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Author: Angie Campbell

  • Chase Elliott scores upset Xfinity Series victory at Charlotte

    Chase Elliott scores upset Xfinity Series victory at Charlotte

    Chase Elliott led the final 18 laps in the NASCAR Xfinity Series BetMGM 300 Saturday afternoon at Charlotte Motor Speedway to claim his sixth career win in the series. It was his first victory at Charlotte, his first Xfinity win since February 2016 and the second time the No. 17 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro has been to Victory Lane this season.

    After a lackluster qualifying effort, Elliott started the race in 30th place but quickly advanced, gaining 11 spots by Lap 7. He continued to methodically make his way toward the front but the turning point of the race occurred when Ryan Ellis spun, bringing out the caution flag late in the race. Most of the teams elected to pit on Lap 171 but Elliott’s team was one of a few who had a full set of new tires.

    Elliott quickly passed Ellis with 17 laps remaining and took the lead. There was one more pivotal restart and a battle with Brandon Jones for the lead but Elliott prevailed, winning the race by a margin of 0.500 seconds.   

    “My team did a really good job. Greg (Ives, crew chief) made a good call on the tires, and I think ultimately that was what won us the race,” Elliott said after the race.”

    “Hats off to everybody at Hendrick Motorsports,” he added. “It’s super-special to win with the No. 17 on the car for the boss (Rick Hendrick) and Linda. Obviously, a great honor with the Ricky Hendrick scheme. It means a lot to all of us to be a part of this.”

    Brandon Jones, Sammy Smith, Sam Mayer and AJ Allmendinger rounded out the top 5 as Kyle Busch, Ryan Sieg, Josh Williams, Ty Gibbs and Noah Gragson completed the top 10.

  • Tanner Gray Rebounds to win ARCA Menards Series race at Charlotte

    Tanner Gray Rebounds to win ARCA Menards Series race at Charlotte

    Tanner Gray won the ARCA Menards Series General Tire 150 at Charlotte Motor Speedway Friday evening after rebounding from a flat tire and going a lap down.

    He started strong, earning his second career pole and his second at Charlotte, in his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. However, on Lap 34 he had to make an unscheduled pit stop due to a flat right-rear tire and went a lap down.

    With 20 laps to go, Carson Kvapil had a two-second lead while Gray had methodically made his way back to the lead lap. Gray caught a break after a crash involving Con Nicolopoulos and Mitch Gibson as most of the lead-lap cars pit with 15 laps remaining in the race.

    When the race resumed, Gray, who had stayed on the track during the caution and was now in the lead, held off Kvapil and won by a margin of 0.939 seconds.

    Andres Perez finished third followed by Will Kimmel in fourth and Lavar Scott in fifth.

    “To be able to come here and rebound the way we did is really cool,” Gray said. “We fought a little adversity in the beginning, cutting the right-rear (tire) down and going a lap down. To be able to execute a solid race and finish off those last few laps is really cool.

    *Note: Gray finished 18th in Friday night’s Truck Series North Carolina Education Lottery 200.

    • Race results:
    Pos.Car No.DriverSponsor, OEMLapsDiff.
    118Tanner GrayJGR Toyota100 –
    282Carson Kvapil*Chevrolet Performace Chevrolet1000.939
    32Andres PerezMax Siegal Inc Chevrolet1002.355
    469Will KimmelWeddington Custom Homes-Accel Hydraulics1005.192
    56Lavar Scott*Max Siegel Inc Chevrolet1005.343
    655Gus DeanDRIVEN Trackside1007.275
    720Dean ThompsonThompson Pipe Group Toyota1007.423
    833Lawless Alan*Auto Parkit Ford1007.817
    997Jason KitzmillerA.L.L Construction Chevrolet1008.342
    109Sebastian AriasBrady IFS Chevrolet10011.265
    1135Greg Van AlstCB Fabricating Ford10011.273
    1225Toni BreidingerCelsius Toyota10012.836
    1310Cody Dennison*Timcast.com Toyota10016.986
    1473Andy JankowiakAcacia Energy Toyota10027.118
    1522Amber BalcaenICON Toyota991 Lap
    1612Ryan Roulette*Bellator Recruiting Academy/VFW Ford982 Laps
    1727Tim RichmondImmigration Law Center Toyota982 Laps
    1815Kris WrightFNB Corporation Toyota973 Laps
    1988A.J. MoyerRivers’s Edge Cottages & RV Park/Ampere EV Chevrolet964 Laps
    2099Michael Maples*Don Ray Petroleum LLC/Maples Motorsports Chevrolet946 Laps
    2157Austin McDaniel*Brother In Law Motorsports Chevrolet9010 Laps
    2206Con NicolopoulosPeterson Motorsports Ford8911 Laps
    2375Hunter Deshautelle*Brother-In-Law Motorsports Chevrolet8713 Laps
    2431Mitch Gibson*C&S Construction & Cabinet Designs Chevrolet7921 Laps
    2503Alex ClubbRace Parts Liquidators Ford4555 Laps
    2648Brad SmithCopraya.com Ford3664 Laps
    2728Connor Mosack*Chevrolet/Silver Hare Development Chevrolet3070 Laps
    2832Christian RoseBlue Wolf Cleaners & Degreasers Ford2872 Laps
    2911Jayson Alexander*Constant Contact Ford2080 Laps
  • Ty Gibbs collects the Xfinity Series pole at Charlotte  

    Ty Gibbs collects the Xfinity Series pole at Charlotte  

    Ty Gibbs will lead the field to the green flag in Saturday’s Xfinity Series BetMGM 300  at Charlotte Motor Speedway after winning the pole Friday with a lap of 177.194 mph in his  No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

    “I’m very thankful to run two races and I really have a good time out here,” Gibbs said. “Doing another race this weekend is fun. I always love racing so I always look forward to doing stuff like this.”

    Kyle Busch (176.482 mph) will join Gibbs on the front row as Chandler Smith (176.246), Jesse Love (175.873) and Jeb Burton (175.496) rounded out the top five in the qualifying session.

    Cole Custer will start sixth (175.433), followed by Sheldon Creed (175.433), Austin Hill (175.365 mph), Justin Allgaier (175.160) and Brandon Jones (176.103) to complete the top-10.

    The BetMGM 300  will be broadcast on FOX Saturday afternoon with the green flag set for 1:19 p.m. ET with radio coverage provided by PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

    Starting Lineup:

  • Tanner Gray claims pole for Charlotte Truck Series race

    Tanner Gray claims pole for Charlotte Truck Series race

    Tanner Gray won Friday night’s North Carolina Education Lottery 200 pole at Charlotte Motor Speedway. He topped NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series qualifying with a 178.241 mph lap in the No. 15 Toyota for TRICON Garage to earn his first pole this season and his second consecutive Truck Series pole at Charlotte.

    Gray’s teammate, Corey Heim, will start beside him on the front row. Ty Majeski qualified third followed by Rajah Caruth and Layne Riggs to complete the top five.

    Chase Purdy, Connor Mosack, Jack Wood, Kaden Honeycutt and Bayley Currey rounded out the top 10 in qualifying.

    Truck Series points leader, Christian Eckes, will start at the rear of the field after damage during practice.

    Justin Carroll and Jennifer Jo Cobb did not qualify for the race.

    The North Carolina Education Lottery 200 is scheduled for Friday at 8:30 p.m. on FS1 with radio coverage provided by MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

    Starting Line Up:

  • Weekend Schedule for Charlotte Coca-Cola 600

    Weekend Schedule for Charlotte Coca-Cola 600

    NASCAR is set to race Memorial Day Weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway headlined by the 65th running of the Coca-Cola 600 Sunday night. Once again NASCAR will pay tribute to the Armed Forces with the NASCAR Salutes Together with Coca-Cola program.

    As part of the program, every NASCAR Cup Series car participating in the Coca-Cola 600 will feature the name of a fallen service member on the windshield and Goodyear tires will feature a special “Honor and Remember” sidewall design. NASCAR and Coca-Cola will also host Gold Star Families who have lost family members as a result of serving.

    Team Penske driver, Ryan Blaney, is the defending race winner.

    The ARCA Menards Series and the Craftsman Truck Series will compete Friday night as the Xfinity Series takes to the track Saturday afternoon.

    Friday, May 24
    11:40 a.m.: ARCA Menards Series Practice (Al Entries) Race Center
    12:40 p.m.: ARCA Menard Series Qualifying (Impound, Timed, All Entries) Race Center

    1:35 p.m.: Truck Series Practice (Timed, All Entries, 20 Minutes) FS1
    2:05 p.m.: Truck Series Qualifying (Impound, All Entries, Single Vehicle -1 Lap) FS1

    3:35 p.m.: Xfinity Series Practice (Timed, All Entries, 20 Minutes) FS1
    4:05 p.m.: Xfinity Series Qualifying (Impound, All Entries, Single Vehicle – 1 Lap) FS1

    6 p.m.: ARCA General Tire 150 (100 Laps-150 Miles) FS1/MRN

    8:30 p.m.: Truck Series North Carolina Education Lottery 200
    Stages 30/60/134 Laps = 201 Miles – FS1/MRN/SiriusXM
    Purse: $782,014
    NASCAR Press Pass: Post Race

    Saturday, May 25
    1 p.m.: Xfinity Series BetMGM 300
    Stages 45/90/200 Laps = 300 Miles – FOX/PRN/SiriusXM
    Purse: $1,383,384
    NASCAR Press Pass: Post Race

    5:05 p.m.: Cup Series Practice (Groups A & B, 20 Minutes each)
    FS1/PRN/SiriusXM
    5:50 p.m.: Cup Series Qualifying (Impound, Groups A & B, Single Vehicle – 1 Lap/2 Rounds)
    FS1/PRN/SiriusXM
    NASCAR Press Pass: Post Qualifying

    Sunday, May 26
    6 p.m.: Cup Series Coca-Cola 600
    Stages 100/200/300/400 Laps = 600 Miles
    FOX/PRN/SiriusXM
    Purse: $9,874,821
    NASCAR Press Pass: Post Race

  • Ricky Stenhouse Jr. fined, 2 crew members suspended after All-Star Race altercation

    Ricky Stenhouse Jr. fined, 2 crew members suspended after All-Star Race altercation

    NASCAR announced penalties today following the All-Star Race confrontation between Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Kyle Busch at North Wilkesboro Speedway.

    The incident stemmed from contact with Kyle Busch at the beginning of the race, knocking him out of contention after only two laps. Stenhouse could not leave the venue because the facility has no tunnel or a pedestrian bridge to exit without walking across the track.

    Stranded on the sidelines, a frustrated Stenhouse had plenty of time to think about what had happened and confronted Busch after the race. He ended the conversation by punching Busch in the face igniting a free-for-all between the two teams. Stenhouse’s father was also involved, grabbing Bush, as the fight escalated.

    NASCAR announced the following penalties Wednesday.

    “When crew members get involved and family members get involved, we’re going to react,” NASCAR Senior Vice President Elton Sawyer said. “That’s exactly what we did.”

    Ricky Stenhouse, Jr has been fined $75,000. JTG Daugherty Racing team members suspended for fighting include engine tuner Keith Matthews for four races and mechanic Clint Myrick for eight races (fighting and putting his hands on Busch). Richard Stenhouse (father) has been indefinitely suspended for grabbing Busch.

    Busch and his Richard Childress Racing team members did not receive any penalties.

    The suspensions and fines can be appealed.

  • Weekend schedule and format for All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro

    Weekend schedule and format for All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro

    This weekend NASCAR heads to North Wilkesboro Speedway for the All-Star race. Seventeen drivers have already earned a spot in the event.

    Drivers who have won points races in 2023 or 2024 are eligible plus past Cup Series champions and All-Star race winners, regardless of whether they are current full-time Cup Series drivers. The top two finishers in the All-Star Open will also transfer to the All-Star Race.

    The final spot in the race will be set by the All-Star Fan Vote and awarded to the top driver who is not currently eligible.

    There will be two, 60 lap heat races to set the field for the All-Star Open. The top two racers from the All-Star Open and the winner of the Fan Vote will join the field to compete in the 200-lap All-Star Race. The winner will claim a $1 million prize.

    The NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series will also compete this weekend at North Wilkesboro Speedway in the Wright Brand 250 on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. The NASCAR Xfinity Series is taking a week off and will return to competition at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 25.

    NASCAR PressPass will be available throughout the weekend. All times are Eastern.

    All-Star Race Eligible Drivers:

    • AJ Allmendinger
    • Christopher Bell
    • Ryan Blaney
    • Chris Buescher
    • Kyle Busch
    • William Byron
    • Ross Chastain
    • Chase Elliott
    • Denny Hamlin
    • Brad Keselowski
    • Kyle Larson
    • Joey Logano
    • Michael McDowell
    • Tyler Reddick
    • Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
    • Daniel Suarez
    • Martin Truex Jr.
    • All-Star Open Winner
    • All-Star Open Second-Place Finisher
    • Fan Vote Winner

    Friday, May 17
    3 p.m.: Truck Series Practice – FS1
    4:35 p.m.: Cup Series Practice – FS1/MRN/SiriusXM
    6:20 p.m.: Qualifying (All-Star Pit Crew Challenge) – FS1/MRN/SiriusXM – Postponed

    Saturday, May 18
    10:35 a.m.: Truck Series Qualifying – FS1 – Canceled
    11:40 a.m.: Cup Series Qualifying/All-Star Pit Crew Challenge – FS1
    1:30 p.m.: Truck Series Wright Brand 250 – FS1 – Postponed
    5:20 p.m.: Cup Series All-Star Race Heat No. 1 – FS2 – Canceled
    6:15 p.m.: Cup Series All-Star Race Heat No. 2 – FS2 – Canceled

    Sunday, May 19
    11:30 a.m.: Truck Series Wright Brand 250 – FS1/MRN/SiriusXM
    5:30 p.m.: Cup Series All-Star Open – FS1/MRN/SiriusXM
    8 p.m.: Cup Series All-Star Race – FS1/MRN/SiriusXM

  • Kyle Busch on challenges of adjusting to the Next Gen car

    Kyle Busch on challenges of adjusting to the Next Gen car

    Kyle Busch spoke about the challenges he is experiencing with the Next Gen car Friday afternoon at Darlington Raceway. And although he has earned six top 10s this season, he is in the midst of a 33-race winless streak.  

    His frustration was palpable as he detailed the issues he has encountered in finding the right balance in the Next Gen car.

    “It definitely drives different than the old (Gen-6) car,” Busch explained. “You know, what that is… I’m not exactly sure. I mean, it seems when you lead into the corner and the right front is outside the right rear, the car is much tighter. When you get to the center off of the corner and the right front is inside the right rear coming downhill, it’s much looser. And so trying to find the balance of that has been difficult, trying to get that right. 

    “But the old car didn’t have that sensation,” he added. “It was easy to just make a smooth corner and have the balance stay the same the whole time, where now I feel like I’m fighting many more balance issues. 

    “And on top of just fighting those balance issues by yourself, throw in the aero deficiencies that you have in traffic and now you’re just confused. Like you think that you’re going to expect it to do one thing and it does something else and you lose a tenth of a second because you’re trying to garner that feel of what it is.

    “I mean, we’re literally all grasping at half of a tenth of a second to be the best car on the racetrack. I mean, many of our pace studies that come out after these races, two-tenths is the difference between first and 25th. So you’re literally grasping at very small gains to move yourself up that pylon.”

    Busch had another frustrating race at Darlington in the Goodyear 400 Sunday afternoon, finishing in 27th place.

    “We had a tough day today but my crew chief, Randall Burnett, and all the guys on the zone Chevrolet team never gave up. They made adjustment after adjustment all day long but just weren’t able to hit on a combination that worked. I just didn’t have any grip anywhere for much of the race.

    “In the last stage, Randall made the call to short pit and we gained track position, cycling up to 12th-place. We made our last stop with 40 or so laps to go but got zapped by a caution just a few laps later. We took the wave around and got back on the lead lap but unfortunately, we couldn’t make up that lost track position.”

    Busch is currently 13th in the driver point standings as the series heads to North Wilkesboro Speedway this weekend for the All-Star Race.

  • Brad Keselowski is back on top with a win at Darlington Raceway

    Brad Keselowski is back on top with a win at Darlington Raceway

    Brad Keselowski is back in Victory Lane at Darlington Raceway after a 110-race winless drought. He captured the checkered flag in the NASCAR Cup Series Goodyear 400 Sunday evening, earning his 36th career win and the second at the 1.366-mile track.

    It was also his first win as a co-owner and driver for RFK Racing and his first trip to Victory Lane since taking the checkered flag at Talladega in April 2021 for Team Penske.

    “It’s just so great to be here in Darlington, Keselowski said. “I love this track. I love coming here. It’s a special place to me whether you win or not, but to run up front all day and have a great car, qualify up front, it was just an awesome day for Castrol.

    “I’m glad for Ford. Ford has been working really hard to get us up here and here we are. We got them a win, so they don’t have to hear about that anymore. I’m happy for Ford. Hopefully, there are more great things to come.

    “It was a total team effort from the top to the bottom to get us to where we could have a fast car. We executed on pit road, led laps and were there when it counted at the end.”

    Ty Gibbs finished second in the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 54 Toyota, his career-best result in the Cup Series and his seventh top-10 of 2024.

    Josh Berry earned a third-place result in his No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford and was the highest-finishing rookie. Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe rounded out the top five.

    Kyle Larson leads the point standings despite a disappointing finish. He won the first stage but lost the handling of his car. Finally, on Lap 254 during the final stage, Larson spun due to a flat left-rear tire and took his car to the garage, ending his day early.

    The post-race inspection was completed with no issues, confirming Keselowski as the winner.

    Next week the Cup Series heads to North Wilkesboro Speedway for the All-Star Race.

    Darlington Goodyear 400 Race Results:

    1. Brad Keselowski
    2. Ty Gibbs
    3. Josh Berry
    4. Denny Hamlin
    5. Chase Briscoe
    6. William Byron
    7. Bubba Wallace
    8. Alex Bowman
    9. Justin Haley
    10. Michael McDowell
    11. Ross Chastain
    12. Chase Elliott
    13. Christopher Bell
    14. Noah Gragson
    15. Todd Gillian
    16. Corey LaJoie
    17. Ryan Preece
    18. Kaz Grala
    19. Erik Jones
    20. Austin Cindric
    21. Joey Logano
    22. Harrison Burton
    23. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
    24. Daniel Suarez
    25. Martin Truex Jr.
    26. Carson Hocevar
    27. Kyle Busch
    28. Austin Dillon
    29. Derek Kraus
    30. Chris Buescher
    31. John Hunter Nemechek
    32. Tyler Reddick
    33. Daniel Henric
    34. Kyle Larson
    35. Zane Smith
    36. Ryan Blaney
  • Justin Allgaier prevails to win Xfinity Series race at Darlington

    Justin Allgaier prevails to win Xfinity Series race at Darlington

    Justin Allgaier dominated the Xfinity Series field to claim a decisive win at Darlington Raceway. He won the first two stages in his No. 5 JR Motorsports Chevrolet, led 119 of 147 laps and captured the checkered flag for his 24th victory in the series.

    It was his third win at Darlington and his 24th Xfinity Series win, tying him with team owner, Dale Earnhardt Jr. He also leads the series with 267 top-10 finishes, breaking a tie with Kyle Busch.

    “I didn’t know if the day would come when I’d be able to match Dale Jr.,” Allgaier said after the race. “Not only is he a great boss but a really good mentor and an unbelievable race car driver.

    “To be able to come here, to be able to tie him, to be able to take over the all-time top 10s, man, there’s nothing better than that.”

    Austin Hill led six laps, finished second and leads the series by 3 points. Cole Custer was third as Sam Mayer and Aric Almirola rounded out the top five finishers at Darlington.

    Parker Kligerman, Riley Herbst, rookie Jesse Love, Sheldon Creed and Brandon Jones rounded out the top 10.

    The post-race inspection was completed with no issues.

    The Xfinity Series is off next week and returns to completion on May 25 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.