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Race Central NASCAR Cup Series news and information

  • Weekend Schedule for Bristol-2

    Weekend Schedule for Bristol-2

    NASCAR heads to Bristol Motor Speedway this weekend. The Gander Outdoors Truck Series will feature the first race in Round 1 of their championship Playoffs while the Xfinity Series has five races remaining in the regular season. The Monster Energy Cup Series will close out the weekend with three to go.

    Kurt Busch is the defending Cup Series race winner, Kyle Larson won the Xfinity Series Food City 300 last year and Johnny Sauter will be trying to repeat his August 2018 win at Bristol in the Truck Series.

    All times are Eastern.

    Thursday, August 15

    9:05 a.m. – 9:55 a.m.: Truck Series First Practice – No TV
    10:05 a.m. – 10:55 a.m.: Xfinity Series First Practice – NBC Sports App
    11:05 a.m. 11:55 a.m.: Truck Series Final Practice – No TV
    1:35 p.m.2:25 p.m. Xfinity Series Final Practice – NBC Sports App
    4:35 p.m. Truck Series Qualifying Impound (Single Vehicle/Two Laps All Positions) – 7 p.m. Tape Delay on FS1
    8:30 p.m.: Truck Series UNOH 200 presented by Ohio Logistics (Stages 55/110/200 Laps = 100.6 Miles) – FS1/MRN

    Friday, August 16

    11:05 a.m. 11:55 a.m.: Cup Series First Practice – NBCSN
    1:05 p.m. 1:55 p.m. Cup Series Final Practice – NBCSN
    4:05 p.m. Xfinity Series Qualifying Impound (Single Vehicle/Two Laps All Positions) – NBCSN
    5:35 p.m. Cup Series Qualifying Impound (Single Vehicle/Two Laps All Positions) – NBCSN/PRN
    7:30 p.m. Xfinity Series Food City 300 (Stages 85/170/300 Laps = 159.9 Miles) – NBCSN/PRN

    Saturday, August 17

    7:30 p.m.: Cup Series Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race (Stages 125/250/500 Laps = 266.5 Miles) – NBCSN/PRN

    Follow @angiecampbell_ for the latest NASCAR news and feature stories.

  • Brad Keselowski wins the pole at Michigan, Ford sweeps top spots

    Brad Keselowski wins the pole at Michigan, Ford sweeps top spots

    Brad Keselowski, driver of the No. 2 Discount Tire Team Penske Ford, won the pole on Friday afternoon at Michigan International Speedway with a time of 37.80 seconds at 190.471 mph. This was the 16th pole of his career and his second at Michigan.

    “We will find out as we go through race trim practice, but for right now, we’re going to celebrate and enjoy being the fastest car in qualifying,” Keselowski said to MRN Radio. “Really proud of our team here, our Discount Tire Ford Mustang. We unloaded so fast and made good adjustments to keep up with the changes in the track.”

    “Of course everyone else was getting faster. Good start, so let’s keep it up.”

    The top spot was traded many different times with Chevrolet holding the top spots before the Fords got on track and took the first two positions.

    The other Ford driver was Kevin Harvick who held the pole briefly before Keselowski took it. Harvick qualified second with a time of 37.87.

    “Yeah, it’s a good day for No. 4 Ford Mustang,” Harvick told MRN Radio. “I think track position is important everywhere we go. Coming to Michigan, it’s more important. That’s a good start to the weekend.”

    Keselowski also noted whether or not track position will be needed for Sunday’s race.

    “I’m not sure if track position will be quite as important as it was here in the spring,” Keselowski added. “You know, they put the PJ1 down and all that, I’m not complaining.”

    Speaking of track position, the winners have come from various starting spots here in the past five races. Joey Logano won from the pole in June, Harvick won from the pole last August, Clint Bowyer won from 12th in June of 2018, Kyle Larson won from ninth in August of 2017 and first in June of 2017.

    Keselowski was second fastest in pre-qualifying practice with a similar time of 37.90.

    All cars had tech inspection after practice and no drivers had any issues getting through inspection, therefore the lineup will be official. However, there will be another round for tech inspection on Sunday morning. Should a driver fail more than two times, they will be sent to the back of the field.

    Drivers will get to practice in race trim mode on Saturday as they have two more practice sessions. The second practice is slated for 8:35 a.m. ET live on CNBC and final practice will be at 11:30 a.m. ET live on the NBC Sports App.

    Please note: The qualifying times of Richard Childress Racing’s No. 3 of Austin Dillon and the No. 8 of Daniel Hemric were disallowed due to having unapproved alternators. As a result of the L1 infraction, Dillon and Hemric will lose 10 driver points and 10 owner points will be deducted as well. Each crew chief will also face a $25,000 fine. Dillon originally qualified seventh and Hemric was 11th but they will now start from the back of the field.

    Updated Starting Lineup:

    1. Brad Keselowski
    2. Kevin Harvick
    3. William Byron
    4. Alex Bowman
    5. Clint Bowyer
    6. Chase Elliott
    7. Ryan Blaney
    8. Joey Logano
    9. Paul Menard
    10. Jimmie Johnson
    11. Daniel Suarez
    12. Aric Almirola
    13. Kurt Busch
    14. Denny Hamlin
    15. Martin Truex Jr.
    16. Erik Jones
    17. Kyle Larson
    18. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
    19. Matt Tifft
    20. Ryan Newman
    21. Ty Dillon
    22. Kyle Busch
    23. Michael McDowell
    24. David Ragan
    25. Chris Buescher
    26. Bubba Wallace
    27. Matt DiBenedetto
    28. Landon Cassill
    29. Ryan Preece
    30. Ross Chastain
    31. Corey LaJoie
    32. Quin Houff
    33. Austin Theriault
    34. Cody Ware
    35. Reed Sorenson
    36. Spencer Boyd (Making first Cup Series start)
    37. Austin Dillon
    38. Daniel Hemric

  • Chase Elliott dominates to win at The Glen

    Chase Elliott dominates to win at The Glen

    Started first, finished first is the name of the game for NASCAR’s most popular driver, as Chase Elliott completely dominated to win his fifth Cup Series career victory and his second consecutive win at The Glen.

    “The past month and a half has not been that fun at all, and this team has stuck together, just stayed the course,” Elliott said to MRN Radio. “That’s the most important thing when you’re struggling. So to be able to stay the course, come up here, sit on the pole Saturday, lead the most laps, win the race, I’ve never done that in my career. That’s the kind of team we can be. I feel really confident about that, so we just have to keep it rolling.”

    Stages were broken into 20/20/50 laps to make up the 90 lap race distance.

    Only Ryan Blaney had to go to the rear for making unapproved adjustments prior to the start of the race.

    Stage 1: Lap 1 – Lap 20

    No cautions took place in the first stage, however, there were a couple of incidents. Kyle Busch spun underneath William Byron on Lap 2 in Turn 1. There would be no caution, but more on this later.

    Aric Almirola reported that his shifter was about to break off. There was a near-miss between Denny Hamlin and Byron and Daniel Suarez had grass on his grille.

    In the remaining laps, Kevin Harvick, Clint Bowyer, Brad Keselowski, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Blaney, Joey Logano, Alex Bowman and Chris Buescher all pitted with three laps to go in hopes to have track position for the Stage 2 restart. Byron also had grass on his grille after going through the bus stop.

    It was all Chase Elliott who led every lap to take the Stage 1 win.

    A heated interaction occurred between Byron and Kyle Busch under the stage break, as Byron went to retaliate by running into the rear end of Busch in the esses. However, Byron got the worst of it with damage to his hood.

    Busch would also have more problems occur on his pit stop, as he would be caught being too fast exiting on section eight. Corey LaJoie was penalized for driving through too many pit boxes on exit. Ross Chastain was penalized for having a crew member over the wall too soon.

    Elliott, Hamlin, Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch, Byron, Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Larson, Erik Jones, Kurt Busch and Almirola rounded out the top-10 finishers for Stage 1.

    Stage 2: Lap 24 – Lap 40

    Larson assumed the lead as he would stay out under the stage break, but later pitted from the lead on Lap 29.

    On the other hand, Truex had a close call with Keselowski coming to the inner loop by going off the grass a little bit. Logano went through the inner loop grass as well and would have minor front end damage.

    Another driver who had issues with the inner loop was Parker Kligerman who went spinning around after contact with Suarez. Since Larson pitted from the lead, Elliott would assume the lead on Lap 29.

    A caution broke out on Lap 32 when the No. 77 of Reed Sorenson began leaking fluid in the inner loop. This prompted NASCAR to clean up the fluid. Under the caution, Kurt Busch and Kyle Busch pitted along with Byron.

    A restart came with four to go in Stage 2. With that, a battle heated up for the lead between Elliott and Truex for the stage win. However, Wallace was sent spinning into the Turn 5 tire barrier to bring out the caution on Lap 39.

    With the incident, Stage 2 would end under yellow with Elliott once again picking up the stage win. Truex, Harvick, Bowyer, Hamlin, Keselowski, Bowman, Jones, Blaney and Johnson were the remaining top-10 finishers in the second stage on Lap 40.

    Stage 3: Lap 43 – Lap 90

    The final stage began just how it ended with Elliott and Truex contending for the lead. Ryan Newman pitted on Lap 50 for a right front flat and was penalized for driving through too many pit boxes on exit. Hemric also spun through the inner loop two laps later with no caution and the Richard Childress Racing driver suffered major damage to the rear end after contact with Ty Dillon. Due to the contact, Dillon went through the inner loop picking up grass on his grille.

    Green flag pit stops started to take place on Lap 57 with Harvick being the first to pit. Elliott pitted from the lead with 30 to go, while Truex stayed out one lap longer and came in the next lap. Elliott retook the lead right after Truex re-entered the track.

    Two incidents broke out on Lap 61. Johnson went sliding in Turn 5 toward the tire barrier after getting loose. Then, Kyle Busch and Bubba Wallace were bumping and banging on the frontstretch with Wallace turning Busch in Turn 1. A caution came out for the incident.

    The final restart of the race came with 25 to go. Elliott and Truex had a thrilling battle off the restart, banging doors with each other. So much so, that even with Elliott getting the lead, he was concerned with having a flat tire going down.

    But Elliott was able to fend off Truex for his second consecutive win at The Glen. Elliott led all but 10 laps to pick up his second win of the season.

    “Track position, obviously, having a clean air was the biggest thing,” Elliott added. “I thought he (Truex) was a little better there at the end. Just tried to hit my marks and stay mistake free. You know, just not hand it to him. I knew he was going to come up there and pass me, just didn’t want to beat myself and worked really hard at that. Glad we were able to seal the deal, it feels really good.”

    Elliott led three times for 80 laps and picked up 60 points, along with seven Playoff points.

    There were four cautions for 13 laps with four leaders among five lead changes.

    Monster Energy Cup Series Race Number 22
    Race Results for the 34th Annual Go Bowling at The Glen – Sunday, August 4, 2019
    Watkins Glen International – Watkins Glen, NY – 2.45 – Mile Road
    Total Race Length – 90 Laps – 220.5 Miles

    Fin Str No Driver Team Laps S1Pos S2Pos S3Pos Pts Status
    1 1 9 Chase Elliott NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet 90 1 1 0 60 Running
    2 4 19 Martin Truex Jr Bass Pro Shops Toyota 90 3 2 0 52 Running
    3 6 11 Denny Hamlin FedEx Cares Toyota 90 2 5 0 49 Running
    4 14 20 Erik Jones DeWalt Toyota 90 8 8 0 39 Running
    5 19 12 Ryan Blaney PPG Ford 90 0 9 0 34 Running
    6 20 95 Matt DiBenedetto Procore Toyota 90 0 0 0 31 Running
    7 15 4 Kevin Harvick Busch Beer Ford 90 0 3 0 38 Running
    8 5 42 Kyle Larson McDonald’s Chevrolet 90 7 0 0 33 Running
    9 10 2 Brad Keselowski Autotrader Ford 90 0 6 0 33 Running
    10 7 1 Kurt Busch Monster Energy Chevrolet 90 9 0 0 29 Running
    11 3 18 Kyle Busch M&M’s Hazelnut Toyota 90 4 0 0 33 Running
    12 9 10 Aric Almirola Go Bowling Ford 90 10 0 0 26 Running
    13 16 37 Chris Buescher Cottonelle Chevrolet 90 0 0 0 24 Running
    14 17 88 Alex Bowman Axalta Chevrolet 90 0 7 0 27 Running
    15 12 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr Acronis Ford 90 0 0 0 22 Running
    16 11 34 Michael McDowell Long John Silver’s Ford 90 0 0 0 21 Running
    17 18 41 Daniel Suarez Haas Automation Ford 90 0 0 0 20 Running
    18 22 21 Paul Menard Menards/Dutch Boy Ford 90 0 0 0 19 Running
    19 8 48 Jimmie Johnson Ally Chevrolet 90 6 10 0 24 Running
    20 13 14 Clint Bowyer Rush Truck Centers/Haas Automation Ford 90 0 4 0 24 Running
    21 2 24 William Byron Hendrick Autoguard Chevrolet 90 5 0 0 22 Running
    22 31 38 David Ragan MDS Transport Ford 90 0 0 0 15 Running
    23 21 22 Joey Logano MoneyLion Ford 90 0 0 0 14 Running
    24 26 36 Matt Tifft # Maui Jim/Surface Sunscreen Ford 90 0 0 0 13 Running
    25 25 6 Ryan Newman Acronis Ford 90 0 0 0 12 Running
    26 24 96 * Parker Kligerman(i) TRD 40th Anniversary Toyota 90 0 0 0 0 Running
    27 32 15 Ross Chastain(i) Chevrolet 90 0 0 0 0 Running
    28 30 43 Bubba Wallace Victory Junction Chevrolet 90 0 0 0 9 Running
    29 34 0 Landon Cassill(i) StarCom Fiber Chevrolet 90 0 0 0 0 Running
    30 27 13 Ty Dillon GEICO Military Chevrolet 89 0 0 0 7 Running
    31 28 3 Austin Dillon Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet 89 0 0 0 6 Running
    32 36 52 Josh Bilicki(i) Chevrolet 89 0 0 0 0 Running
    33 35 51 Cody Ware(i) JACOB COMPANIES Chevrolet 89 0 0 0 0 Running
    34 33 32 Corey LaJoie Samaritan’s Feet Ford 85 0 0 0 3 Engine
    35 23 8 Daniel Hemric # Caterpillar Chevrolet 84 0 0 0 2 Running
    36 29 47 Ryan Preece # Kroger Chevrolet 72 0 0 0 1 Rear Gear
    37 37 77 Reed Sorenson Chevrolet 65 0 0 0 1 Steering

     

    Updated Playoff Points Standings

    1. Kyle Busch, 4 wins
    2. Martin Truex Jr, 4 wins
    3. Denny Hamlin, 3 wins
    4. Brad Keselowski, 3 wins
    5. Joey Logano, 2 wins
    6. Chase Elliott, 2 wins
    7. Kevin Harvick, 1 win
    8. Kurt Busch, 1 win
    9. Alex Bowman, 1 win
    10. Aric Almirola, +96
    11. Ryan Blaney, +89
    12. William Byron, +60
    13. Erik Jones, +54
    14. Kyle Larson, +46
    15. Clint Bowyer, +12
    16. Jimmie Johnson, tied with Ryan Newman

    Up Next: The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series heads back to Michigan International Speedway on Sunday, August 11.

  • Kevin Harvick wins at New Hampshire

    Kevin Harvick wins at New Hampshire

    With a 22 race winless streak, Kevin Harvick was not going to be denied a second lobster at New Hampshire.

    Harvick had to hold off Denny Hamlin to win his first race of the season, and the first win for his team, Stewart-Haas Racing.

    “(Hamlin) got to me, he tried to move me out of the way down there, and I knew that was coming as close as he was,” Harvick told NBCSN at the start/finish line. “So I just stood on the brakes and I’m like half throttle down the back straightaway. I’m like, ‘You’re not getting under me again.’ And he drove to the outside of me and I just waited till he got near me and I just put a wheel on him.”

    Hamlin finished second after leading 113 laps, all of them in the final stage. He took the lead after his teammate, Kyle Busch, had trouble and cut a tire and slammed into the wall in Turn 1. He went on to finish ninth but for Hamlin, it was more dejection that anything.

    “I kind of shoved (Harvick) up a little higher and tried to get him out of the groove,” Hamlin told NBCSN after the race. “I wanted to just tap him there, but I didn’t want to completely screw him. I at least wanted to give him a fair shot there. Down the backstretch, I kind of let off, and I’m like, all right, well, I’ll just pass him on the outside and kind of do this thing the right way, and once I had that big run, he just turned right. But I would do the same thing. It was a fun race, and congratulations to him and his team. They made a great call there at the end.”

    Erik Jones finished third, followed by Ryan Blaney and Matt Dibenedetto rounding out the top five.

    Kyle Busch dominated the first stage and half of the second stage and finished ninth.

    We had a good car all day,” Busch said after the race. “Just got into it on a restart I guess with Larson and that got us damage and that got us behind the eight ball. We would have been on strategy with where (Denny Hamlin) was the whole rest of the day, but we had to fix damage.”

    Jimmie Johnson was having a decent run when his power steering began having issues and the seven-time champ had to come in and fell multiple laps down and out of contention.

    Well, it was certainly a letdown, to say the least,” Johnson said after the race on NBCSN. “We had some issue with the power steering and the water pump pulleys. I thought it might have been from some contact on a restart. I got in the back of the car in front of me. They told me that wasn’t the case. So, I assume some debris got in the pulley system and took out my power steering and the water pump as well. So, it’s just unlucky on that front. Certainly, the wrong time of the year to have some bad luck. It looked like the guys I’m worried about in the points didn’t have the best day either, so maybe I got a pass on this one. I’m just disappointed, to say the least.”

    The Cup Series heads to Pocono for the second race of the season at the Tricky Triangle where Kyle Busch will try and sweep the series in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.


  • Kurt Busch wins in thrilling fashion at Kentucky

    Kurt Busch wins in thrilling fashion at Kentucky

    Kurt Busch won the Quaker State 400 in overtime at Kentucky Speedway Saturday night after a thrilling overtime battle with younger brother, Kyle Busch, to earn his first victory of the 2019 season.

    It appeared that Joey Logano might run away with the race win in overtime but a late race caution changed everything. With six laps to go Bubba Wallace spun in Turn 1 and set up a late race overtime restart.

    Busch passed Logano on the restart and set his sight on his brother. During the last half lap, the two brothers dueled for the win. Kurt Busch was able to beat him to the finish line by inches after almost wrecking each other for the win. It was his first victory for Chip Ganassi Racing.

    “That was epic!” Kurt Busch said to PRN Radio in his post-race interview. “I was hoping we would get a shot, one more restart. I was just hoping that it would go our way and get that yellow. Then my little brother (Kyle Busch), the best guy in the world to go racing against. He’s been winning a ton, I couldn’t be happier for him and where he’s gone in his career.”

    “That duel in Turn 3 and 4, and who was going to lift first, what’s going to happen, he gave me just enough on the outside like a true racer would. We made it work and both could have clobbered each other, and third place (Erik Jones) could have won, but I’m glad I came out on top with my Monster Energy Chevrolet. To get this team (the win), there’s a ton of first-time winners in victory lane.”

    Daniel Suarez started on the pole, his first of the season and his first since Pocono of 2018.

    The stages were broken up into 80/80/107 laps to make up the 267-lap race at Kentucky Speedway.

    There was action before the race started, as fuel was accidentally laid down before the start of the race. Therefore, speedy dry was put down on top of the PJ1 that was also applied again in the morning hours.

    The first half of the race was mainly clean and green, and what you would expect at a 1.5-mile track. There were some incidents, including one where Brad Keselowski reported “something is audibly off,” a possible tire vibration. The first caution of the race flew on Lap 47 for Chase Elliott’s car, as he blew a right front tire and left debris all over the track.

    Another yellow flew on Lap 55 for Corey Lajoie, who spun off Turn 4 but wound up not hitting the wall. Kurt Busch would lead for the first time right before the caution by taking the lead on Lap 53. Before Busch could go on to win Stage 1, the caution flew once more on Lap 64 for Landon Cassill and Bayley Currey who both spun in Turn 2. Both drivers would escape without any major damage.

    Despite the yellow, Kurt Busch would hang on to the lead and win the first stage after leading 30 laps.

    Suarez led the first 49 laps, before finishing 14th in Stage 1. Also during the stage, Keselowski had a possible valve spring issue.

    Stage 2 saw a lot of different strategies take place, with drivers taking only two tires or just fuel in order to get that much-needed track position.

    Ricky Stenhouse Jr. would take advantage of that track position by staying out and taking the lead at the beginning of Stage 2. Stenhouse led for 21 laps until Kyle Busch took the lead on Lap 104. Another strategy call was made by Suarez’s pit crew on Lap 108 by pitting. After pitting, Suarez was told he could make it to the end of the stage without stopping again.

    However, that was all thrown out the window as he would be caught speeding on pit road. Other pit stops would be made for those who stayed out. Logano pitted on Lap 120 for a possible vibration but looked as though it was all clear after the pit stop.

    Later in the stage, Austin Dillon learned he was going to have to change the battery at the end of Stage 2. Dillon did so and it cost him a good finish. He wound up 35th, 29 laps down.

    More issues appeared to rise for Elliott’s crew who pitted from 22nd. Elliott received an uncontrolled tire penalty, which was later overturned by NASCAR.

    The race leader Kyle Busch pitted on Lap 149 from the lead. Despite pitting, Busch would remain the leader. Other drivers were caught with penalties, however. Daniel Hemric had a penalty for removing a jack from his pit box.

    Kyle Busch would maintain the lead as pit stops cycled through and go on to win the second stage.

    The third and final stage went green with 101 laps to go and saw a lot of action.

    Kurt Busch would be back up front for the restart. There were some great battles going on which allowed Kyle Busch to close in once again.

    Although, as cautions breed cautions, another one was seen as the No. 48 car of Jimmie Johnson was loose and snapped around, hitting the wall off Turn 2 on Lap 179. It would be the sixth caution of the night.

    More interesting items developed on the next restart, as William Byron was cited by NASCAR for a restart violation. Byron would wind up serving a stop and go penalty.

    Pit stops began to take place shortly after with 54 to go. Once Clint Bowyer passed Kurt Busch for the lead, Busch pitted in hopes of being the race leader once stops cycled out. Bowyer then pitted as well, but Busch exited just ahead of him. Meaning, if the stops cycled out as they normally do, Busch would be the new race leader.

    However, other drivers were trying to outsmart each other during the final laps of the race. Kyle Busch would lead the next 13 laps before pitting. Hamlin then led five laps before pitting, Newman for 15 laps until he ran out of gas and Suarez led three laps until Lap 248.

    While all this was going on, Kyle Busch and Logano were battling each other for a potential race win as they would be the new leaders once stops cycled out. Both raced each other hard for the lead and nearly wrecked each other while doing it. Logano took the lead with just 18 laps to go.

    In what looked liked it was going to be the Joey Logano show, a late race yellow ended his hopes with six laps to go. This set up a NASCAR overtime finish with Logano and Kyle Busch on the front row. Older brother Kurt Busch would sit right lurking close behind.

    As the race restarted, Logano got shuffled back in the middle as Kurt Busch and Erik Jones went three wide on the leaders. Busch was on the high line and got around Logano and Kyle Busch.

    Both brothers would duel it out all the way to the finish line, even touching each other, leaving Kurt Busch with some tire smoke from a fender rub. In the end, it was older brother Kurt Busch barely beating his younger brother at the line by .076 seconds.

    With this win, he has won with every car owner he has driven for in the series.

    “I felt the connection with Chip (Ganassi, Team Owner) was perfect right away,” Busch added in his interview with PRN. “I mean, it was a 30-minute conversation, we knocked out a contract and then we went racing. And then, it’s a matter of making all the right steps to make this No. 1 car a winner. Tonight, we had luck on our side, positioned ourselves with speed and handling was there.”

    With the future a little uncertain for Busch by having just a one year contract, he is still not sure what next season holds for him, but indicated that he’s not retiring anytime soon.

    “It’s a matter of getting going now,” the 2004 champion said. “We got that win and now the second half is in front of us, and it’s a matter of everything coming together, you know? The manufacture, the sponsor, the team owner and the driver. I thought this year might be the last, but we’re having so much fun, we’ll see how things go.”

    With this win, Kurt Busch is now locked into the 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. Busch is currently seeded seventh in the Playoff standings.

    It was Busch’s first win of the season, his first since the Bristol night race last August and the 31st of his career. He led four times for 41 laps and won Stage 1.

    There were seven cautions for 35 laps with 10 leaders among 15 lead changes.

    Playoff Watch

    1. Kyle Busch, Four wins
    2. Martin Truex Jr, Four wins
    3. Brad Keselowski, Three wins
    4. Joey Logano, Two wins, Current regular standings points leader
    5. Denny Hamlin, Two wins
    6. Chase Elliott, One win
    7. Kurt Busch, One win
    8. Alex Bowman, One win
    9. Kevin Harvick -101
    10. Aric Almirola, -204
    11. Ryan Blaney, -211
    12. William Byron, -229
    13. Kyle Larson, -235, +40 points in
    14. Clint Bowyer, -265, +10 points in
    15. Jimmie Johnson, -265, +10 points in
    16. Erik Jones, -273, +2 points in
    Outside looking in
    17. Ryan Newman, Two points out
    18. Daniel Suarez, Two points out
    19. Ricky Stenhouse Jr, 46 points out

    Up Next: The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series continues their summer stretch of races by heading to the Northeast for race No. 20 of the 2019 season. There are only seven races left until the Playoffs began.

  • Daniel Suarez wins pole for Quaker State 400 at Kentucky

    Daniel Suarez wins pole for Quaker State 400 at Kentucky

    Daniel Suarez will lead the field to green for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Quaker State 400 Saturday night after running the fastest qualifying lap at Kentucky Speedway and claiming the pole.

    The driver of the No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford was the last to qualify Friday evening and his 184.590 mph lap knocked his teammate, Aric Almirola, off the pole,  besting his speed by .126 seconds. It was his first Busch Pole Award this year and the second of his career.  

    “The car’s been very fast the entire day,” Suarez said. “We had probably the fastest car in last practice and the fastest car in qualifying, so I’m very proud of my guys, Ford Performance, Haas Automation and everyone who makes this program possible.”

    In his third year of competition in the Cup Series, Suarez is impatiently anticipating his first series win.   

    “I really want to win so bad,” he explained. “I haven’t been in Victory Lane for a while. The last time I was in Victory Lane was in Brazil, and it was in a go-kart race. I have been looking forward to bring a trophy home for a while.

    “We have very fast cars. Now it’s up to me to make it happen tomorrow (Saturday) night.”

    Almirola hasn’t been to victory lane since last year at Talladega Superspeedway but has one top five and 10 top-10 finishes this season. He sees starting up front as an opportunity for more.

    “It is a great day for us,” he said. “Everybody has been doing a good job of trying to figure out how to bring more speed and more driveability in our cars. I feel like this weekend so far we are off to a good start and the cars are fast and driving good. We have part one done, we have qualified up front and got ourselves good track position and pit stall selection and good clean air. Now we just have to go put a race together.”

    Team Penske’s Brad Keselowski qualified third with a speed of 183.443 as Ford claimed the top three spots. Kurt Busch broke up the Ford dominance and will start fourth in his No. 1 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet with Kevin Harvick rounding out the top five in the No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford.

    “That wasn’t bad. That was our best qualifying effort on a mile and a half this year I think,” Keselowski said. “That is something to be proud of. I didn’t quite have the speed to get the pole. I would have liked a later draw. I think there would have been some speed there. Daniel was a tenth-and-a-half ahead. All in all a decent run for our Discount Tire Ford Mustang and I am happy for Doug Yates and all of the Ford guys to have all three of our cars up front with the Fords. We will see what we have tomorrow.”

    Daniel Hemric, Clint Bowyer, Martin Truex Jr., Austin Dillon and Kyle Busch round out the top 10 starting positions.  

    The Quaker State 400 is set for 7:30 p.m. ET and will be televised on NBCSN with radio coverage by PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

    Follow @angiecampbell_ for the latest NASCAR news and feature stories.

    Starting Lineup for the Quaker State 400:

    1. Daniel Suarez

    2. Aric Almirola

    3. Brad Keselowski

    4. Kurt Busch

    5. Kevin Harvick

    6. Daniel Hemric

    7. Clint Bowyer

    8. Martin Truex Jr.

    9. Austin Dillon

    10. Kyle Busch

    11. Joey Logano

    12. William Byron

    13. Jimmie Johnson

    14. Paul Menard

    15. Ryan Blaney

    16. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

    17. Michael McDowell

    18. Denny Hamlin

    19. Kyle Larson

    20. Chase Elliott

    21. Erik Jones

    22. Alex Bowman

    *23. Ryan Newman – Failed pre-race inspection once, will start 35th

    24. Matt DiBenedetto

    25. David Ragan

    26. Chris Buescher

    27. Ty Dillon

    28. Bubba Wallace

    29. Corey LaJoie

    30. Ryan Preece

    31. Matt Tifft

    32. Bayley Currey

    33. Ross Chastain

    34. Landon Cassill

    35. BJ McLeod

    *36. Quin Houff – Failed pre-race inspection once, will start 36th

  • Haley wins the rain shortened Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona

    Haley wins the rain shortened Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona

    Justin Haley inherited the lead under caution when Kurt Busch made his final pit stop after NASCAR initially declared they would go back to green the next lap.  NASCAR then red flagged the race with 33 laps to go due to more lightning strikes within an eight-mile radius of the Daytona International Speedway and then later declared official due to rain.

    Haley was declared the winner of the rain delayed and rain shortened Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona.  The 20-year-old Indiana native driving for first-year team Spire Motorsports in the No. 77 Fraternal Order of Eagles Camaro ZL1 led only one lap and captured his first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series win in only three starts. Haley becomes the fourth driver in the modern-era to win within their first three starts in the cup series.

    “It’s absolutely a blessing. Its pretty incredible that I have so many great people around me that have given me this opportunity to come here to this level and stage that we are performing on. Obviously Todd and my family have done a great job, but the Fraternal Order of Eagles has given me this opportunity with Spire Motorsports and its truly a blessing. I never even saw myself running a Cup race until I got a call a few months ago to do Talladega. It’s just unreal and I don’t know how to put it. I don’t know how to feel.” Haley said.

    William Byron finished second, Jimmie Johnson third, Ty Dillon fourth and Ryan Newman finished fifth.

    “It took us a little while to get to the front from the back and finish second. So that was good.” Byron said. “I would have liked to go back racing and win it the way I wanted to, but our team did a great job this week managing all the chaos and finishing second with a back-up car is pretty good.”

    Joey Logano won stage one and Austin Dillon won stage two.

    Kevin Harvick got a run in the tri-oval on Brad Keselowski with 18 laps to go in Stage 2. Harvick turned Keselowski into the outside wall, eliminating Keselowski and Daniel Suarez from the race.

    “I know we got to three-wide at the top of three and it looks like Kevin gave me a real straight push. I don’t know. It just took off on me.” Keselowski said.

    The bad weather headed in during the third and final stage of the race and the intensity also picked up.

    While running in the outside line, Clint Bowyer pulled down to pass Austin Dillon for the race lead. Dillon followed and Bowyer got into the back of him causing him to spin, collecting the front runners on lap 118.

    “I guess he didn’t want me to pass him. I don’t know. I got under him and he blocked, and we got together, I got off of him, moved down and got off of him and here he comes back down even more and just finally wrecked us all. That’s just part of racing like this.” Bowyer said.

    “Originally, off of turn four, I thought me and the 9 would be able to get by the 11. But the 9 wasn’t clear. I really thought it was urgent with the lighting and the rain coming. So I jumped up there and had a good push from the 14 and my plan as soon as I cleared the 11 was to cut left and get down again to get with my Chevy teammates. It’s really unfortunate because I had a really fast American Ethanol Chevy.” Dillon said.

    The series heads to Kentucky Speedway next Saturday July 13th for the Quaker State 400 at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

    Monster Energy Cup Series Race Number 18
    Race Results for the 61st Annual Coke Zero Sugar 400 – Sunday, July 7, 2019
    Daytona International Speedway – Daytona Beach, FL – 2.5 – Mile Paved
    Total Race Length – 160 Laps – 400. Miles

    Fin Str No Driver Team Laps S1Pos S2Pos Stage3Pos Pts Status
    1 34 77 Justin Haley(i) Fraternal Order of Eagles Chevrolet 127 0 0 0 0 Running
    2 12 24 William Byron Axalta Patriotic Chevrolet 127 0 3 0 43 Running
    3 14 48 Jimmie Johnson Ally Chevrolet 127 0 7 0 38 Running
    4 23 13 Ty Dillon GEICO Military Chevrolet 127 0 0 0 33 Running
    5 18 6 Ryan Newman Roush Performance Ford 127 0 0 0 32 Running
    6 30 32 Corey LaJoie Shine Armor Ford 127 0 0 0 31 Running
    7 11 10 Aric Almirola Smithfield Anytime Favorites Ford 127 0 0 0 30 Running
    8 25 95 Matt DiBenedetto Procore Toyota 127 0 0 0 29 Running
    9 31 36 Matt Tifft # Ron Jon Surf Shop Ford 127 0 0 0 28 Running
    10 8 1 Kurt Busch Global Poker Chevrolet 127 0 0 0 27 Running
    11 33 0 Landon Cassill(i) Jacob Companies Chevrolet 127 0 0 0 0 Running
    12 37 52 JJ Yeley DriveSmartWarranty.com Ford 127 0 0 0 25 Running
    13 28 34 Michael McDowell Long John Silver’s Ford 127 0 0 0 24 Running
    14 2 18 Kyle Busch Interstate Batteries Toyota 127 0 0 0 23 Running
    15 29 43 Bubba Wallace United States Air Force Chevrolet 127 0 9 0 24 Running
    16 20 21 Paul Menard Menards/Dutch Boy Ford 127 0 0 0 21 Running
    17 22 37 Chris Buescher Scott Comfort Plus Chevrolet 127 0 0 0 20 Running
    18 24 8 Daniel Hemric # Cessna Chevrolet 127 0 0 0 19 Running
    19 39 62 * Brendan Gaughan(i) Beard Oil Distributing/South Point Hotel & Casino Chevrolet 126 0 0 0 0 Running
    20 13 42 Kyle Larson Credit One Bank Chevrolet 126 0 6 0 22 Running
    21 9 88 Alex Bowman Valvoline Patriotic Chevrolet 126 0 2 0 25 Running
    22 5 19 Martin Truex Jr. Bass Pro Shops/TRACKER ATVs & Boats/USO Toyota 126 10 0 0 16 Running
    23 17 20 Erik Jones Sport Clips Toyota 125 0 0 0 14 Running
    24 19 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Fifth Third Bank Ford 125 2 8 0 25 Running
    25 1 22 Joey Logano Shell Pennzoil Ford 125 1 10 0 23 Running
    26 6 11 Denny Hamlin FedEx Office Toyota 125 8 0 0 14 Running
    27 40 53 * Joey Gase Connected Claim Services/Action Restoration Chevrolet 125 0 0 0 0 Running
    28 35 51 BJ McLeod(i) Jacob Companies Ford 124 0 0 0 0 Running
    29 4 4 Kevin Harvick Jimmy John’s Ford 124 4 0 0 15 Running
    30 38 27 * Ross Chastain(i) Xchange of America Chevrolet 122 0 0 0 0 Running
    31 36 96 * Parker Kligerman(i) TRD 40th Anniversary Toyota 121 0 0 0 0 Accident
    32 26 47 Ryan Preece # Kroger Chevrolet 119 0 0 0 5 Accident
    33 21 3 Austin Dillon American Ethanol Chevrolet 118 0 1 0 14 Accident
    34 16 14 Clint Bowyer Mobil 1/Rush Truck Centers Ford 118 7 5 0 13 Accident
    35 7 9 Chase Elliott NAPA Batteries Chevrolet 118 5 4 0 15 Accident
    36 10 12 Ryan Blaney BodyArmor Ford 118 3 0 0 9 Accident
    37 32 15 Quin Houff The Elease Project Chevrolet 108 0 0 0 1 Running
    38 27 38 David Ragan MDS Transport Ford 86 0 0 0 1 Accident
    39 3 2 Brad Keselowski Miller Lite Ford 85 9 0 0 3 Accident
    40 15 41 Daniel Suarez Haas Automation Ford 83 6 0 0 6 Accident
  • Martin Truex Jr. Holds Off Kyle Busch to Win Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma

    Martin Truex Jr. Holds Off Kyle Busch to Win Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma

    SONOMA, Calif. ⁠— In a technical caution-free race, Martin Truex Jr holds off Kyle Busch in the closing laps to win the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway in the NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series.

    “What a season we’ve turned this into,” Truex said in Victory Lane after tying Kyle Busch with the most victories in the current season. “This group, they’re unbelievable. Hopefully we can keep this going.”

    Truex claimed his third career victory at the California road course, second in a row and the first with the returning Carrousel. The race was caution-free besides the stage ending yellow flags.

    “With the Carousel, the big left-hand corner, it really changed things up,” he explained not knowing exactly how the weekend was going to go for the No. 19 Toyota team. “Took a while to figure that out in practice. But luckily, we were able to just make the right tweaks. I had confidence that when the track got hot and slick on the long runs, we had what we needed.

    “Just a matter if we had enough speed to get there, and we did today.”

    Truex didn’t place in the top 10 in Stage 1 with the varying pit strategies. Many teams elected to come to pit road before the two-to-go mark, signifying the close of pit road. Roughly the top 15 positions could pit without going a lap down, and when some leaders came down pit road, that gave more openings deeper in the pack to come down pit road. He placed seventh in Stage 2.

    Kyle Busch closes the gap on teammate and leader Truex after front end damage from contact with Ryan Blaney. Photo courtesy of Patrick Sue-Chan for Speedway Media.
    Kyle Busch closes the gap on teammate and leader Truex after front end damage from contact with Ryan Blaney. Photo courtesy of Patrick Sue-Chan for Speedway Media.

    With 20 laps to go, Kyle Busch had a different strategy in mind by manipulating the cycle to have fresher tires on the final run. At times, he ran a full second faster than his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate, but fell 1.861 seconds short of the win.

    “Yeah, any time I had to lean on the left rear, I just didn’t have the drive that I needed,” Busch said. “Actually tried to hold on to it, trying to save it. I knew that was going to be our problem — that had been our problem all day long. You get closer, you’re like, ‘OK, I can get him, I better go, pounce on him fast, so then he doesn’t have the time to pick up the pace.’

    “But it didn’t work. He was obviously saving a lot. I knew he was going to be saving a lot, have enough to be able to most likely hold us off. I was right. I still tried everything I could to get there and ran real hard. Sucks to finish second to a teammate, but it’s good for the company. Overall Martin is really, really good here. I’m just pumped that I actually ran good here.”

    Ryan Blaney was the top finishing Ford in third, and Matt DiBenedetto fights for his best career finish of fourth. Stage 2 winner, Denny Hamlin, rounds out the top five. Kevin Harvick, Ryan Newman, Erik Jones, Aric Almirola and pole sitter Kyle Larson finish in the top 10. Larson now holds three consecutive poles as the home track native, and claimed his best career finish.

    Other notables across the field include Daniel Hemric, Austin Dillon and Ryan Preece who all ran toward the front of the NASCAR K&N Pro West Series race. They finished 15th, 24th and 29th respectively. William Byron led all of Stage 1, including winning the first stage, but finished in the 19th position. Saturday night’s NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series winner Ross Chastaine made the overnight flight to start today’s race and finished 33rd. Chase Elliott was battling for a top five position, but a loss of oil pressure eliminated him after 60 laps, finishing 37th. Cody Ware pulled into the garage during the final stage, where he was treated in the infield care center for carbon monoxide poisoning. He was released after treatments.

    The NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series will compete next at Chicagoland Speedway on June 30.

    FinSt#DriverSponsor / OwnerCarLapsStatus
    1819Martin Truex, Jr.Bass Pro Shops (Joe Gibbs)Toyota90running
    2718Kyle BuschM&M’s Hazelnut (Joe Gibbs)Toyota90running
    3912Ryan BlaneyPPG (Roger Penske)Ford90running
    41995Matt DiBenedettoProcore Thanks DW Throwback (Leavine Family Racing)Toyota90running
    5611Denny HamlinFedEx Ground   (Joe Gibbs)Toyota90running
    6234Kevin HarvickMobil 1 (Stewart Haas Racing)Ford90running
    7216Ryan NewmanWyndham Rewards (Jack Roush)Ford90running
    83220Erik JonesCraftsman (Joe Gibbs)Toyota90running
    91510Aric AlmirolaSmithfield (Stewart Haas Racing)Ford90running
    10142Kyle LarsonCredit One Bank (Chip Ganassi)Chevrolet90running
    111414Clint BowyerRush Truck Centers (Stewart Haas Racing)Ford90running
    121148Jimmie JohnsonAlly (Rick Hendrick)Chevrolet90running
    13161Kurt BuschMonster Energy (Chip Ganassi)Chevrolet90running
    141288Alex BowmanAxalta (Rick Hendrick)Chevrolet90running
    15258Daniel HemricPoppy Bank (Richard Childress)Chevrolet90running
    161037Chris BuescherHellmann’s (JTG-Daugherty Racing)Chevrolet90running
    17541Daniel SuarezRuckus (Stewart Haas Racing)Ford90running
    18222Brad KeselowskiAmerica’s Tire (Roger Penske)Ford90running
    19224William ByronHertz (Rick Hendrick)Chevrolet90running
    201838David Ragan#ThanksDW (Bob Jenkins)Ford90running
    211717Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.Roush Performance / Thanks DW (Jack Roush)Ford90running
    222421Paul MenardMenards / Richmond (Wood Brothers)Ford90running
    23322Joey LoganoShell / Pennzoil (Roger Penske)Ford90running
    24263Austin DillonDow Coatings (Richard Childress)Chevrolet90running
    251334Michael McDowellLove’s Travel Stops (Bob Jenkins)Ford89running
    263043Bubba WallaceWorld Wide Technology (Richard Petty Motorsports)Chevrolet89running
    273113Ty DillonGEICO Military (Germain Racing)Chevrolet89running
    282836Matt TifftAcquire Investments (Bob Jenkins)Ford89running
    292047Ryan PreeceKroger (JTG-Daugherty Racing)Chevrolet89running
    302996Parker KligermanTRD 40th Anniversary (Gaunt Brothers)Toyota89running
    313500Landon CassillShare (StarCom Racing)Chevrolet89running
    322732Corey LaJoieGMN (Archie St. Hilaire)Ford89running
    333715Ross ChastainLow-T Centers (Jay Robinson)Chevrolet89running
    343377Justin HaleyFormula One Imports (Spire Motorsports)Chevrolet88running
    353827Reed SorensonVIPRacingExperience.com (Jay Robinson)Chevrolet88running
    363452Cody WareSBC Contractors (Rick Ware)Chevrolet64fatigue
    3749Chase ElliottNAPA Auto Parts (Rick Hendrick)Chevrolet60engine
    383651J.J. YeleyJacob Companies (Rick Ware)Ford53fuel pump


  • Kyle Larson will lead the field into the carousel at Sonoma

    Kyle Larson will lead the field into the carousel at Sonoma

    SONOMA, Calif. – Kyle Larson sweeps both qualifying sessions and will start on pole for the third straight year for Sunday’s Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway with a time of 94.784 seconds at 95.712 mph.

    “I guess the trend with my three poles is winning a pole and then struggling in the race,” said Larson who claimed his first Busch Pole Award of the season. “Hopefully, we’ll have something different for tomorrow. I feel good.”

    Larson bested the improving Hendrick driver of William Byron (95.669 mph) in his No. 24 Hertz Chevrolet.

    “We did a mock (qualifying) run yesterday in practice and ran a good lap,” said Larson who ran the fastest time in Friday’s practice session. “I kind of over-drove the first session and then the next session I said, ‘I’m going to calm down and not make any mistakes,’ and I probably under-drove just a little. In the carousel, I think I gave up a little speed, but I feel like I made up some time in other areas, too. It’s cool to get a third pole in a row here at my home track.”

    Joey Logano qualified third at 95.618 mph, but believes he knows exactly where he lost the time he needed for a pole speed run.

    “I feel like my lap was pretty good,” Logano shared as his team was less than a tenth behind Larson’s pole-setting speed. “I was just a little loose. I feel like I got through it mainly pretty decent. I got a little loose off of (Turn) 10. If I could find one spot, I got too loose off 10 trying to throttle up too aggressively and stuck half my left sides up in the dirt and got loose and knocked a few mile an hour off on the exit, compared to what I would have been.

    Larson claims his first Busch Pole Award for the 2019 season at his home track at Sonoma Raceway. Photo courtesy of Rachel Schuoler for Speedway Media.
    Larson claims his first Busch Pole Award for the 2019 season at his home track at Sonoma Raceway. Photo courtesy of Rachel Schuoler for Speedway Media.

    “Maybe that’s a tenth (of a second), maybe a half a tenth. I don’t know. I have to go back and look. All I needed was nine-hundredths, so that’s probably the spot I’m looking at.”

    Chase Elliott qualified fourth, ahead of Stewart-Haas Racing’s Daniel Suarez. Denny Hamlin was the top Toyota in the qualifying order, ahead of Kyle Busch who spun off Turn 4 multiple times in Friday’s practice sessions. Defending race winner Martin Truex Jr., Ryan Blaney, Chris Buescher, Jimmie Johnson and Alex Bowman also made the second qualifying round and will start Sunday’s race eighth through 12th, respectively.

    The first road course race of the NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series at Sonoma Raceway will start coverage at 3 p.m. ET on FS1, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

    RankDriverNumberMakeTimeSpeed 
    1   Kyle Larson42Chevrolet1:34.784   95.712    
    2   William Byron24Chevrolet1:34.827   95.669    
    3   Joey Logano22Ford1:34.878   95.618    
    4   Chase Elliott9Chevrolet1:34.898   95.597    
    5   Daniel Suarez41Ford1:35.260   95.234    
    6   Denny Hamlin11Toyota1:35.287   95.207    
    7   Kyle Busch18Toyota1:35.367   95.127    
    8   Martin Truex Jr.19Toyota1:35.399   95.095    
    9   Ryan Blaney12Ford1:35.507   94.988    
    10   Chris Buescher37Chevrolet1:35.668   94.828    
    11   Jimmie Johnson48Chevrolet1:36.156   94.347    
    12   Alex Bowman88Chevrolet1:36.374   94.133    
    13   Michael McDowell34Ford1:35.449   95.046    
    14   Clint Bowyer14Ford1:35.485   95.010    
    15   Aric Almirola10Ford1:35.624   94.872    
    16   Kurt Busch1Chevrolet1:35.746   94.751    
    17   Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.17Ford1:35.749   94.748    
    18   David Ragan38Ford1:35.821   94.677    
    19   Matt DiBenedetto95Toyota1:35.926   94.573    
    20   Ryan Preece47Chevrolet1:36.070   94.431    
    21   Ryan Newman6Ford1:36.106   94.396    
    22   Brad Keselowski2Ford1:36.118   94.384    
    23   Kevin Harvick4Ford1:36.130   94.372    
    24   Paul Menard21Ford1:36.281   94.224    
    25   Daniel Hemric8Chevrolet1:36.294   94.211    
    26   Austin Dillon3Chevrolet1:36.457   94.052    
    27   Corey LaJoie32Ford1:36.484   94.026    
    28   Matt Tifft36Ford1:36.781   93.737    
    29   Parker Kligerman96Toyota1:37.006   93.520   *
    30   Bubba Wallace43Chevrolet1:37.020   93.506    
    31   Ty Dillon13Chevrolet1:37.040   93.487    
    32   Erik Jones20Toyota1:37.530   93.018    
    33   Justin Haley77Chevrolet1:37.911   92.656    
    34   Cody Ware52Chevrolet1:38.432   92.165    
    35   Landon Cassill00Chevrolet1:38.719   91.897    
    36   J.J. Yeley51Chevrolet1:39.161   91.488    
    37   Kyle Weatherman15Chevrolet1:42.283   88.695    
    38   Reed Sorenson27Chevrolet     *

    * – had to qualify on time

  • Weekend schedule for Michigan and Texas

    Weekend schedule for Michigan and Texas

    The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series and the Xfinity Series head to Michigan International Speedway this weekend along with the ARCA Menards Series while the Gander Outdoors Truck Series will run a standalone race at Texas Motor Speedway.

    All times are Eastern.

    Texas:

    Thursday, June 6

    3:05 p.m. – 3:55 p.m.: Gander Outdoors Truck Series First Practice – Results
    5:05 p.m. – 5:55 p.m.: Gander Outdoors Truck Series Second Practice – Results
    7 p.m. – 7:45 p.m.: Gander Outdoors Truck Series Final Practice – Results

    Friday, June 7

    5:35 p.m.: Gander Outdoors Truck Series Qualifying – NASCAR.com/MRN
    9 p.m.: Gander Outdoors Truck Series SpeedyCash.com 400 – 250.5 miles (167 Laps) – Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 40), Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 80), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 167) FS1/MRN

    Michigan:

    Friday, June 7

    8:30 a.m. – 10 a.m.: Arca Menards Series Final Practice
    Noon: ARCA Series Group Qualifying
    1:05 p.m. – 1:55 p.m.: Xfinity Series First Practice – MRN/NASCAR.com/live
    2:05 p.m. – 2:55 p.m.: Monster Energy Cup Series First Practice – MRN/NASCAR.com/live
    3:05 p.m. – 3:55 p.m.: Xfinity Series Final Practice – FS2 (Airing tape delayed at 4 p.m.)
    4:05 p.m. – 4:55 p.m.: Monster Energy Cup Series Final Practice – FS2/MRN (Airing tape delayed on at 5 p.m.)
    6 p.m.: ARCA VizCom 200 – (100 laps – 200 miles) – FS1

    Saturday, June 8

    10:30 a.m.: Xfinity Series Qualifying – FS2 – Qualifying Impound (Single Vehicle/One Lap All Positions)
    12:05 p.m.: Monster Energy Cup Series Qualifying – Qualifying Impound (Single Vehicle/One Lap All Positions) – FS1/MRN
    1:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series Lti Printing 250 – 250 miles (125 Laps) –  Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 30), Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 60), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 125) – FS1/MRN Defending Race Winner: Austin Dillon

    Sunday, June 9

    2 p.m.: Monster Energy Cup Series FireKeepers Casino 400 – 400 miles (200 laps) –  Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 60), Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 120), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 200) – FS1/MRN Defending Race Winner: Clint Bowyer

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