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  • Denny Hamlin Wins XFINITY Race in Overtime at Charlotte

    Denny Hamlin Wins XFINITY Race in Overtime at Charlotte

    CONCORD, N.C. — Denny Hamlin won the Hisense 4K TV 300 XFINITY Series Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, moving up through the field and making the pass during overtime to claim the checkered flag.

    Erik Jones brought out the eighth and final caution of the event, forcing it into overtime, after contact with the wall due to a blown tire. Hamlin chose to pit for fresh tires while leader Kyle Larson and second-place Joey Logano decided to stay out on the track during the yellow flag.

    The gamble paid off for Hamlin who overtook both Larson and Logano for the win.

    “It was a second opportunity, obviously,” Hamlin said. ”I was hoping for that caution there at the end, and we got it and we were able to get four tires on this Hisense Camry and took off. A little closer than what I thought. I mean, we were just really tight those last couple laps, but what a great day.”

    It was Hamlin’s first XFINITY victory of the season in the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota and his only start in the series this year. It was the fifth win of the season for the JGR entry, which includes four previous wins by Kyle Busch.

    Austin Dillon, who had taken right-side tires only on his last pit stop, finished second in his No. 2 Chevrolet, relegating Logano, who led 58 laps, to a third place result in the No. 22 Team Penske Ford.

    Dillon felt as though, with a little luck, he could have taken home the checkered flag.

    “We were definitely a fourth or fifth-place car today. We fired off tight and had decent track position, but after the second caution, we had to start pretty deep in the field. I’m not sure what happened there. That forced Danny (Stockman, crew chief) to call for two tires on the next few stops so we could gain our spots back. I think if we would have had a little extra luck on our side on the final restart, we could have won,” he explained. “Overall, it was a good day for this Rheem team. We have a few things to figure out, but we’ll get there.”

    Logano was disappointed with his result but was pleased with the speed they showed.

    “The Discount Tire Ford was the fastest it’s been all year,” Logano said post race. “We can’t hold our heads down about it. We had a car that was capable of winning if circumstances went right. I felt like I was gonna have a good restart next to Kyle. I felt my restarts were a little better than his all day, and I thought, ‘OK if I can clear him,’ which we did I was like, ‘Alright, we’ve got a shot,’ but it was really hard to hold off those four tires.”

    Cole Custer finished fourth in the No. 88 Chevrolet with Justin Allgaier rounding out the top five in his No. 7 Chevrolet. Larson, after leading 46 laps, finished sixth.

    Joe Gibbs Racing driver, Daniel Suarez, finished 12th and currently leads the XFINITY Series point standings.

    NASCAR XFINITY Series Race – Hisense 4K TV 300 – Complete Results

    1. (3) Denny Hamlin(i), Toyota, 206.
    2. (4) Austin Dillon(i), Chevrolet, 206.
    3. (7) Joey Logano(i), Ford, 206.
    4. (11) Cole Custer(i), Chevrolet, 206.
    5. (8) Justin Allgaier, Chevrolet, 206.
    6. (5) Kyle Larson(i), Chevrolet, 206.
    7. (12) Brandon Jones #, Chevrolet, 206.
    8. (10) Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, 206.
    9. (14) Brennan Poole #, Chevrolet, 206.
    10. (17) Brendan Gaughan, Chevrolet, 206.
    11. (27) Jeb Burton, Ford, 206.
    12. (2) Daniel Suarez, Toyota, 206.
    13. (19) Ryan Sieg, Chevrolet, 206.
    14. (18) Blake Koch, Chevrolet, 206.
    15. (31) Garrett Smithley #, Chevrolet, 206.
    16. (13) Ryan Blaney(i), Ford, 205.
    17. (16) Ross Chastain, Chevrolet, 205.
    18. (20) Drew Herring, Toyota, 205.
    19. (15) Ryan Reed, Ford, 204.
    20. (21) Jeremy Clements, Chevrolet, 204.
    21. (23) Dakoda Armstrong, Toyota, 204.
    22. (26) Ryan Preece #, Chevrolet, 203.
    23. (25) JJ Yeley, Toyota, 203.
    24. (40) Harrison Rhodes, Chevrolet, 203.
    25. (30) BJ McLeod #, Ford, 202.
    26. (35) Martin Roy, Chevrolet, 202.
    27. (9) Darrell Wallace Jr., Ford, 201.
    28. (6) Elliott Sadler, Chevrolet, 200.
    29. (22) Spencer Gallagher(i), Chevrolet, 200.
    30. (34) Carl Long, Toyota, 200.
    31. (1) Erik Jones #, Toyota, Accident, 197.
    32. (37) Derrike Cope, Chevrolet, 183.
    33. (36) Timmy Hill(i), Chevrolet, Suspension, 130.
    34. (29) Jeff Green, Toyota, Fuel Pump, 127.
    35. (38) Mike Harmon, Dodge, Accident, 91.
    36. (33) Joey Gase, Chevrolet, Transmission, 84.
    37. (32) Ray Black Jr. #, Chevrolet, Oil Line, 27.
    38. (39) Cody Ware #, Ford, Accident, 12.
    39. (28) Josh Wise(i), Chevrolet, Rear Gear, 5.
    40. (24) Matt DiBenedetto(i), Toyota, Vibration, 3.

  • Truex fastest in final practice

    Truex fastest in final practice

    CONCORD, N.C. — Martin Truex Jr. topped the chart in final Sprint Cup Series practice at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

    The driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 28.972 and a speed of 186.387 mph. Kurt Busch was second in his No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet with a time of 29.074 and a speed of 185.733 mph. Jimmie Johnson was third in his No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet with a time of 29.126 and a speed of 185.401 mph. Joey Logano was fourth in his No. 22 Team Penske Ford with a time of 29.172 and a speed of 185.109mph. Greg Biffle rounded out the top-five in his No. 16 Roush Fenway Racing Ford with a time of 29.199 and a speed of 184.938 mph.

    Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was sixth in his No. 17 RFR Ford. Casey Mears was seventh in his No. 13 Germain Racing Chevrolet. Matt Kenseth was eighth in his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. Paul Menard was ninth in his No. 27 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet. Ryan Blaney rounded out the top-10 in his No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford.

    Truex posted the fastest 10 consecutive lap average at a speed of 182.923 mph. Johnson was second at an average speed of 182.713 mph.

    All that remains is tomorrow evening’s Coca-Cola 600 at 6:00 on FOX.

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  • Erik Jones takes the XFINITY pole at Charlotte

    Erik Jones takes the XFINITY pole at Charlotte

    CONCORD, N.C. — Erik Jones will lead the field to the green flag for this afternoon’s XFINITY Series race in the Queen City.

    The driver of the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota scored the pole for the Hisense 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway with a time of 29.261 and a speed of 184.546 mph. It’s his seventh career pole in the series and fourth of the 2016 season.

    Teammate Daniel Suárez will start second in his No. 19 JGR Toyota after posting a time of 29.273 and a speed of 184.470 mph. Denny Hamlin will start third in his No. 18 JGR Toyota after posting a time of 29.473 and a speed of 183.219 mph. Austin Dillon will start fourth in his No. 2 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet after posting a time of 29.567 and a speed of 182.636 mph. Kyle Larson will round out the top-five in his No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet after posting a time of 29.597 and a speed of 182.451 mph.

    Elliott Sadler will start sixth in his No. 1 JR Motorsports Chevrolet. Joey Logano will start seventh in his No. 22 Team Penske Ford. Justin Allgaier will start eighth in his No. 7 JRM Chevrolet. Darrell Wallace Jr. will start ninth in his No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing Ford. Ty Dillon will round out the top-10 in his No. 3 RCR Chevrolet.

    Cole Custer will start 11th in his No. 88 JRM Chevrolet. Brandon Jones will round out the 12 drivers that made the final round of qualifying.

    TJ Bell and Morgan Shepherd were the two drivers that failed to make the race.

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  • Kurt Busch Quickest in Second Sprint Cup Practice at Charlotte

    Kurt Busch Quickest in Second Sprint Cup Practice at Charlotte

  • Ty Dillon Fastest in Final XFINITY Practice at Charlotte

    Ty Dillon Fastest in Final XFINITY Practice at Charlotte

    CONCORD, N.C. — In case you missed it, Ty Dillon topped the chart in final XFINITY Series practice at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

    The driver of the No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 29.778 and a speed of 181.342 mph. Daniel Suárez was second in his No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota with a time of 29.825 and a speed of 181.056 mph. Erik Jones was third in his No. 20 JGR Toyota with a time of 29.937 and a speed of 180.379 mph. Austin Dillon was fourth in his No. 2 RCR Chevrolet with a time of 29.965 and a speed of 180.210 mph. Brennan Poole rounded out the top-five in his No. 48 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet with a time of 30.007 and a speed of 179.958 mph.

    Brendan Jones was sixth in his No. 33 RCR Chevrolet. Denny Hamlin was seventh in his No. 18 JGR Toyota. Elliott Sadler was eighth in his No. 1 JR Motorsports Chevrolet. Jeb Burton was ninth in his No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford. Kyle Larson rounded out the top-10 in his No. 42 CGR Chevrolet.

    Suárez posted the fastest 10 consecutive lap average at a speed of 178.085 mph. Hamlin was second at an average speed of 177.253 mph. Austin Dillon was third at an average speed of 176.652 mph.

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  • Erik Jones Fastest in First XFINITY Practice at Charlotte

    Erik Jones Fastest in First XFINITY Practice at Charlotte

    CONCORD, N.C. — In case you missed it, Erik Jones topped the chart in first XFINITY Series practice at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

    The driver of the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 29.808 and a speed of 181.159 mph. Denny Hamlin was second in his No. 18 JGR Toyota with a time of 29.903 and a speed of 180.584 mph. Ryan Blaney was third in his No. 12 Team Penske Ford with a time of 30.021 and a speed of 179.874 mph. Daniel Suárez was fourth in his No. 19 JGR Toyota with a time of 30.029 and a speed of 179.826 mph. Ty Dillon rounded out the top-five in his No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet with a time of 30.089 and a speed of 179.468 mph.

    Austin Dillon was sixth in his No. 2 RCR Chevrolet. Cole Custer was seventh in his No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet. Kyle Larson was eighth in his No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet. Brennan Poole was ninth in his No. 48 CGR Chevrolet. Brandon Jones rounded out the top-10 in his No. 33 RCR Chevrolet.

    Suárez posted the fastest 10 consecutive lap average at a speed of 175.708 mph. Austin Dillon was second at an average speed of 173.709 mph. Ryan Reed, who posted the 20th fastest single-lap time in his No. 16 Roush Fenway Racing Ford, was third at an average speed of 172.642 mph.

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  • Edwards: ‘I’m so excited about the things that are coming at Kentucky and Michigan’

    Edwards: ‘I’m so excited about the things that are coming at Kentucky and Michigan’

    CONCORD, N.C. — Asked about his thoughts on the changes to the aero package being tested in the coming weeks, Carl Edwards said he’s “excited about the things that are coming at Kentucky and Michigan.”

    Speaking in the media center during his weekly media availability, the driver of the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota gave some thoughts on the direction toward lower downforce and the quality of the racing this season.

    “It’s all right there, the proof is there, all year we’ve had awesome racing and we have close finishes,” Edwards said in response to being asked about how excited he is about the changes to the aero package. “I mean, yeah things didn’t go exactly as planned at the All-Star event, but that was a new format and a lot of unforeseen things happened, but the racing on the track was good and it’s been good all year. I already sent Steve O’Donnell (NASCAR executive vice-president and chief racing development officer) a thank you text. I’m so excited about the things that are coming at Kentucky and Michigan. NASCAR is doing that it takes, the teams are doing what it takes to go out and figure out how to make this the best racing it can be. This is going to be a blast. These cars, I’m telling you, when you drive them sideways at 200 mph and you’re closing on people and you’re able to pressure them and race like that, that’s as good as it gets. I’m very excited about Michigan and Kentucky, it’s like Christmas for me.”

    During last week’s All-Star Race, NASCAR tested smaller changes to the aero package such as welding the truck arm mounts, which had been in place since Kansas, reducing the number of brake fans the cars can use and not allowing teams to skew the rear-end of the car. The end result was racing that fans, drivers and media said was “excellent.”

    After the race, Senior Vice-President of Competition Scott Miller said that the truck arm welding and brake fan reduction will remain in place for the remainder of the season, but that the rear-end skew rule won’t be implemented for the rest of the season.

    Friday, NASCAR announced that further reductions to downforce will be tested in the upcoming FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway and the Quaker State 400 at Kentucky Speedway. The changes include a reduction of the spoiler from 3.5 to 2.5 inches, a two-inch reduction in the size of the splitter and resizing the deck fin.

    When asked how surprised at how far NASCAR has come in a short span of time in regards to the changes in downforce, he said he’s “really happy with the way things are going, but I think its NASCAR’s job to run this sport the best that they can and they’ve done a really good job over the last 50 or 60 years. They’ve made this into what it is so a healthy dose of skepticism when a bunch of drivers come and tell you what they want probably serves them well. Right now, literally, I can go to anyone at NASCAR – Mike Helton or Brian (France) or Steve O’Donnell whether it’s through the council, I can go talk to them and there’s a lot of communication back and forth. It doesn’t mean we don’t get just as many penalties or black flags or whatever, the competition is still the competition, but it’s pretty neat right now that everyone wants to make the racing the absolute best it can be and people are listening. That’s all you can hope for.”

    He was also asked if there were any negatives to the package.

    “There are absolutely no negatives,” Edwards said. “This sport, to me, and I can speak as a fan – until I got that call from Jack Roush, this was just something I dreamed of doing and watched on television and the things that I grew up watching drivers do with these race cars. Like that picture with cars sideways and hanging it out, stock car racing, NASCAR racing is built on that. I can’t applaud NASCAR enough for going that direction. I don’t see any negatives. I think we’re just going to have better and better racing.”

  • Martin Truex Jr. Claims the Sprint Cup Pole at Charlotte

    Martin Truex Jr. Claims the Sprint Cup Pole at Charlotte

  • Kurt Busch Fastest in First Practice at Charlotte

    Kurt Busch Fastest in First Practice at Charlotte

    CONCORD, N.C. — Kurt Busch topped the chart in the first Sprint Cup Series practice at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

    The driver of the No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 28.002 and a speed of 192.843 mph followed by Jimmie Johnson who was second in his No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet with a time of 28.235 and a speed of 191.252 mph. Carl Edwards was third fastest in his No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota with a time of 28.266 and a speed of 191.042 mph. Kevin Harvick was fourth in his No. 4 SHR Chevrolet with a time of 28.306 and a speed of 190.772 mph while Kyle Larson rounded out the top-five in his No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet with a time of 28.310 and a speed of 190.745 mph.

    Joey Logano was sixth quickest in his No. 22 Team Penske Ford. Martin Truex Jr. was seventh in his No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was eighth in his No. 17 Roush Fenway Racing Ford. Jamie McMurray was ninth in his No. 1 CGR Chevrolet and Kyle Busch rounded out the top-10 in his No. 18 JGR Toyota.

    Kyle Busch also posted the fastest 10 consecutive lap average at a speed of 185.465 mph.

    The next time the Sprint Cup cars are on track will be tonight at 7:15 p.m. ET for three rounds of qualifying.

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  • Changes Coming to Aero Package for Michigan and Kentucky

    Changes Coming to Aero Package for Michigan and Kentucky

    CONCORD, N.C. — NASCAR will test changes for the 2017 aero package in two races this season in their continuing effort to remove downforce from the cars and improve competition.

    NASCAR announced Thursday that modifications to the aerodynamic package will be implemented for the FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway and the Quaker State 400 at Kentucky Speedway. These are designed to further reduce the amount of downforce the cars generate and lead to more improvement in the on-track product across the board in the Sprint Cup Series.

    “I think we look at it as a never-ending journey; if we can improve we’re going to do that,” Steve O’Donnell, executive vice president and chief racing development officer, said of continuing to make adjustments. “We wanted to go the direction of low downforce, see how that worked, not kind of go all the way in and hope that we are directionally right. And we are seeing that play out. We’ve seen some great racing at the beginning of the year.

    “But we also knew that we had some more levers that we could pull if the direction kind of proved out, so we’ve tried some of those things. We’ve tested it and what we’ve also wanted to do is lower some of the corner speeds to allow for even more passing. That was one of the areas where we’ve seen minimal change, but there are some levers we can pull to really drive that down.”

    The changes include reducing the spoiler size from 3.5 to 2.5 inches, a two-inch reduction of the splitter and resizing the deck fin.

    These are in addition to the changes already implemented in the past few weeks such as welding the truck arm mounts and reducing the number of brake fans the cars can run.

    “We have worked collectively on some directions we want to go in, but to do that right we think the final step is to let that play out on one or two tracks,” O’Donnell said. “And these are the two — Kentucky and Michigan — that we’ve played out and let the teams concentrate really on what they’ve done to prepare for the year. We think that’s manageable and that’ll give us enough data to look at for 2017.”

    This follows a trend NASCAR started last year where they tested the lower-downforce package currently being used at Kentucky and Darlington Raceway. Both races received rave reviews from drivers, media and fans.