Not sure of the specifics. The point is he did something different that appears to have been advantageous. His competitors read the rules differently or didn’

Not sure of the specifics. The point is he did something different that appears to have been advantageous. His competitors read the rules differently or didn’t think to try. If I had to guess taking the fender liners out could help cool the brakes. Qualifying is short so the heat buildup isn’t as important as in a full race. NASCAR racers have also been known to blatantly cheat in one area to deliberately get caught and draw the attention away from additional cheats. The inspectors find one thing, flag it, then pass the car when it is fixed, leaving the bigger cheat undiscovered.