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Author: Tucker White

  • Dale Jr. out for Michigan and Darlington

    Dale Jr. out for Michigan and Darlington

    Dale Earnhardt Jr. will be out for another two weeks as he continues to battle with the effects of his latest concussion.

    Hendrick Motorsports announced today that the driver of the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet will be out of the car for this weekend’s Pure Michigan 400 at Michigan International Speedway and the Bojangles’ Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway after undergoing further evaluations today at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Sports Medicine Concussion Program.

    Alex Bowman will drive in his place this weekend at Michigan and Jeff Gordon will drive in his place next weekend at Darlington.

    Earnhardt has been out of the car in the days following the Quaker State 400 at Kentucky Speedway when he was diagnosed with symptoms of a concussion. Since then, he’s reported trouble with balance and severe headaches.

    “We know how hard Dale is working to get back,” said Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports. “He’s following what the doctors are saying, to the letter, and doing exactly what he needs to do. Everyone wants to see him in a race car, but his health is first and foremost. We’re behind him.”

    In the time he’s sat out, Earnhardt has dropped from 12th to 21st in points.

  • Part Failure and Wreck Ruins Kyle Busch’s Day

    Part Failure and Wreck Ruins Kyle Busch’s Day

    BRISTOL, Tenn. — A dominant day for Kyle Busch turned south fast near the three-quarter mark of the race at Thunder Valley.

    The driver of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota started third and led 256 of the 500 laps in the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway. He even led his 12-thousandth career lap in Sprint Cup Series competition. But after losing the lead to Kevin Harvick on lap 348, he reported that something was wrong with his car.

    On lap 359, Busch’s car got loose rounding Turn 1. His car slid down the track and then turned backward towards the wall. As his car sat there motionless, Justin Allgaier, subbing for Michael Annett, clipped the left front of his car. Allgaier continued up the track and collected Martin Truex Jr. and Kyle Larson.

    When asked what broke on the car, he said he didn’t know.

    “It’s a shame,” Busch said. “The last few times we’ve been here, we’ve had really fast M&M’s Toyota Camrys and we haven’t been able to finish. We’ve been having parts failures here, so something we’ve got to address and fix. I’m really tired of losing races here with parts falling apart, so they’ll hear about it on Tuesday.”

    When asked what he’d tell his team Tuesday, he said “They already know just by watching the race, but it’s frustrating because that’s like two or three or four races in a row here at Bristol that we’ve had problems. Yeah, maybe a couple of them were my doing, but we’ve also had parts failures here and we can’t be having that sort of stuff.”

    He took issue with Allgaier clipping the side of his car.

    “The person that’s really the biggest moron out there is the spotter of the 46 and the driver of the 46 (Justin Allgaier),” Busch said. “I’ve been wrecking for half a lap and they just come on through and clean us out. That’s stupid, so I don’t know – frustrating day. Let’s go home.”

    Busch leaves Bristol sixth in the points, down two spots from Watkins Glen, standings trailing Harvick by 88 points.

  • Harvick Wins the 24 Hours of Thunder Valley

    Harvick Wins the 24 Hours of Thunder Valley

    BRISTOL, Tenn. — It took 24 hours to finally settle the results of the night race at Bristol and Kevin Harvick found himself in victory lane as the Sun set over Northeast Tennessee.

    The 56th running of the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race was scheduled to start last night at 8:15, but weather delayed the start by nearly 30 minutes. Carl Edwards led the field to the green flag at 9:03 p.m. but lost the lead to teammate Denny Hamlin and wasn’t threatening to win much after that.

    The lead swapped back and forth between Chase Elliott and Kyle Busch for the first 30 laps before rain brought out the first caution of the race.

    After a one hour, 24-minute and four-second red flag period, the cars rolled back off pit road for 10 laps before more rain forced NASCAR to postpone the remainder of the race to Sunday.

    A scheduled start of 1 p.m. was pushed back by constant rain. Eventually, the red flag was withdrawn at 4:33 p.m. and the race restarted on lap 58.

    Most of the first half of the race was dominated by Busch. After the halfway mark, Harvick moved in to take control of the race.

    Busch’s car suffered a part’s failure and spun out in Turn 2 on lap 359. As his car say lifeless in the middle of the track, Justin Allgaier, tried to avoid him but collided with the car. Allgaier’s car continued up track and collected Martin Truex Jr. and Kyle Larson.

    Calamity continued two laps after the ensuing restart when race leader Kurt Busch got loose exiting Turn 2 and slid down into Brad Keselowski. As the field slowed down to avoid the spinning Busch and Keselowski, Elliott slammed into the rear of Matt Kenseth and sent him into the rear of Jimmie Johnson and the wall.

    Harvick dominated most of the rest of the race and drove on to score the victory.

    “I’ve got to thank Busch Beer, Jimmy John’s, Chevrolet, and Mobil 1 and everybody at Stewart-Haas Racing on this Chevrolet,” Harvick said. “We should have won a lot of races this year but we just had things not go our way. We made mistakes, or whatever the case may be. But, to get back into Victory Lane here at Bristol feels really good. We’ve had some good cars here over the last few years. And to have Busch Beer on the car; we’ve had crummy luck with these guys on the car and so I’m just really happy for Busch and Jimmy John’s and really proud of these guys on the No. 4 team.”

    It’s his 33rd career victory in 561 Sprint Cup Series starts, second of 2016, second at Bristol Motor Speedway, his 18th top-10 finish of the season and 15th top-10 finish in 32 starts at Bristol.

    Ricky Stenhouse Jr. finished runner-up in his No. 17 Roush Fenway Racing Ford.

    “We really wanted to get this Bryan Clauson tribute car in victory lane,” Stenhouse said. “It just wasn’t meant to be today. We made our car a lot faster throughout the race and came from two laps down to get back on the lead lap. We missed some wrecks and gave it all we had. I thought we were matching the 4 car there lap for lap, but he got away from us and we had to restart sixth there on that last restart, but it was an honor to drive this car.”

    It’s his fifth top-10 finish of 2016 and fourth in eight races at Bristol.

    Denny Hamlin recovered from a speeding penalty and a loose wheel that put him two laps down to round out the podium in his No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.

    “Yeah, we had a great car,” Hamlin said. “We definitely got it a lot better there at the end and proud that we’re able to come back from two laps down and get a good finish out of it, but still a good overall day for our FedEx Express Camry. Just came up a little short.”

    Austin Dillon finished fourth in his No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet. Chris Buescher was the highest finishing rookie as he rounded out the top-five in his No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford.

    Edwards came home sixth in his No. 19 JGR Toyota. Johnson recovered from being caught in the wreck with 127 laps to go to finish seventh in his No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. Jamie McMurray finished eighth in his No. 1 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet. AJ Allmendinger finished ninth in his No. 47 JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet. Joey Logano rounded out the top-10 in his No. 22 Team Penske Ford.

    The race lasted three hours, 25 minutes and five seconds at an average speed of 77.968 mph. There were 20 lead changes among eight different drivers and nine cautions for 106 laps.

    Harvick leaves Bristol with a 27-point lead over Keselowski in the points standings.

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  • Bristol Sprint Cup Race Postponed to Sunday

    Bristol Sprint Cup Race Postponed to Sunday

    BRISTOL, Tenn. — The night race at Bristol will now be run on a Sunday afternoon.

    Persistent rain showers forced NASCAR to pull the plug on the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race after completing 48 of the 500 scheduled laps. The forecast for the rest of the night showed no signs of improvement.

    The race will restart on lap 49 with Kyle Busch in the race lead. He assumed command of the race after driving underneath Chase Elliott exiting Turn 4 on lap 23. Ryan Blaney, Denny Hamlin and Matt Kenseth make up the top-five in the running order.

    The race will resume at 1 p.m. on CNBC.

    This is the third race affected by rain in the last three years.

  • Additional resin added to lower groove at Bristol

    Additional resin added to lower groove at Bristol

    BRISTOL, Tenn. — NASCAR reversed course and added more resin to the lower groove at Thunder Valley.

    Eighteen inches of VHT was laid down on the bottom lane in through turns 1 and 2 and turns 3 and 4 during the overnight hours in preparation of tonight’s Sprint Cup Series Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway.

    The substance is meant to give cars more grip so as to make the bottom lane equal to or better than the top lane that has been the preferred groove around Bristol the last four years.

    “It was a collaboration between the track, (NASCAR) and the industry,” said Kurt Culbert, NASCAR spokesperson. “(The resin) seemed to work really well.”

    It was announced two weeks ago that Bristol has laid down the VHT in advance of the triple-header weekend. Nobody wanted to touch the bottom during the first Camping World Truck Series practice of the weekend after overnight rain. But the trucks started running the bottom in final practice and were running lap times far faster on the bottom than on the top. The bottom continued to dominate through the UNOH 200, although drivers like William Byron tried to run the high line late in the race, and it appeared that the resin had brought back the Bristol of “old.”

    By the time the Sprint Cup cars hit the track, more and more drivers were moving up the track to rubber in the top groove. The gap in speed from the top to the bottom was closing, but the bottom was still the quickest way around.

    Just after the first caution flew in the XFINITY Series Food City 300, the top lane prevailed as the fastest way around the track.

    Brad Keselowski said after the XFINITY race he wanted Bristol to work on the bottom groove before the Cup race.

    “The whole point was to work on the bottom groove and make it so this isn’t a track you run up on top,” Keselowski said. “There was a lot of work to make that happen and it didn’t stick with running four series here over the weekend. It’s just a question on NASCAR, whether they want to let the track work on it and get it back.”

  • Austin Dillon Survives Late Race Carnage to Win in XFINITY at Thunder Valley

    Austin Dillon Survives Late Race Carnage to Win in XFINITY at Thunder Valley

    BRISTOL, Tenn. — Austin Dillon wasn’t in the dominant car of the night nor near the front most of the night, but he was in front when it counted and he scored the victory in the Food City 300 at Thunder Valley.

    Brad Keselowski took the lead late n the race from Kyle Larson, who led a race-high of 200 laps, and had the win in check following Kyle Busch’s late-race wreck as he would’ve restarted the race with two laps to go and with the lane choice. He didn’t have the gas to make the finish, however, and the driver of the No. 2 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet drove on to win the Food City 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway.

    “I feel like the fans had to have loved that race,” Dillon said. “It was interesting to have another lane down at the bottom of the track and it ended up being a race on those last two restarts. At the end of the race, I listened to the advice of my grandfather on what lane to choose to restart and I’m glad I did. It really worked out. The more and more I learn about these races it’s a battle of attrition and it’s about who can survive. I’m proud of Justin Alexander. This is his first win as a crew chief in the NASCAR XFINITY Series and this is our first win together in our first race together so it’s a great way to start.”

    It’s Dillon’s eighth victory in 111 career XFINITY Series starts, his second of the season, the 12th top-10 finish of 2016 and his first win at Bristol.

    Justin Allgaier brought his No. 7 JR Motorsports home to a runner-up finish. Larson rounded out the podium in his No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet. Elliott Sadler finished fourth in his No. 1 JRM Chevrolet. Brendan Gaughan rounded out the top-five in his No. 62 RCR Chevrolet.

    Jeremy Clements finished sixth in his No. 51 Jeremy Clements Racing Chevrolet. Darrell Wallace Jr. led four laps on his way to a seventh-place finish in his No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing Ford. Blake Koch finished eighth in his No. 11 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet. Brandon Jones finished ninth in his No. 33 RCR Chevrolet. Corey LaJoie rounded out the top-10 in his No. 24 JGL Racing Toyota.

    Eight drivers finished the race on the lead lap and 30 cars were running at the finish.

    The race lasted one hour, 56 minutes and seven seconds at an average speed of 84.827 mph. There were 16 lead changes among seven drivers and eight cautions for 54 laps.

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  • Edwards Grabs the Sprint Cup Pole at Bristol

    Edwards Grabs the Sprint Cup Pole at Bristol

    BRISTOL, Tenn. — Carl Edwards will lead the field to the green flag in Saturday night’s race at Thunder Valley.

    The driver of the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota scored the pole for the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race after posting a time of 14.602 and a speed of 131.407 mph. It’s his 21st pole in 432 career Sprint Cup Series starts, the fifth of 2016 and fourth in 25 starts at Bristol Motor Speedway.

    Denny Hamlin, who set a new track record time in round 1 – that he also previously held – of a time of 14.573 and a speed of 131.668 mph, will start second in his No. 11 JGR Toyota after posting a time of 14.602 and a speed of 131.200 mph. Kyle Busch will start third in his No. 18 JGR Toyota after posting a time of 14.655 and a speed of 130.931 mph. Ryan Blaney will start fourth in his No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford after posting a time of 14.688 and a speed of 130.637 mph. Matt Kenseth will round out the top-five starters in his No. 20 JGR Toyota after posting a time of 14.690 and a speed of 130.619 mph.

    Chase Elliott will start sixth in his No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. Martin Truex Jr. will start seventh in his No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota. AJ Allmendinger will start eighth in his No. 47 JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet. Brad Keselowski will start ninth in his No. 2 Team Penske Ford. Joey Logano will round out the top-10 in his No. 22 Penske Ford.

    Jeff Gordon will start 11th  as Chris Buescher rounds out the 12 drivers that made the final round of qualifying.

    Forty cars were entered so nobody was sent home.

    Twenty-two Chevrolet’s, 11 Ford’s and seven Toyota’s will comprise the 40-car field for tomorrow night’s race at Bristol.

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  • Erik Jones Nabs the XFINITY Pole at Bristol

    Erik Jones Nabs the XFINITY Pole at Bristol

    BRISTOL, Tenn. — Erik Jones will lead the field to the green flag of tonight’s XFINITY Series race at Thunder Valley.

    The driver of the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota scored the pole for the Food City 300 after posting a new track record time of 15.002 and a speed of 127.903 mph. It’s his 10th pole in 48 career XFINITY Series starts, seventh of the season and third in four starts at Bristol Motor Speedway.

    Kyle Busch will start second in his No. 18 JGR Toyota after posting a time of 15.041 and a speed of 127.571 mph. Daniel Suarez will start third in his No. 19 JGR Toyota after posting a time of 15.173 and a speed of 126.461 mph. Brandon Jones will start fourth in his No. 33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet after posting a time of 15.191 and a speed of 126.312 mph. Austin Dillon will round out the top-five starters in his No. 2 RCR Chevrolet after posting a time of 15.244 and a speed of 125.872 mph.

    Darrell Wallace Jr. will start sixth in his No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing Ford. Kyle Larson will start seventh in his No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet. Justin Allgaier will start eighth in his No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet. Regan Smith will start ninth in his No. 88 JRM Chevrolet. Ty Dillon will round out the top-10 starters in his No. 3 RCR Chevrolet.

    Brad Keselowski will start 11th. Jeremy Clements will round out the 12 drivers that made the final round of qualifying.

    With 41 cars entered, Timmy Hill was the lone driver that failed to qualify.

    Twenty-five Chevrolet’s, one Dodge, six Ford’s and eight Toyota’s will comprise the 40-car field for tonight’s race.

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  • Kyle Busch Fastest at Bristol in Final Sprint Cup Practice

    Kyle Busch Fastest at Bristol in Final Sprint Cup Practice

    BRISTOL, Tenn. — Kyle Busch topped the chart in final Sprint Cup Series practice at Bristol Motor Speedway.

    The driver of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 14.796 and a speed of 129.684 mph. Martin Truex Jr. was second with a time of 14.807 and a speed of 129.587 mph. Matt Kenseth was third in his No. 20 JGR Toyota with a time of 14.830 and a speed of 129.386 mph. Ryan Blaney was fourth in his No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford with a time of 14.836 and a speed of 129.334 mph. Denny Hamlin rounded out the top-five in his No. 11 JGR Toyota with a time of 14.845 and a speed of 129.256 mph.

    Jamie McMurray was sixth in his No. 1 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet. Kyle Larson was seventh in his No. 42 CGR Chevrolet. Joey Logano was eighth in his No. 22 Team Penske Ford. Carl Edwards was ninth in his No. 19 JGR Toyota. Brad Keselowski rounded out the top-10 in his No. 2 Penske Ford.

    Hamlin posted the fastest 10 consecutive lap average at a speed of 127.193 mph. Busch was second at an average speed of 127.015 mph. Chase Elliott was third at an average speed of 126.865 mph.

    The Sprint Cup Series is back on track at 5:45 p.m. for qualifying.

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  • Kyle Busch Fastest in First Cup Practice at Bristol

    Kyle Busch Fastest in First Cup Practice at Bristol

    BRISTOL, Tenn. — Kyle Busch topped the chart in first Sprint Cup Series practice at Bristol Motor Speedway.

    The driver of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 14.878 and a speed of 128.969 mph. Denny Hamlin was second in his No. 11 JGR Toyota with a time of 14.915 and a speed of 128.649 mph. Kyle Larson was third in his No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet with a time of 14.921 and a speed of 128.597 mph. Chase Elliott was fourth in his No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet with a time of 14.931 and a speed of 128.511 mph. Aric Almirola rounded out the top-five in his No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford with a time of 14.932 and a speed of 128.503 mph.

    Brad Keselowski was sixth in his No. 2 Team Penske Ford. Ryan Blaney was seventh in his No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford. Austin Dillon was eighth in his No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet. Martin Truex Jr. was ninth in his No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota. Carl Edwards rounded out the top-10 in his No. 19 JGR Toyota.

    Hamlin posted the fastest 10 consecutive lap average at a speed of 126.740 mph. Blaney was second at an average speed of 126.485 mph. Keselowski was third at an average speed of 126.219 mph.

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