Testing SpeedwayMedia.com

Author: SM Staff

  • Chase Elliott wheels into Victory Lane at Kansas as the Round of 12 Concludes

    Chase Elliott wheels into Victory Lane at Kansas as the Round of 12 Concludes

    Chase Elliott won the Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway on Sunday afternoon. Elliott is really starting to heat up heading into the Round of 8 next week after scoring his second victory in the Round of 12 and his third Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series win this season.

    He spoke about the team’s strategy as they continue in the Playoffs and the emphasis on winning races.

    “The points game is nice I guess to play. Really you just need to care about winning,” Elliott said. “If you’re trying to win, putting yourself in position to win, that’s way more important than just barely trying to squeak through. Having the ability to win, do it weekly, putting yourselves in those positions week by week is the most important thing. If we can do that these next three weeks, I think we can give ourselves a chance.”

    Joey Logano started the race on the pole and led the field to the green flag quickly maintaining the lead. It only lasted one lap for clean racing. Daniel Suarez brushed the wall on the second lap and made slight contact with Alex Bowman. Suarez then pitted.

    Stage 1 was an adventure for Kyle Larson. Larson started the race at the tail of the field because he had to go to a backup car after wrecking his primary on Friday during practice. By Lap 15 he was already in the 20th position. Larson needed a win to advance to the next round of the playoffs.

    Alex Bowman was in the same position as Larson. He also needed a win to advance. He hit the wall on Lap 24 while he was trying to run the high line. Nothing major happened to his car and he continued running.

    By Lap 45 all of the Playoff drivers had pit once under green. No serious changes to the leaderboard happened during the pit stops.

    The first caution of the race came out on Lap 56 when William Byron had an engine failure in his vehicle. It was a long cleanup since he dropped a lot of oil on the track and on some pit boxes.

    When the lead lap cars went in to pit under caution there were three drivers that elected to just take two tires. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. did not pit and led the field to the green on Lap 64 for the restart. His lead did not last too long as he fell back quickly with Ryan Blaney taking the lead.

    There was a great battle between teammates Logano and Blaney toward the end of the stage as both were going hard for the lead. Kevin Harvick got into the picture while the teammates kept swapping positions. Logano was able to hold off Harvick and Blaney to win Stage 1. With Harvick finishing second, it clinched his spot in the Round of 8.

    No major changes happened during the pit stops. All the leaders went in as expected and Logano led the field for the start of Stage 2. Blaney was able to take the second position away from Harvick on the restart. Harvick was able to come back and take the spot back on Lap 96.

    Larson became a contender in the race during Stage 2. He found himself in the sixth position behind Kyle Busch by Lap 101.

    Kurt Busch had a rough day. The speed in his car was not where he wanted it to be as he started to fall off in Stage 2. The battle between Harvick and Blaney seemed like it was happening all day. Blaney was able to take the second spot back from Harvick on Lap 115.

    Green flag pit stops in Stage 2 started on Lap 119 with Martin Trux Jr. being the first car to pit. Aric Almirola and Kurt Busch were hit with penalties for uncontrolled tires as Busch’s bad day continued to get worse.

    Brad Keselowski tried staying out on the track many laps after everyone had gone in to pit, hoping to catch a caution. That did not work and he finally had to pit on Lap 140. Harvick took over the lead and went on to win Stage 2.

    There was a good battle in the pits during the caution. Larson gained three positions during his time on pit road. Denny Hamlin was penalized for speeding on pit road. Kyle Busch and Logano clinched their spots in the Round of 8 after Stage 2.

    Harvick and Elliott led the field on the restart to start the final stage. Kurt Busch continued down a lap but kept creeping in and out of the playoff picture the whole afternoon.

    Elliott made some nice gains after being able to catch Blaney and taking away the second position from him. Larson was also able to come in and challenge Blaney for the third position.

    On lap 208 Kyle Busch was able to pass Larson and Blaney at the same time moment that Blaney scrapped the wall. Blaney eventually dropped to fifth and his minor issues put him outside the cutoff line for the next round late in the race.

    “Obviously it was a mistake I made trying to work hard to catch those guys and I pushed too hard and got in the fence. It is all my fault. Whether it would have worked out for us or not, I don’t know,” Blaney said.

    Kyle Larson was the first car to go in for green flag pit stops.

    A big change in the race happened after leader Harvick was penalized for speeding during his pit stop. This positioned Chase Elliott to take the lead when the field cycled out after the pits.

    “Today wasn’t great from my standpoint. Our Busch Lite Ford was really fast and leading the race there and I got a speeding penalty. That was my fault. I tried to get a little too much and wound up going too fast. We will take it one week at a time,” Harvick said after the race.

    Kyle Busch started to show late speed with under 30 laps to go. He was cutting down on Elliott’s lead. With 15 laps to go there were signs that Busch was getting close to Elliott but he had a hard time at the end. This gave Larson some life as he approached Busch. None were able to get passed Elliott as a result.

    Kyle Busch had to settle with second place with Larson finishing third. Erik Jones and Martin Truex Jr. rounded out the top five.

    Blaney, Keselowski, Larson, and Bowman were eliminated from the Playoffs as we head to the Round of 8 next week at Martinsville.

    “We won three races and did all that. I feel like we can go win Martinsville next week so I am excited about that but of course, the ultimate goal is to win a championship and we won’t have an opportunity to do that this year.” Keselowski said.

    The drivers advancing to the Round of 8:

    1. Kyle Busch
    2. Kevin Harvick
    3. Martin Truex Jr.
    4. Clint Bowyer
    5. Kurt Busch
    6. Joey Logano
    7. Chase Elliott
    8. Aric Almirola

    Monster Energy Cup Series Race
    Unofficial Race Results for the 18th Annual Hollywood Casino 400 – Sunday, October 21, 2018
    Kansas Speedway – Kansas City, KS – 1.5 – Mile Paved
    Total Race Length – 267 Laps – 400.5 Miles

    Pos St Car Driver Team Make
    1 13 9 Chase Elliott (P) Mountain Dew Chevrolet
    2 7 18 Kyle Busch (P) M&M’s Halloween Toyota
    3 27 42 Kyle Larson (P) McDonald’s Trick. Treat. Win! Chevrolet
    4 6 20 Erik Jones Craftsman Toyota
    5 12 78 Martin Truex Jr. (P) Bass Pro Shops/5-hour ENERGY Toyota
    6 5 2 Brad Keselowski (P) Discount Tire Ford
    7 4 12 Ryan Blaney (P) Menards/Wrangler Riggs Ford
    8 1 22 Joey Logano (P) Shell Pennzoil Ford
    9 10 88 Alex Bowman (P) Nationwide Chevrolet
    10 3 10 Aric Almirola (P) Smithfield Ford
    11 23 3 Austin Dillon Dow Chevrolet
    12 2 4 Kevin Harvick (P) Busch Light Ford
    13 14 14 Clint Bowyer (P) Dekalb Ford
    14 9 11 Denny Hamlin FedEx Office Toyota
    15 16 31 Ryan Newman Caterpillar Chevrolet
    16 21 37 Chris Buescher Bush’s Chili Beans Chevrolet
    17 20 1 Jamie McMurray McDonald’s Trick. Treat. Win! Chevrolet
    18 11 41 Kurt Busch (P) Haas Automation/Mobil 1 Ford
    19 28 38 David Ragan MDS Transport Ford
    20 15 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Fastenal Ford
    21 25 47 AJ Allmendinger Kroger ClickList Chevrolet
    22 22 48 Jimmie Johnson Lowe’s for Pros Chevrolet
    23 31 32 Matt DiBenedetto Plan B Sales Ford
    24 8 19 Daniel Suarez ARRIS Toyota
    25 30 13 Ty Dillon GEICO Chevrolet
    26 29 43 Bubba Wallace # Transportation Impact Chevrolet
    27 24 34 Michael McDowell Coburn Supply Company Ford
    28 26 95 Regan Smith Tommy Williams Drywall Chevrolet
    29 35 00 Landon Cassill(i) Share Foundation Chevrolet
    30 19 6 Trevor Bayne AdvoCare Rehydrate Ford
    31 36 23 JJ Yeley(i) BK Racing Toyota
    32 18 21 Paul Menard Menards/NIBCO Ford
    33 38 51 BJ McLeod(i) Jacob Companies Chevrolet
    34 34 72 Corey LaJoie Dragonchain Chevrolet
    35 37 99 * Kyle Weatherman StarCom Fiber Chevrolet
    36 39 7 * Reed Sorenson Harrah’s North Kansas City Chevrolet
    37 33 96 * Jeffrey Earnhardt Xtreme Concepts/iK9 Toyota
    38 17 24 William Byron # Unifirst Chevrolet
    39 32 15 Ross Chastain(i) Durkin Tactical Chevrolet
    40 40 66 * Timmy Hill(i) Ternio Toyota

     

    Follow on Twitter for updates: @BryanR_305

  • Almirola rolls to a Victory following a last lap pass at Talladega

    Almirola rolls to a Victory following a last lap pass at Talladega

    Aric Almirola won the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series 1000 Bulbs 500 at Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday afternoon securing his spot in the Round of 8. This is his second career Cup Series win.

    “I felt like I kept giving it away and I was so disappointed for all these guys behind me because they’re awesome. They’re the best. I’m with the best team in the garage and I felt like I kept letting them down not winning a race. Today, the Good Lord was shining on us and we went to Victory Lane. We did it, finally,” said Almirola in victory lane.

    Kurt Busch led the field to the start of the race backed up by his three Stewart-Haas Racing teammates. It only took three laps for someone to have a problem as David Ragan’s car lost power on Lap three.

    There was a point in the race where the Stewart-Haas cars and the Hendrick Motorsports’ cars controlled the first eight spots. The first caution came out on Lap 11 due to a spin by Jeffrey Earnhardt. The leaders went down to pit road but there was no major change in position.

    Paul Menard ran into problems on Lap 15 expressing to his crew that something had broken in his car. Luckily no contact was made with any other cars.

    It was a seven-car breakaway until the Penske cars were able to reach the lead pack and make an impact on the lead. Kyle Busch got pushed off the lead pack as it seemed that his car was handling poorly. Brad Keselowski pitted after he reported that he had a vibration putting him a lap down. The vibration was caused by a left-rear loose wheel.

    Kurt Busch won Stage 1 followed by his Stewart-Haas teammates.

    Ryan Blaney gained five spots during the pit stops. That put him in the lead for the beginning of Stage 2. Chase Elliott went down pit road before everyone else causing him to restart at the rear of the field.

    Jimmie Johnson spun out by himself hitting the wall on Lap 63 giving him damage on the left-front part of the car. This brought out a caution. The leaders pit during the caution and Kevin Harvick took the first spot from Ryan Blaney. Blaney had a bad stop and came out eighth. Most of the drivers took fuel only.

    It was a good battle following the restart for the lead by Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick. Harvick was able to get the best help by his teammates.

    Michael McDowell had an early exit to the race when he had a hub failure forcing him to the garage on Lap 81. Keselowski was able to fight back to the lead lap breaking into the top 10 near the end of Stage 2.

    A playoff driver with a potential issue was Martin Truex Jr. He wasn’t running the best of races and was reporting that he was a hearing something in the rear-end of the car. More problems for playoff drivers came on Lap 103 when Kyle Larson blew a tire causing him to spin and giving him damage to the right-front fender. Most of the leaders stayed out during the caution.

    Kevin Harvick continued to lead following the restart giving him the Stage 2 win. His three teammates backed him up in the running order.

    Brad Keselowski, William Byron, Jamie McMurray and Bubba Wallace stayed out during the stage caution. Pit road penalties were given to Eric Jones, David Ragan and Jimmie Johnson.

    Things started to heat up in the final stage with cars racing side by side and battling for positions. William Byron took the lead on Lap 123 from Keselowski.

    On Lap 127 Keselowski was able to retake the lead after making a strong move on Byron. A caution came out on Lap 136 after Jamie McMurray spun in the tri-oval hitting the wall.

    The leaders pit with Kurt Busch taking the lead. It was the four Stewart-Haas cars on the inside lane with the Penske cars on the outside lane. Busch was able to hold the lead following a 12 car breakaway on Lap 151.

    A caution came out on Lap 160 after a tire was rolling in the infield grass. A lot of the cars further in the field elected to pit during the caution. Kurt Busch led the field on the restart with his teammates slowly getting lined up behind him. With 20 to go the Stewart-Haas cars controlled the first four spots.

    It was Stewart-Haas Racing against the rest of the field. There was plenty of hard racing after the four-car breakaway but the field was not able to catch them.

    On Lap 186, Alex Bowman, William Byron and JJ Yeley were involved in a crash at the back of the pack. This gave the field some life to contend for the win.

    Overtime came into effect at the end and fuel became a problem for some drivers. Harvick and Blaney were forced to pit right before they went green which counted them out of contention for the win.

    It was Kurt Busch with Aric Almirola side by side for the final restart with wrecks going on behind them. They stayed green going into the final turn when Ricky Stenhouse Jr. had a great run and pushed that energy to Almirola. When Busch ran out of fuel on the final lap, Almirola was clear and secured the victory.

    Busch, who finished 14th, was disappointed but praised the competitiveness of the Stewart-Haas Racing team.

    “It was a very different Talladega for me. I really enjoyed leading the race, working with my teammates,” Busch said. “I’m really happy a Stewart-Haas car won, but the four of us, I’ve never seen so much synergy. We knew we were gonna have to race when we got to Kansas. It would have been nice to have the win. We’re here to win. That’s what Monster Energy wants. Thanks to them. That’s what Team Haas wants. Thanks to Gene, Tony Stewart, everybody. But there were two human element calls there at the end. I don’t know why we ran an extra lap under yellow and why there wasn’t the yellow for a dispatch of an ambulance.”

    Clint Bowyer, who finished second, said “I was happy for Aric. He had that race won last week (at Dover), and it was me that brought out the caution. I feel like he got a little redemption there.

    “Was happy that we finished second.  I think it was second, second and second (in all three stages). As far as our day went, we needed to be a little bit better.”

    Ricky Stenhouse Jr, Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano rounded out the top five.

    With one race to go in the Round of 12, these are the four drivers in elimination positions going into Kansas next week: Brad Keselowski (-18), Ryan Blaney (-22), Kyle Larson (-26) and Alex Bowman (-68).

    Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Race
    Unofficial Race Results for the 50Th Annual 1000Bulbs.Com 500 – Sunday, October 14, 2018
    Talladega Superspeedway – Talladega, AL – 2.66 Mile Paved
    Total Race Length – 193 Laps – 513.38 Miles

    Pos St Car Driver Team Make
    1 4 10 Aric Almirola (P) Smithfield Bacon for Life Ford
    2 2 14 Clint Bowyer (P) Cummins/Rush Truck Centers Ford
    3 12 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. SunnyD Ford
    4 10 11 Denny Hamlin FedEx Ground Toyota
    5 20 22 Joey Logano (P) Shell Pennzoil Ford
    6 23 47 AJ Allmendinger Kroger ClickList Chevrolet
    7 6 48 Jimmie Johnson Lowe’s for Pros Chevrolet
    8 15 20 Erik Jones Craftsman Toyota
    9 30 21 Paul Menard Menards/Dutch Boy Ford
    10 25 95 Regan Smith Procore Chevrolet
    11 34 42 Kyle Larson (P) Credit One Bank Chevrolet
    12 28 62 * Brendan Gaughan(i) FALSE
    13 24 6 Trevor Bayne AdvoCare Rehydrate Ford
    14 1 41 Kurt Busch (P) Monster Energy/Haas Automation Ford
    15 29 13 Ty Dillon GEICO Chevrolet
    16 13 19 Daniel Suarez Stanley Toyota
    17 21 3 Austin Dillon American Ethanol e15 Chevrolet
    18 37 00 Joey Gase(i) PFK Foundation Chevrolet
    19 17 43 Darrell Wallace Jr. # Medallion Bank/Petty’s Garage Chevrolet
    20 8 24 William Byron # Hertz Chevrolet
    21 26 37 Chris Buescher Bush’s Chili Beans Chevrolet
    22 38 99 * Landon Cassill(i) StarCom Fiber Chevrolet
    23 11 78 Martin Truex Jr. (P) Bass Pro Shops/5-hour ENERGY Toyota
    24 36 15 Ross Chastain(i) Xchange of America/Solomon Plumbing Chevrolet
    25 22 31 Ryan Newman Liberty National Chevrolet
    26 9 18 Kyle Busch (P) M&M’s Toyota
    27 18 2 Brad Keselowski (P) Miller Lite Ford
    28 3 4 Kevin Harvick (P) Jimmy John’s Ford
    29 19 12 Ryan Blaney (P) REV Ford
    30 27 32 Matt DiBenedetto Dude Wipes Ford
    31 5 9 Chase Elliott (P) NAPA Nightvision Lamps Chevrolet
    32 40 72 Corey LaJoie Winn Dixie Chevrolet
    33 7 88 Alex Bowman (P) Nationwide Chevrolet
    34 33 7 * DJ Kennington(i) Wilride Transport Ltd Chevrolet
    35 31 1 Jamie McMurray Winter Park Construction/Arctic Cat Chevrolet
    36 32 23 JJ Yeley(i) Steakhouse Elite Ford
    37 35 96 * Jeffrey Earnhardt Xtreme Concepts/iK9 Toyota
    38 39 51 Cody Ware Jacob Companies Chevrolet
    39 16 38 David Ragan 1000Bulbs.com Ford
    40 14 34 Michael McDowell Speedco/Rotella Ford

     

    Follow on Twitter for updates: @BryanR_305

  • SHORT TRACK: An Homage to a Forgotten Series

    SHORT TRACK: An Homage to a Forgotten Series

    The Stephen Cox Blog is presented by Sopwith Motorsports Television Productions

    Hard to believe it’s been nearly 20 years since the Championship Auto Racing Series (CARS) ran exciting, wheel to wheel stock car races on short tracks around Indiana. This series was distinct from and should not be confused with today’s southeastern CARS series that descended from the old Hooters ProCup series.

    The original CARS series was Indiana-based, founded by former ARCA driver Morris Coffman. The concept was built around a spec stock car chassis powered by 305 cubic inch Chevrolet small block engines with two-barrel carburetors that produced about 335 horsepower. The hard compound tires were grooved to limit grip. A completed car, ready to race, was available for about twenty thousand dollars while kits could be purchased for half that price and assembled by the race teams.

    The result was a fun, affordable mid-level touring series that frequented premier Midwestern short tracks including Indianapolis Raceway Park (now Lucas Oil Raceway), Winchester Speedway and Illiana Speedway.

    The crowds were good. The race cars were fun to drive. They had enough power to slide through the turns but not so much grip that engine prices soared into the stratosphere. For a while – a very short while – CARS provided an excellent platform to learn the craft of stock car racing.

    I competed in the series from early 1999 until August 2000. My record was marginal, winning two of the series’ smaller events, sitting on the pole at Winchester and finishing sixth in the season points championship. But the competition sharpened my driving skills and introduced me to some great people who remain friends nearly two decades later.

    Jeff Cannon (33) battles Stephen Cox (21) at Winchester Speedway, 1999

    On September 19, 1999, we put on a pretty good show for Winchester Speedway’s race fans on a bright and cool Sunday afternoon. The top five cars broke away from the field and ran nose-to-tail and sometimes side by side on Winchester’s extreme, 32-degree banking for most of the 20-lap feature. My father and spotter, Nelson, coached me up to fourth place late in the event. The whirlwind speeds of Winchester’s high groove took your breath away, especially when running in a two or three-wide pack of five cars, all vying for a win before a huge crowd at a historic track. I finished fourth in one of the best short track races of the year.

    Series front runners included many outstanding drivers who had already proven themselves winners at other levels of racing. Mark Fesmire could do no wrong in the 1999 season and left us all in the dust on his way to the first CARS championship title. Indiana short track legend Eddie Van Meter won in front of 25,000 fans at Indianapolis in May 2000. Jeff Cannon was so fast he couldn’t keep tires under his car. Bob Dumke, Tim Green, Wes Bullock, Tim Wallen and other fine drivers competed in my era with many more joining after I departed for the Hooters Pro Cup Series in late 2000.

    Jerome Branscum, who won the 2003 CARS championship title and later purchased the series, said, “It was a series that we could get into for ten grand and get a nice looking car and we could go racing. I was 44 years old and had never driven a race car before. It was a real thrill for me. It was the excitement of getting to go racing every week, and on a budget.”

    Going through multiple ownership changes, the series was active as late as 2012 although it struggled to draw entries. It eventually faded away, forgotten by all but a handful of former competitors.

    The Championship Auto Racing Series existed in the era immediately preceding the Internet, so not a trace of its history can be found online. It existed in the earliest era of digital photography, so traditional 35mm photos are scarce and the few available digital pictures are of poor quality. As far as I can tell all records of its races and indeed, the very existence of the series, have been lost.

    “I would like it to be remembered like it was in the early years,” Branscum recalled, “when you could go racing and it wouldn’t cost you a fortune. You could meet friendly people, race hard and have fun.”

    Stephen Cox
    Driver, Super Cup Stock Car Series and FIA EGT sportscar championship
    Co-host, Mecum Auctions on NBCSN
    CEO, Sopwith Motorsports Television Productions

  • Alfa Romeo’s Greatest Racing Models

    Alfa Romeo’s Greatest Racing Models

    The company originated in 1910 under a different name before becoming the now famous Alfa Romeo five years later in 1915 when Nicola Romeo took over from Giuseppe Merosi, who had created the 24 HP. Since then, Alfa Romeo has competed on many occasions in motor racing and has ruled in all of the most famous, legendary competitions.

    So, what is the secret to the success of the cars?

    They were created, not built.

    Below, we’re taking a closer look at some of the greatest racing models ever created by Alfa Romeo, which will continue to be admired and in the car racing industry for years to come.

    Alfa Romeo 2000 Sportiva

    This Alfa Romeo model was created and built in order to pay respect to the 1930’s and 1940’s Alfa Romeo race cars that had previously been very victorious on the track. Additionally, the Sportiva, built in 1954, was supposed to race in sport classes or be used as a high-speed grand tourer. However, only four were built and the model never made it into series production.

    The chassis of the 2000 Sportiva was a tubular space frame, with front suspension by double wishbones and a de dion axle at the rear. The dual overhead camshaft engine gave the car a top speed of 220km/h, or 137mph.

    Alfa Romeo Spider Duetto

    This stylish car was, and still is, the cool of the cool. The Alfa Romeo Spider Duetto was designed and created to pay homage to speed, open-top driving and presence on the road. Due to its chic, smooth Italian and lightweight build, this car really stood out and became an admired, popular car. From its unique design, to the sound and feel that this car produces, this is certainly one of the coolest cars to be driven on the road.

    Alfa Romeo Bertone Carabo

    The 1968 Alfa Romeo Bertone Carabo is one of the most unique car designs you will probably ever see, especially from Alfa Romeo. The wedge shaped lines, created by the cars’ designer, Gandini, influenced the way in which the modern supercars are designed and made today. What’s more, this spectacular design has influenced and inspired many car designers for decades, making it one of Alfa Romeo’s greatest racing models.

    Alfa Romeo Mille Miglia

    The classic car, seen by some as one of the greatest, was created in 1938 by the incredible designer, Vittorio Jano. Not only was it fast and supercharged, but it was a magnificent machine which boasted a 2.9-litre inline-eight engine, with 180hp, so it could be driven on and off the track. This car has been described as one of the greatest cars to ever be created in the Alfa Romeo’s factory.

    Alfa Romeo Stradale Prototipo

    The Stradale Prototipo, made in 1967, has also been defined as one of the most stunning cars ever to be made. Due to its aluminium body being wrapped in an aluminium tubular chassis, this car was, and still is, extremely respected in the car racing world. Moreover, the car’s iconic butterfly doors and incredibly lightweight body (700kg to be exact), made this car a real talking point.

    Alfa Romeo has made some of the most spectacular, exquisite cars over the years, particularly in the 20th century. These iconic, stylish, sleek cars will always be respected and admired, whether that is at classic car shows or by collectors.

  • Elliott Wins Dover Securing his Round of 8 Spot

    Elliott Wins Dover Securing his Round of 8 Spot

    Chase Elliott wins the Gander Outdoors 400 at Dover International Speedway after a thrilling final 10 laps to advance to third round of playoffs.

    “Just perseverance and good adjustments throughout the day. It was just a great effort. I appreciate everybody and all my partners, NAPA, Valvoline, Hooters, SunEnergy1, Chevrolet, Mountain Dew, and Kelley Blue Book. It’s been an up-and-down year, I feel like. To have this race slip away last year makes the day that much more sweet.” Elliott said.

    Kyle Busch started on the pole for Sunday afternoon’s race since qualifying was rained out on Friday. The top 12 cars were playoff drivers.

    It was rough early on for Jimmie Johnson. He was not able to start the race because he had a lower ball joint failure. He joined the field on lap 10.

    Kevin Harvick took the lead from Kyle Busch on lap 14. He was able to extend his lead pretty good early on in the race.

    On lap 73, leaders started to make green flag stops. The pit cycle resulted in Joey Logano passing Kyle Busch and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. taking the lead because he did not pit.

    Things got worse for Jimmie Johnson after getting penalized for pitting outside the box. His day went from bad to worst. Harvick was able to retake the lead from Stenhouse Jr. on lap 82 when Stenhouse went to pit.

    Harvick won Stage 1. Only 14 drivers were on the lead lap by the end on Stage 1. Alex Bowman was able to pass Paul Menard to reclaim the free pass position.

    Joey Logano rolled out the pits ahead of Harvick during the stage caution. Harvick was able to retake the lead from him on the restart. Chase Elliott was penalized for an uncontrolled tire during his pit stop. He then went in the pits to pull out a fender.

    Clint Bowyer started to show some speed in Stage 2. He was able to move himself into 2nd after passing Joey Logano on lap 159. He slowly started to crack down on Harvick’s lead.

    After green flag pit stops during Stage 2, Kevin Harvick was able to retake the lead. Going into lap 200, he had led 167 laps. It had been a dominating race for Harvick going into the final stage.

    Things got a little dicey for him when he was trying to lap Alex Bowman. He made some contact with Bowman before putting him a lap down. This battle gave Bowyer an advantage to reach Harvick’s tail.

    Harvick won Stage 2. Aric Almirola started to make a run up front as he was able to take 5th place from his teammate Kurt Busch near the end of Stage 2.

    Kyle Larson was penalized for speeding in the pits putting him a lap down and in 17th for the restart. It is not the run Larson wanted as it is looking like he is going to need a win to advance to the next round.

    Harvick was the leader for the restart to start the final stage. He was able to jump in front of Bowyer and extend his lead right away. There was a point in the race where Stewart-Hass Racing took the top four positions.

    The first two stages were caution free other than the end of the stage cautions. Problems for Denny Hamlin occurred when he reported he had a loose wheel. Also, on lap 314 Stenhouse Jr. hit the wall but no caution came out.

    Drama began in the final 100 lap. As the green flag pit stops started Kyle Busch was penalized for being too fast. Harvick had to take his car back to pit road on lap 321 because he felt that he had a loose wheel. The lead was then handed to Almirola and Harvick ended up in the 14th position after his unscheduled stop.

    A caution came out on lap 338 for debris and Harvick was in position for the free pass. The cars came to pit road during the caution and Brad Keselowski took two tires giving him the lead for the restart. Martin Truex Jr. was hit with a speeding penalty as well as for Johnson. It was a race that Johnson will want to forget.

    Almirola took the lead from Keselowski on the restart on lap 348. The two tires for Keselowski obviously didn’t work as he lost a couple more positions.

    Harvick was able to take a lot of spots back after he restarted 13th. Elliott made contact with Bowyer giving him the fourth position on lap 356.

    Bowyer had a flat tire go down on lap 381, this was a huge moment for him as he fell out of the top eight in the playoff standings as a result.

    With less than 15 laps, Kurt Busch was able to get under a second of Almirola’s lead. The lapped cars were making a big impact in the battle for the lead until a caution came out after Bowyer slammed the wall on lap 392. Harvick was able to make it to fifth during the run.

    New leaders emerged when Almirola gave up the lead after electing to pit during the caution. Elliott and Keselowski lead the field to the restart on lap 396 and then Almirola got involved in a big wreck with Keselowski also taking Bowman with them. These were all playoff drivers involved.

    “The No. 2 (Brad Keselowski) kind of got tagged and started wrecking. I thought he was going to get to the bottom of the race track faster than he did. Dover is typically so self-cleaning, but he slid a little longer than I thought he would and I kind of just center-punched him. Watching the replay there was really nowhere to go.” Bowman said.

    Overtime was in affect at the end of the race when Elliott led the field for the restart securing his ticket to the round of 8. Almirola, Bowyer, Larson and Bowman are all under the cutoff in the playoff standings heading into Talladega.

    The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season continues next weekend at Talladega Superspeedway for the 1000blubs.com 500 at 2:00 p.m. ET on NBC, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

    Monster Energy Cup Series
    Unofficial Race Results for the 49th Annual Gander Outdoors “400” – Sunday, October 7, 2018
    Dover International Speedway – Dover, DE – 1. – Mile Concrete
    Total Race Length – 404 Laps – 404. Miles

    Pos St Car Driver Team Make
    1 9 9 Chase Elliott (P) NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet
    2 15 11 Denny Hamlin FedEx Express Toyota
    3 6 22 Joey Logano (P) Shell Pennzoil Ford
    4 16 20 Erik Jones Craftsman Toyota
    5 7 41 Kurt Busch (P) Monster Energy/Haas Automation Ford
    6 2 4 Kevin Harvick (P) Busch Outdoors Ford
    7 14 3 Austin Dillon AAA Chevrolet
    8 1 18 Kyle Busch (P) Interstate Batteries Toyota
    9 21 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Fastenal Ford
    10 19 19 Daniel Suarez ARRIS Toyota
    11 8 12 Ryan Blaney (P) PPG Ford
    12 10 42 Kyle Larson (P) Credit One Bank Chevrolet
    13 11 10 Aric Almirola (P) Smithfield Ford
    14 4 2 Brad Keselowski (P) Wurth Ford
    15 3 78 Martin Truex Jr. (P) 5-hour ENERGY/Bass Pro Shops Toyota
    16 18 21 Paul Menard Menards/Tarkett Ford
    17 17 31 Ryan Newman Waste Masters Solutions/22 in 22 Chevrolet
    18 20 1 Jamie McMurray GEARWRENCH Chevrolet
    19 22 24 William Byron # Hendrick Autoguard Chevrolet
    20 28 6 Matt Kenseth Wyndham Rewards Ford
    21 25 95 Regan Smith Dumont JETS Chevrolet
    22 24 47 AJ Allmendinger Kroger ClickList Chevrolet
    23 29 43 Bubba Wallace # World Wide Technology Chevrolet
    24 26 38 David Ragan MDS Transport Ford
    25 23 37 Chris Buescher Scott Products Chevrolet
    26 27 34 Michael McDowell Love’s Travel Stops Ford
    27 31 32 Matt DiBenedetto Can-Am/Wholey Ford
    28 12 88 Alex Bowman (P) Axalta Chevrolet
    29 30 13 Ty Dillon GEICO Chevrolet
    30 33 72 Corey LaJoie Factor One Source Chevrolet
    31 37 96 * Jeffrey Earnhardt Xtreme Concepts/iK9 Toyota
    32 35 23 JJ Yeley(i) Toyota
    33 34 00 Landon Cassill(i) StarCom Fiber Chevrolet
    34 36 51 BJ McLeod(i) Jacob Companies Ford
    35 5 14 Clint Bowyer (P) Haas VF1/Rush Truck Centers Ford
    36 13 48 Jimmie Johnson Lowe’s for Pros Chevrolet
    37 32 15 Ross Chastain(i) Use Your Melon Drive Sober Chevrolet
    38 39 52 * Harrison Rhodes The Medicine Shoppe Chevrolet
    39 38 66 * Timmy Hill(i) Ternio Toyota

     

    Follow on Twitter for updates: @BryanR_305

  • Bell wins again at Dover

    Bell wins again at Dover

    DOVER, Del. – Rookie Christopher Bell captured another NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) victory on Saturday in the Bar Harbor 200 at Dover International Speedway in the elimination Playoffs race.  With this win, Bell became the winningest rookie in series history with six victories.

    “It’s the means the world. To be able to have the season we had, it’s been a career year for me. It’s all credit to everyone at Joe Gibbs Racing and my crew chief Jason Ratcliff. Everyone that works at the shop to put these Camry’s together. We have really fast cars every time we go to the track. All of our partners deserve it.” Bell said.

    Cole Custer finished second, Justin Allgaier third, Ryan Preece fourth and Spencer Gallagher finished fifth.

    “Our car was pretty solid. It was a lot about track position and we had to work on our car throughout the day, but the car was awesome at the end. We just needed a tick more.” Custer said.

    Bell also advances to the Round of 8 along with Custer, Justin Allgaier, Daniel Hemric (7th), Austin Cindric(8th) , Elliott Sadler(11th), Tyler Reddick(14th) and Matt Tifft(15th).

     

    XFINITY Series Race
    Unofficial Race Results for the 33rd Annual Bar Harbor “200” presented by Sea Watch International – Saturday, October 6, 2018
    Dover International Speedway – Dover, DE – 1. – Mile Concrete
    Total Race Length – 200 Laps – 200. Miles

    Pos St Car Driver Team Make
    1 2 20 Christopher Bell # (P) Rheem Toyota
    2 7 00 Cole Custer (P) Haas Automation Ford
    3 3 7 Justin Allgaier (P) BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet
    4 11 18 Ryan Preece Craftsman Toyota
    5 4 23 Spencer Gallagher Allegiant Chevrolet
    6 5 19 Brandon Jones (P) Menards/Atlas Toyota
    7 1 21 Daniel Hemric (P) South Point Hotel & Casino Chevrolet
    8 8 22 Austin Cindric # (P) Discount Tire Ford
    9 12 42 John Hunter Nemechek Chevrolet
    10 19 11 Ryan Truex (P) LeafFilter Gutter Protection Chevrolet
    11 6 1 Elliott Sadler (P) OneMain Financial Chevrolet
    12 18 5 Michael Annett Pilot Flying J Chevrolet
    13 15 4 Ross Chastain (P) DE Office of Hwy. Safety FALSE
    14 14 9 Tyler Reddick # (P) BurgerFi Chevrolet
    15 10 2 Matt Tifft (P) Surface Sunscreen Chevrolet
    16 20 16 Ryan Reed (P) Drive Down A1C Lilly Diabetes Ford
    17 9 3 Shane Lee Childress Vineyards Chevrolet
    18 17 39 Ryan Sieg RSS Racing Chevrolet
    19 13 60 Chase Briscoe Ford Ford
    20 16 51 Jeremy Clements RepairableVehicles.com Chevrolet
    21 21 36 Alex Labbe # stickystuff.com/James Carter Attorney Chevrolet
    22 24 90 Brandon Brown Coalition to Salute America’s Heroes Chevrolet
    23 28 0 Garrett Smithley Heroes Haven Chevrolet
    24 34 52 David Starr ATS/Whataburger Chevrolet
    25 39 78 Vinnie Miller # CorvetteParts.net Chevrolet
    26 22 01 Landon Cassill teamjdmotorsports.com Chevrolet
    27 29 66 Timmy Hill CrashClaimsR.Us Dodge
    28 30 8 Matt Mills # J.F. Electric Chevrolet
    29 35 55 Bayley Currey(i) Rollin Smoke Barbeque/Touched by Pros Toyota
    30 25 35 Joey Gase SPARKS Chevrolet
    31 38 45 Josh Bilicki # Prevagen Toyota
    32 31 76 Spencer Boyd # Grunt Style Chevrolet
    33 23 38 JJ Yeley RSS Racing Chevrolet
    34 26 40 Chad Finchum # Smithbilt Homes/The Preserve Toyota
    35 40 74 Mike Harmon Dodge
    36 37 13 Carl Long OCR Gaz Bar Toyota
    37 27 15 BJ McLeod teamjdmotorsports.com Chevrolet
    38 36 89 Morgan Shepherd Visone RV Chevrolet
    39 32 93 Jeff Green RSS Racing Chevrolet
    40 33 99 Stephen Leicht Chevrolet
  • Blaney wins electrifying Inaugural Bank of America ROVAL 400 as Round of 16 concludes

    Blaney wins electrifying Inaugural Bank of America ROVAL 400 as Round of 16 concludes

    Ryan Blaney wins the Bank of America ROVAL 400 at Charlotte Motor Speedway after passing two cars in the final turn of the last lap of the race. This marks his first win of the year and his first at a road course.

    This is a race that will be talked about for years to come. Jimmie Johnson, Austin Dillon, Denny Hamlin and Erik Jones championship dreams came to an end this afternoon.

    It only took six laps for Kyle Larson to take the lead from polesitter Kurt Busch as he then cruised to take the first stage of the race.

    For several Playoff drivers, problems emerged early on.  Hamlin had to pit on lap six because of an issue with his hood. The first caution was brought out on Lap 13 as the No. 51 of Stanton Barrett crashed into the wall on turn one.

    Another Playoff driver that had some issues early on was Erik Jones. Jones got stuck in a three-wide mess on a restart going into turn one. The nose of his car got smashed up as he was put in a must-win situation.

    The pit strategy was different for all drivers during the race. Some cars elected to pit before the end of Stage 1 while some were seen pitting during the break with a few including leader Larson not pitting until the start of Stage 2. Stage 1 concluded with important stage points going to drivers like Alex Bowman, Blaney, Jimmie Johnson and Clint Bowyer.

    Larson gave up the lead on lap 38 to Blaney as he entered pit road for the first time all afternoon. The strategy by Larson, Truex, and Kyle Busch was to run the race with only two stops to pit road.

    On Lap 45 William Byron was slow on the track as Aric Almirola crashed into the wall trying to avoid him. He had to pit and was penalized for an uncontrolled tire. Brad Keselowski pitted from the second position with 11 laps to go in Stage 2 which basically secured the stage win for Blaney.

    Larson was back to the lead at the start of the final stage because he stayed out during the stage caution.

    On Lap 59 Austin Dillon crashed into the wall trying to avoid Chris Buescher, bringing out a caution for debris. The Daytona 500 winner bent the wheel after hitting the wall. On lap 65 Dillon hit the wall again and took his car to the garage. His championship run came to an end after the incident.

    Aric Almirola ran into more trouble on Lap 69 spinning into the grass while Buescher was spinning into the wall bringing out a caution. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. led the field into the restart losing the lead shortly to Brad Keselowski.

    More trouble erupted for Erik Jones spinning forcing him down to the apron. This almost secured that his run for the championship was over.

    “It’s unfortunate, you get put three-wide and there’s only so much you can do as a driver. It’s too bad and we’ll have to move on from here and get ready for next year. You hate to be knocked out of the Playoffs this early, but it is what it is.” Jones said.

    Things started to heat up when Larson caught Keselowski with 26 Laps left. It was a good battle for the lead for a few laps but Keselowski was able to take off and continue his lead.

    Most of the cars on the lead pack were told that they were short on fuel to make it to the end. Bubble driver Alex Bowman played it safe and pitted from the 15th position to be good to the end. This got a few other drivers to pit for fuel as well.

    Late race drama occurred as a caution came out with under 10 laps to go.

    The fuel mileage spectacle continued since none of the leaders pitted for fuel. The restart resulted in a hard wreck going into the first turn wiping out Keselowski, Larson, and William Byron. Larson went from being very comfortable to advancing to the next round, to barely making it. His damage was heavy.

    “I knew that it was going to be tough to turn getting into (turn) 1. I didn’t know that all of us were going to go in there and not be able to turn at all. I was going to struggle to make the corner and then the No. 2, he just went head-on into the wall. I was hoping I would have enough room to squeak by him, but I got into him and destroyed the right-front of our car.” Larson said.

    Keselowski is lucky to have a win and was already locked into the next round.

    “I was just asking Ricky. I don’t know. The whole field went down into turn one it looked like and we all went straight. I don’t know. Maybe we all overdrove it. Maybe the track had something on it. I don’t know. I got in the corner. I didn’t feel like I got in it, I got in hard, but not like ridiculously hard and it just locked up. I couldn’t get the tire to unlock, so I felt really, really dumb when I hit the wall and then I got back in the care center and saw the replay and saw everybody kind of did the same thing.” Keselowski said.

    Johnson and Truex Jr. battled until the final turn of the last lap for the race win which resulted in contact which sent both cars spinning, allowing Blaney to capture the win.

    “Last corner desperation behind us, that’s what you get. I gave him (Jimmie Johnson) the inside lane and he had the run through (turn) four and I was real tight down there. I let him have the inside going down inside coming out of four there to the chicane. He just over-drove it and was never going to make it and used me as brakes and turned us both around. It sucks, we could have raced side-by-side off the last corner for a win and that would have been cool. The fans would have been digging it, but instead, we finished 14th and he’s locked out of the Playoffs. I guess that’s what he gets.” Truex Jr. said.

    Johnson, Almirola and Larson finished in a three-way tie giving the advantage to Larson and Almirola to advancing into the Round of 12.  “I’m so proud of these guys. We’re moving on to the Round of 12 and we’ll go get ‘em in Dover.” Almirola said.

    The seven-time champion will have to wait another year for number eight.  “I Took myself out of a shot at the championship and obviously affected their day which I feel bad about,” Johnson said.

    It was probably the craziest race in a long time as we now turn to the Round of 12 starting at Dover next Sunday.

     

    Unofficial series points standings after the inaugural Bank of America ROVAL 400
    1. Kyle Busch (P) 18 3055
    2. Kevin Harvick (P) 4 3050 -5
    3. Martin Truex Jr. (P) 78 3038 -17
    4. Brad Keselowski (P) 2 3025 -30
    5. Clint Bowyer (P) 14 3015 -40
    6. Joey Logano (P) 22 3014 -41
    7. Kurt Busch (P) 41 3014 -41
    8. Ryan Blaney (P) 12 3013 -42
    9. Chase Elliott (P) 9 3008 -47
    10. Kyle Larson (P) 42 3006 -49
    11. Aric Almirola (P) 10 3001 -54
    12. Alex Bowman (P) 88 3000 -55
    13. Jimmie Johnson (P) 48 2097 -958
    14. Austin Dillon (P) 3 2066 -989
    15. Denny Hamlin (P) 11 2053 -1002
    16. Erik Jones (P) 20 2041 -1014

    Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Race
    Unofficial Race Results for the inaugural Bank Of America Roval 400 – Sunday, September 30, 2018
    Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course – Concord, NC – 2.28 Mile Paved
    Total Race Length – 109 Laps – 248.52 Miles

    Pos St Car Driver Team Make
    1 9 12 Ryan Blaney (P) Menards/Pennzoil Ford
    2 8 1 Jamie McMurray DC Solar Chevrolet
    3 7 14 Clint Bowyer (P) Mobil 1/Advance Auto Parts Ford
    4 3 88 Alex Bowman (P) Axalta Chevrolet
    5 1 41 Kurt Busch (P) Haas Automation/Monster Energy Ford
    6 4 9 Chase Elliott (P) SunEnergy1 Chevrolet
    7 2 47 AJ Allmendinger Kroger ClickList Chevrolet
    8 6 48 Jimmie Johnson (P) Lowe’s for Pros Chevrolet
    9 19 4 Kevin Harvick (P) Jimmy John’s New 9-Grain Wheat Sub Ford
    10 15 22 Joey Logano (P) Shell Pennzoil Ford
    11 29 31 Ryan Newman Grainger/American Red Cross Chevrolet
    12 27 11 Denny Hamlin (P) FedEx Freight Toyota
    13 28 32 Matt DiBenedetto Superior Logistics Services Inc. Ford
    14 13 78 Martin Truex Jr. (P) Auto-Owners Insurance Toyota
    15 32 95 Regan Smith Procore Chevrolet
    16 30 38 David Ragan MDS Transport Ford
    17 10 37 Chris Buescher Maple Cheerios Chevrolet
    18 18 34 Michael McDowell K-LOVE Radio Ford
    19 20 10 Aric Almirola (P) Smithfield Ford
    20 33 72 Cole Whitt Rinnai Chevrolet
    21 17 19 Daniel Suarez Lenox Toyota
    22 26 13 Ty Dillon GEICO Chevrolet
    23 11 8 * Daniel Hemric(i) Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff Chevrolet
    24 35 7 * Ross Chastain(i) SOKAL Media Group Chevrolet
    25 5 42 Kyle Larson (P) Clover/First Data Chevrolet
    26 37 96 * Jeffrey Earnhardt iK9/Xtreme Concepts Toyota
    27 31 15 Justin Marks(i) GoPro Motorplex/Pickers Vodka Chevrolet
    28 36 23 JJ Yeley(i) Adirondack Tree Surgeons Toyota
    29 38 00 Landon Cassill(i) Dairi O Chevrolet
    30 12 20 Erik Jones (P) Reser’s Toyota
    31 25 2 Brad Keselowski (P) Alliance Truck Parts Ford
    32 14 18 Kyle Busch (P) M&M’s Toyota
    33 22 21 Paul Menard Motorcraft/Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center Ford
    34 21 24 William Byron # Unifirst Chevrolet
    35 16 6 Trevor Bayne AdvoCare Rehydrate Ford
    36 34 43 Bubba Wallace # World Wide Technology Chevrolet
    37 23 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. SunnyD Ford
    38 40 66 * Timmy Hill(i) Ternio Toyota
    39 24 3 Austin Dillon (P) Dow Chevrolet
    40 39 51 Stanton Barrett Jacob Companies Ford
  • Briscoe Earns First XFINITY Win On Charlotte Roval

    Briscoe Earns First XFINITY Win On Charlotte Roval

    Chase Briscoe earned his first career NASCAR XFINITY Series win in Saturday’s Race For The Cure 200 on Charlotte’s Roval, becoming the first driver to earn the checkered flag on the new layout.  Briscoe took the checkered flag 1.478 seconds ahead of Justin Marks, who started off his final NASCAR weekend on a high note. Pole sitter Austin Cindric took home third, with Ryan Preece and Christopher Bell rounding out the top-five. Matt Tifft, Cole Custer, Kaz Grala, Tyler Reddick, and Daniel Hemric rounded out the top-10.

    Although competitors were uncertain about the race on Saturday thanks to some wild practice and testing sessions, Saturday’s event proved to be tame as there were only five cautions during the race’s 55 laps, slowing the field down for 10 laps. Briscoe proved the dominant car, leading 33 of those laps after starting ninth.

    Briscoe was quick to thank team co-owner Tony Stewart, a fellow Indiana native and dirt track staple, in helping his approach to taking on the Roval.

    “This is unreal,” Briscoe said. “I was four seconds off in practice, and my guys stuck behind me and kept working with me. It’s just an honor and privilege to drive a race car and to do it for my hero, Tony Stewart, and get a win.”

    “It’s huge to me. Everybody had to adapt to [the Roval] and figure it out, and I don’t know that I’m necessarily the best at it, but I felt like I just tried not to hit anything, and this thing hardly has a scratch on it.”

    Playoff contenders Justin Allgaier and Ryan Truex had the worst luck of the playoff drivers, as both found contact with the wall or other drivers. Coming off of pit road in the second stage contact with the 22 of Cindric sent Allgaier around, where the 39 of Ryan Sieg piled into his left rear. Allgaier rebounded for a 15th-place finish, keeping himself well above the playoff bubble line.

    Truex found the wall in the first turn on lap 35, collecting Brendan Gaughan, Michael Annett, Ty Majeski, Andy Lally, and Dylan Mercott. Truex would finish 16th in the final running order.

    The next race on the XFINITY Series schedule will be at Dover International Speedway for the Bar Harbor 200, which will be at 3:00 PM ET on NBCSN.

    NASCAR Xfinity Series Race
    Unofficial Race Results for the 37Th Annual Drive For The Cure 200 Presented By Blue Cross Blue Shield Of North Carolina – Saturday, September 29, 2018
    Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course – Concord, NC – 2.28 Mile Paved

    Pos St Car Driver Team Make
    1 9 98 Chase Briscoe Ford Performance Ford
    2 4 42 Justin Marks Chevrolet Accessories Chevrolet
    3 1 22 Austin Cindric # (P) MoneyLion Ford
    4 10 18 Ryan Preece Rheem Toyota
    5 13 20 Christopher Bell # (P) GameStop Fallout 76 Toyota
    6 7 2 Matt Tifft (P) Nexteer Chevrolet
    7 6 00 Cole Custer (P) Haas Automation Ford
    8 14 61 Kaz Grala # IT Coalition Ford
    9 3 9 Tyler Reddick # (P) BurgerFi Chevrolet
    10 2 21 Daniel Hemric (P) South Point Hotel & Casino Chevrolet
    11 15 16 Ryan Reed (P) Drive Down A1C Lilly Diabetes Ford
    12 16 4 Ross Chastain (P) teamjdmotorsports.com Chevrolet
    13 5 36 Alex Labbe # Larue/Cyclops Gear Chevrolet
    14 17 1 Elliott Sadler (P) OneMain Financial Chevrolet
    15 12 7 Justin Allgaier (P) Vannoy Construction Chevrolet
    16 11 11 Ryan Truex (P) LeafFilter Gutter Protection Chevrolet
    17 18 3 Brendan Gaughan South Point Hotel/Beard Oil Distributing Chevrolet
    18 19 51 Jeremy Clements RepairableVehicles.com/Travers Tool Chevrolet
    19 25 23 Spencer Gallagher Allegiant Chevrolet
    20 23 5 Michael Annett TMC Chevrolet
    21 21 01 Lawson Aschenbach teamjdmotorsports.com Chevrolet
    22 22 19 Brandon Jones (P) Juniper Toyota
    23 29 35 Joey Gase Sparks Chevrolet
    24 28 45 Josh Bilicki # Prevagen Toyota
    25 36 0 Garrett Smithley teamjdmotorsports.com Chevrolet
    26 30 74 Ray Black II  Isokern Chevrolet
    27 34 52 David Starr Xtreme Cleaners Chevrolet
    28 37 40 Chad Finchum # Smithbilt Homes Dodge
    29 35 76 Spencer Boyd # Grunt Style Chevrolet
    30 33 8 Dylan Murcott Chevrolet
    31 40 78 Vinnie Miller # JAS Expedited Trucking Chevrolet
    32 24 66 Timmy Hill Leithcars.com Toyota
    33 26 15 Katherine Legge AirTec Chevrolet
    34 8 60 Ty Majeski Ford Ford
    35 32 55 Bayley Currey(i) Rollin Smoke Barbeque/Touched By Pros Toyota
    36 27 39 Ryan Sieg Night Owl Chevrolet
    37 20 90 Andy Lally Alpha Prime USA Chevrolet
    38 31 13 Landon Cassill OCR Gaz Bar Dodge
    39 39 93 Jeff Green RSS Racing Chevrolet
    40 38 38 JJ Yeley RSS Racing Chevrolet
  • Busch wins the Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond

    Busch wins the Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond

    Kyle Busch held off Kevin Harvick and won Saturday nights NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series (NMECS) Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond Raceway. Busch completed the “Richmond Sweep” to capture his seventh win of the 2018 season and the 50th of his career in 490 NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series races.

    “I knew Harvick was kind of closing in on us there at the end,” Busch said. “I ran really hard trying to pass Brad, racing with Brad, and being able to finally get by him, and you could see how hard we ran by how fast he dropped. Our car was really, really good, good in the long run.

    “I think Harvick maybe — well, the run before we kind of drove away from everybody, so I just — I think it was a factor of me running real hard, pushing real hard that Harvick was able to close in on us at the end.  My stuff was really, really used up. I lost a ton of grip the last 10 laps of the race, so I was just trying to hang on.”

    Harvick finished second and makes his race a little easier at Charlotte.

    “We were starting to track him (Kyle Busch) down there at the end. I needed about 25 more laps. I gotta thank everybody on our Jimmy John’s Ford.” Harvick said. “Our guys did a great job rebounding after last weekend and doing what we had to do this week to put ourselves in a good position for next week, so solid night.”

    Martin Truex Jr. won both the first and second stages and finished third after a pit road mistake. Truex Jr. has a 16 point lead over Busch in the series standings heading into the Roval at Charlotte.

    Busch, Brad Keselowski and Truex Jr. have locked in their playoff spots.

    Chase Elliott had a great night and finished fourth.

    “Yeah, just appreciate Alan (Gustafson, crew chief) making some good calls overnight. I feel like we changed about everything before qualifying yesterday,” Elliott said.

    Aric Almirola rounded out the top five.

    “Our Ford Fusion was fast. We had a good night. We executed and ran top-five all night. That is the exact night we were looking for to build a little bit of a point cushion going into the Roval next week where we are all unsure of what we will have. I am really proud of the night and we will see what happens next week,” Almirola said.

    Unofficial series point standings heading into Charlotte:
    1. Martin Truex Jr. (P), 2141, -0
    2. Kyle Busch (P), 2125, -16
    3. Kevin Harvick (P), 2113, -28
    4. Brad Keselowski (P), 2111, -30
    5. Joey Logano (P), 2081, -60
    6. Aric Almirola (P), 2079, -62
    7. Kyle Larson (P), 2073, -68
    8. Kurt Busch (P), 2071, -70
    9. Chase Elliott (P), 2066, -75
    10. Austin Dillon (P), 2066, -75
    11. Alex Bowman (P), 2061, -80
    12. Ryan Blaney (P), 2060, -81
    13. Clint Bowyer (P), 2056, -85
    14. Jimmie Johnson (P), 2054, -87
    15. Erik Jones (P), 2039, -102
    16. Denny Hamlin (P), 2031, -110

     

    Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Race
    Unofficial Race Results for the 61st Annual Federated Auto Parts 400
    Saturday, September 22, 2018 – Richmond Raceway

    Pos St Car Driver Team Make
    1 11 18 Kyle Busch (P) M&M’s Toyota
    2 1 4 Kevin Harvick (P) Jimmy John’s New 9-Grain Wheat Sub Ford
    3 3 78 Martin Truex Jr. (P) Auto-Owners Insurance Toyota
    4 18 9 Chase Elliott (P) Hooters Chevrolet
    5 6 10 Aric Almirola (P) Get Grilling America Smithfield Ford
    6 26 3 Austin Dillon (P) Dow VORASURF Chevrolet
    7 9 42 Kyle Larson (P) DC Solar Chevrolet
    8 21 48 Jimmie Johnson (P) Lowe’s for Pros Chevrolet
    9 7 2 Brad Keselowski (P) Reese/DrawTite Ford
    10 24 14 Clint Bowyer (P) ITsavvy Ford
    11 8 20 Erik Jones (P) Craftsman Toyota
    12 13 88 Alex Bowman (P) Nationwide Chevrolet
    13 15 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Fastenal Ford
    14 12 22 Joey Logano (P) Shell Pennzoil Ford
    15 16 31 Ryan Newman Bass Pro Shops/Cabela’s Chevrolet
    16 2 11 Denny Hamlin (P) FedEx Office Toyota
    17 38 19 Daniel Suarez Comcast Toyota
    18 5 41 Kurt Busch (P) State Water Heaters/Haas Automation Ford
    19 4 12 Ryan Blaney (P) Menards/Richmond Ford
    20 19 24 William Byron # Liberty University Chevrolet
    21 14 1 Jamie McMurray Cessna Chevrolet
    22 20 21 Paul Menard Motorcraft/Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center Ford
    23 40 38 David Ragan The Pete Store Ford
    24 23 34 Michael McDowell Dockside Logistics Ford
    25 17 6 Matt Kenseth Performance Plus Motor Oil Ford
    26 10 51 Cole Custer(i) Jacob Companies Ford
    27 25 43 Bubba Wallace # World Wide Technology Chevrolet
    28 29 13 Ty Dillon GEICO Chevrolet
    29 28 47 AJ Allmendinger Kroger ClickList Chevrolet
    30 22 37 Chris Buescher Cheerios Zero Hunger Zero Waste Chevrolet
    31 39 95 Regan Smith FDNY Foundation Chevrolet
    32 31 72 Corey LaJoie ARK.io Blockchain Solutions Chevrolet
    33 30 15 Ross Chastain(i) Chevrolet
    34 27 32 Matt DiBenedetto Keen Parts/CorvetteParts.net Ford
    35 35 00 Joey Gase(i) Eternal Fan Chevrolet
    36 36 99 * Landon Cassill(i) StarCom Fiber Chevrolet
    37 32 96 * Jeffrey Earnhardt Xtreme Concepts/iK9 Toyota
    38 34 23 Alon Day Best Bully Sticks Toyota
    39 37 66 * Timmy Hill(i) Ternio Toyota
    40 33 52 * Gray Gaulding LIVE! Casino & Hotel Ford

     

     

  • Harvick Hoping to Bounce Back after Struggles in Vegas

    Harvick Hoping to Bounce Back after Struggles in Vegas

    It was a tough day for Kevin Harvick last Sunday afternoon at Las Vegas Motor Speedway as he crashed on Lap 147, crushing his day and resulting in a 39th place finish.

    Even though it was a bad day, Harvick was able to keep himself in the playoff picture by a wide margin. Harvick currently sits fourth in the series standings thanks to the playoff points that he was able to acquire during the regular season.

    Although Harvick was a strong contender at the beginning of the race, his plans did not go accordingly.  Harvick was obviously frustrated with the way his car was handling as he expressed in an interview after the wreck.

    “It was like Russian roulette every time you put these piece of crap tires on and try to drive around the race track. One time it is tight, one time it is loose, one time they are blistered. We had a great car and then you put a set of tires on it and you can’t hardly make it through the field. I just hate it for everyone on our Mobil 1 Ford,” Harvick said.

    The veteran from Bakersfield, California is still one of NASCAR’s best. Even through adversity, he is right back running up front contending to win a race the following weekend.  Harvick thrives on adversity that motivates him to push forward in the following race. Unlike other drivers, he is not just a competitor, he is a driver that will never give up and his momentum never drops.

    Earlier in the year, we saw Harvick wreck at Daytona and then he came back to win three straight races. Even when things did go bad for Harvick during a race he always worked his way to contend for the victory or the best finish possible.  Sometimes his impressive moves to the front of the field will make it look like you’re watching a video game.

    Look for Richmond to be a race where you see Harvick back up front fighting and contending for the win.