NASCAR officials have determined a bolt connecting the hood with a safety tether failed in Winston Cup driver Robby Gordon's #31 Cingular Wireless Chevy, causing the hood to fly off the car and into the grandstands during last Saturday's Pepsi 400 at Daytona International Speedway. NASCAR spokesman Mike Zizzo said Tuesday officials continue to investigate the incident, including finding a cause for the bolt's failure. "There remains a lot of work to be done on this," he said. NASCAR officials are working on ways to prevent the bolt failure, including the possible use of different size bolts, Zizzo said. No penalties are likely to be assessed to the #31 team. Zizzo said it appeared the team had followed all NASCAR guidelines while preparing the car for a return to the race track. Winston Cup cars are required to have two tethers made from a fiber called Vectran attached from bars in the engine bay to the hood at points approximately 12 inches from the rear of the hood. The hoods are also anchored by steel hinges in the rear, attached with bolts, and pinned in front with four steel fasteners. It was one of these bolts that failed in Gordon's car, Zizzo said.
