DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) -- NASCAR president Mike Helton says its "highly likely" five-time champion Jimmie Johnson's team will be
penalized following the Daytona 500.

The No. 48 Chevrolet had illegally modified sheet metal between
the roof and the side windows that was found in Friday's
inspection.

NASCAR took the area known as the C-posts from the Hendrick
Motorsports team and shipped them to its research and development
facility.

Crew chief Chad Knaus was allowed to repair the car and Johnson
is competing in activities leading up to the Feb. 26 season-opening
Daytona 500.

But Helton said Saturday the team will likely be penalized in
the days after the race. Knaus was kicked out of Daytona before the
2006 race, and Helton says the difference was that infraction was
found in a post-qualifying inspection.

(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)