part (spoiler), including:

• 100 points deduction
• 10 playoff points penalty
• $100,000 fine
• Four-race suspension for crew chief James Small

"It's not ideal, but there's still a chance to appeal," Briscoe stated at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The team's appeal has automatically deferred Small's suspension, allowing him to remain with the team at Atlanta while awaiting NASCAR's appeal date.

The timing is particularly challenging for Briscoe, just three races into his tenure with JGR. While the team's depth, including competition director Gabehart, provides some cushion, losing Small for four weeks would impact their developing chemistry.

Currently sitting at -67 points and -10 playoff points, Briscoe maintains a positive outlook: "I feel like I'm in a must-win situation just starting at JGR. You need to be winning in JGR stuff. I feel like it's a must-win situation every year for me, just from a career standpoint."

The penalty significantly reduces the team's margin for error. "If we don't win the appeal, you've kind of used up your mulligans," Briscoe explained. "You kind of have three or four times where you can have a DNF throughout the season and still make the playoffs, but if we don't win the appeal, we've used those up. I don't have any weekends I can have bad."

Despite these challenges, Briscoe remains focused on securing a win to ensure playoff contention, acknowledging that championship contenders need race victories regardless of point standings.

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