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  • Austin Dillon Wins the Daytona 500

    Austin Dillon Wins the Daytona 500

    DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Aric Almirola, first race with a new team, just had to play the blocking game for 2.5 miles and he would have his name etched onto the Harley J. Earl Trophy. Well, he did for a mile and a quarter and wound up hooked into the wall by Austin Dillon, who drove his No. 3 Chevrolet to victory in the Daytona 500, 17 years to the day after Dale Earnhardt was killed on the final lap of the 2001 Daytona 500.

    “I did what I had to do at the end. I hate it for the 10 guys,” Dillon said. “We just had a run. I stayed in the gas. It’s what it is here at Daytona.”

    After he finished his celebratory burnout, his crew gathered by his car trackside as he and the crew were overcome with joy.

    “It is so awesome to take the 3 car back to victory lane. This one’s for Dale Earnhardt Sr. and all those Sr. fans. I love you guys!  We’re gonna keep kicking butt the rest of the year.”

    But his joy was upstaged by Darrell Wallace Jr. whose mother came up to the podium during his post-race press conference and hugged him, as did his sister, and he all but broke down in tears.

    And he was emotional after the race for good reason. He had just edged out Denny Hamlin by inches for runner-up in the Daytona 500 while getting run into the wall a few hundred feet past the start/finish line.

    Joey Logano and Chris Buescher rounded out the top-five.

    Paul Menard, Ryan Blaney, Ryan Newman, Michael McDowell and AJ Allmendinger rounded out the top-10.

    RACE SUMMARY

    Alex Bowman led the field to the green flag at 3:07 p.m. Denny Hamlin powered by him, however, to lead the first lap. While much of the pack ran two and three-wide, he controlled the top spot in the early laps.

    The caution flew for the first time on Lap 7 when Corey LaJoie blew an engine on the backstretch. Hamlin lost the lead after he overshot his stall. Compounding his woes, he was held a lap for his crew servicing his car while it was on the line.

    Kurt Busch led the field back to the green on Lap 12. Bowman ducked to the inside lane exiting Turn 4 to take the lead for the first time on Lap 14. Erik Jones, after a number of laps side-by-side with Bowman, dropped down in front of him to take the lead on Lap 23. Kyle Busch, running fifth, dropped off the pace on the backstretch with a flat left-rear tire on Lap 29. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. drafted past Jones to take the lead on Lap 34. He lost it on the backstretch to Chase Elliott on Lap 44.

    Kyle Busch’s troubles continued on Lap 50 when he suffered a left-rear failure and spun in Turn 3, bringing out the second caution. He was clipped by DJ Kennington. Jamie McMurray was also collected.

    Back to green on Lap 55, Kurt Busch drafted past Elliott entering Turn 3 to retake the lead. Busch won the first stage, as it ended under caution for a nine-car wreck in Turn 3. But just as Hamlin did in the first caution, Busch overshot his pit stall, losing the lead. Making matters worse, he had to make another lap around to make a stop.

    Bowman led the field back to green on Lap 66. The outside line pushed Ryan Blaney to the lead on Lap 68.

    Byron cut down his right-front tire and hit the wall in Turn 4 and left debris all down the backstretch, bringing out the caution on Lap 91.

    Martin Truex Jr. took the race lead after bypassing pit road.

    Back to green on Lap 97, Blaney took back the lead the following lap.

    Elliott’s day came to an end when he was sent hard into the outside wall in Turn 3 on Lap 103. Danica Patrick was also collected in it in her final Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series start.

    The race restarted on Lap 108. Stenhouse makes an unscheduled stop for overheating. Caution ends the second stage, with Blaney winning it.

    Back to green on Lap 126, the bottom line all but disappeared as everyone formed up along the wall for the run to the finish. The long green run to the finish was broken by Byron’s spin exiting Turn 4 with 11 laps to go.

    A 12-car wreck in Turn 1 with three to go set up the run to the finish.

    NUTS & BOLTS

    The race lasted three hours, 26 minutes and 15 seconds, at an average speed of 150.545 mph. There were 24 lead changes among 14 different leaders and eight cautions for 37 laps.

    Blaney leaves with a six-point lead over Dillon.

     

    [pdf-embedder url=”http://www.speedwaymedia.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/2018-Daytona-500-Unofficial-results.pdf” title=”2018 Daytona 500 Unofficial results”]

     

  • Five Cars Wreck in Final Lap of Clash

    Five Cars Wreck in Final Lap of Clash

    Standing outside the infield care center at Daytona International Speedway, the consummate professional Jimmie Johnson maintained a stoic composure as he told Jamie Little of FOX Sports the events, from his point of view, that led him to wrecking out of his seventh consecutive Advance Auto Parts Clash.

    “Yeah, I got turned,” he said. “(Kyle) Larson and I were just talking about that in the Care Center. I need to go back and look at the video and see if he really did get me center and if that could have been a contributing factor to it. A lap before that, I think the No. 41 (Kurt Busch) got into me and pushed me pretty hard and everything was fine. So, in my head I cleared that concern and was looking out the windshield sitting in a great spot, but unfortunately didn’t make it back.”

    Johnson was the main pinball of a five-car wreck on the backstretch on the final lap of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Advance Auto Parts Clash. It started when Kyle Larson, carrying a run off Turn 2, hit Johnson square in the back, which got him loose and slowing veering toward the outside wall. Larson hit him again in his right-rear corner panel, hooking him into the outside wall.

    “Yeah, that’s the first time I’ve went to push somebody and I hit him pretty solid and just turned him into the wall,” Larson said. “I hate that I was the one that caused the wreck. I still haven’t seen a replay. Obviously, I know I’m the one that started that, but I’d just like to see if I did hit him as hard as I think I did, or what. Or if our bumpers just don’t line up as well with the new Camaros, or what. But, I hate that I was the one to do that. Our DC Solar Chevy was a handful all race and it was, even in practice yesterday. So, we have a lot of work to do to just get it driving stable enough for me to run 500 miles next Sunday. It was a tough race, I guess. I felt on-edge the whole time. So, I’ve got some work to do.”

    From that moment on, calamity ensued.

    Larson made contact with Johnson a third time, which spun him into the outside wall. Kyle Busch received damage from running into Johnson’s right-rear, but he completed the remaining mile and a quarter of the race. Kasey Kahne, either because he was hit by Johnson’s spinning car or he veered to the left to avoid hitting him, was t-boned by Chase Elliott, who dove onto the apron to avoid the wrecking cars in the higher lane.

    “Yeah, we had a good car, just the circumstances, the way the top kind of formed up there it just happened to be we were on the bottom at the time,” Elliott said. “I thought our car was as good as anybody’s. I mean I don’t really know what I would have done a whole lot different to change the circumstance, but happens and luckily next week is the important one.”

    Martin Truex Jr., while he didn’t hit a car, spun out on the grass trying to avoid the spinning cars.

    Busch came out the best of the cars involved with a seventh-place finish, Larson finished 10th, Johnson finished 12th, Elliott finished 13th, Truex finished 14th and Kahne finished 15th.

  • Keselowski Wins The Clash

    Keselowski Wins The Clash

    Drenched in beer and sporting sunglasses that complemented his swagger, Brad Keselowski celebrated going from last to first and winning the Advance Auto Parts Clash at Daytona International Speedway. Especially after he confidently said on Twitter earlier in the day, “I believe that we will win.”

    As he revealed in victory lane, his confidence was more based in superstition.

    “Last year, we started first. It didn’t go our way,” Keselowski said. “We were joking after the drawing (for position) Paul Wolfe, who usually does the drawings, he didn’t do it this year and we got last. And he said, ‘Look, this’ll be the year we win.’”

    He said after the race he wasn’t “‘Babe Ruthing’ it by any means” when he said he’d win. He just thought he was due.

    Keselowski took the lead from Chase Elliott on the final restart of the 75-lap exhibition event and held the lead largely unchallenged, aside from a final-lap charge from Kurt Busch and Kyle Larson — the latter resulting in a multi-car wreck — for the final 26 laps.

    “It’s a great way to start the season with the Miller Lite Ford, and I’m happy for everyone on my team,” he said. “This is the first time I won anything in Speedweeks. I feel like I’ve choked them away. It’s nice to not choke this one away, Vince. Definitely, a good day and I’m really thankful for the team. Completely different package than what we’ve had here at Daytona ever before. Guys had to show up with a way different car and that’s a testament to everyone at Team Penske to work on it and do that. Good day, great start, two more to go.”

    Joey Logano, Busch, Ryan Blaney and Austin Dillon rounded out the top-five.

    Austin Dillon led the field to the green flag at 3:25 p.m. He edged out Denny Hamlin to lead the first lap, but the outside line pushed Hamlin by Dillon exiting Turn 4 to take the lead on the second lap.

    Everyone merged into the top lane for a few laps. But when Kyle Larson got loose trying to pass Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and spun on the apron, the single-car train broke up. Chase Elliott led the re-formed inside line back to the front, where he powered ahead of Hamlin exiting Turn 2 to take the lead on Lap 10.

    Dillon worked his way back to the front and edged Elliott at the line to retake the lead on Lap 15. Elliott sliced under him exiting Turn 2 and slid up in front of him going down the backstretch to take back the lead on the 17th lap.

    Joey Logano took the lead for a lap, on Lap 25, before he and all but four cars pitted prior to the final lap of the segment. Larson took the lead as the caution flew to end the segment.

    Kurt Busch, attempting to go under Jamie McMurray in Turn 3 on Lap 35, hit the rear of the No. 1 car and sent him into the wall, setting up the run to the finish.

  • Sunday Recap: Daytona 500 Qualifying and The Clash

    Sunday Recap: Daytona 500 Qualifying and The Clash

    Daytona 500 Qualifying

    Alex Bowman captured his first ever Daytona 500 pole in his new No. 88 Nationwide Insurance Camaro ZL1 with a lap of 195.644 mph. Starting alongside Bowman with a lap of 195.092 mph will be Denny Hamlin in his No.11 FedEx Camry.

    “It was a little nerve-wracking. Our Nationwide Camaro ZL1 has been great since we unloaded. All the guys back at the chassis shop, body shop and the Hendrick engine shop have been top-notch. They’ve all worked so hard. And we knew we were going for the pole; that’s what we’re here to do,” said Bowman.

    Bowman looked like he had the car to beat after the first round, where he topped the chart with a lap of 194.885 mph.

    The Joe Gibbs Racing Toyotas were fast too, as they all made it to the final round of qualifying.

    “Just great teamwork. It’s a testament to all of the hard work at TRD (Toyota Racing Development) and all the work they put in to give us great engines and technology. Really, everyone at Joe Gibbs Racing’s fab shop to give us a race car that’s obviously very fast,” Hamlin said.

    The rest of the field will be set Thursday night after the Can-Am Duel races.

    The Advance Auto Parts Clash at Daytona

    Brad Keselowski took the No. 2 Miller Light Ford to victory lane after starting in the last position.

    “I’m really proud of the whole effort here. What a way to start Speedweeks, putting the Miller Lite Ford in Victory Lane. I’m really proud of my team. I felt like we were due today,” said Keselowski.

    The top five included Joey Logano, Kurt Busch, Ryan Blaney, and Austin Dillon.

    Dillon started on the pole position but quickly lost the lead to Denny Hamlin. The field would run single file until Kyle Larson saved his loose race car from the apron after trying to pass Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

    Prior to the competition caution on Lap 25, most of the field pitted and the lead was passed on to Larson. Larson would later be passed by Kevin Harvick as he brought the field to the caution.

    On Lap 33, Jamie McMurray went around and hit the wall which brought out the second caution of the day. About seven cars pitted and Chase Elliot would lead the field back to the green on Lap 39. But that did not last long as Blaney gave Keselowski a push to gain the lead.

    Stenhouse would be penalized with a pass-thru penalty on Lap 43 after passing Kyle Busch under the double-yellow line to advance for a position in the backstretch.

    With 10 laps remaining the field was single file which was a bit surprising. By the way they ran earlier in the race, most probably expected the same to happen as the laps were closing.

    The white flag waved and Larson gained a run in the backstretch which led him to turn Jimmie Johnson into the wall and fail to finish a seventh straight Clash.

    The Clash was just a little preview of what to expect for next Sunday’s Daytona 500.

    Follow @MrBrandonRivero for his latest articles

  • Bowman Takes the Pole Position for the Daytona 500

    Bowman Takes the Pole Position for the Daytona 500

    Shaking with joy as he climbed out of his car, Alex Bowman shook hands with and hugged team owner Rick Hendrick after winning the pole in the same race he failed to qualify for three years earlier.

    “I mean, if you talked to me in 2015 and told me that in 2018 I was going to be driving the 88 car for Hendrick Motorsports, I would have called you nuts,” Bowman said. “You know, everything happens for a reason. My career had a lot of ups and downs, and I’ve been able to lean on my past experiences a lot to make me better and to better prepare myself for this job.

    “Honestly, I think I’m better because of the things that I had to go through. I got to make a lot of mistakes without anybody watching. Just never give up.”

    Since Bowman was driving a chartered car and the number of cars entered was only 40, he was going to make the race no matter the outcome. But winning the pole for the Daytona 500, NASCAR’s biggest race, for him is “a little surreal.”

    Bowman’s final round lap of 46.002 and a speed of 195.644 mph earned him his second career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series pole. Given he went out early in the first round, he thought he was at a “disadvantage” for the second.

    “Just a little nerve-racking. Our Nationwide Camaro ZL1 has been great since we unloaded. All the guys back at the chassis shop, body shop, the Hendrick Engine Shop is top notch. They all work so hard and we knew we were going for the pole. That’s what we were here to do. I thought we were at a little disadvantage letting the car cool down as long as we did, since we went pretty early in that first round. I was a little nervous for that second round, but I’m glad it took off well off pit road. And (I) did everything I could do, but this really comes down to the crew, all the guys back at the shop. Whether it’s the aero group, the engine shop, the chassis shop, everyone works so hard at these speedway cars, especially for the (Daytona) 500. Which means the world to have Nationwide’s support and to be able to put it on the pole.”

    Joining him on the front row is Denny Hamlin, who’s lap of 46.132 and speed of 195.092 mph was on top of the board for roughly 90 seconds, before it was usurped by Bowman.

    But that didn’t diminish his enthusiasm for starting front row of the Daytona 500.

    “No, I literally am so ecstatic. It’s just so out of the blue because obviously I thought that today was going to be a tough day qualifying,” Hamlin said. “We focused so much on race trim yesterday. We stuck in a pack and I think we did one real mock run which wasn’t really even a mock run and we were so far off that we just switched and made sure our car was going to handle real good on Thursday and obviously next Sunday. This car is ready to race. It’s handling well and we’re looking forward to Thursday. Now, obviously to the 500 being on the front row. I’m so proud of FedEx and TRD (Toyota Racing Development). All of the hard work that the fab shop at JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing) has done. This is really about them and their preparation for the Daytona 500. I couldn’t be prouder to represent them and hopefully we’ll get us another Daytona 500 next Sunday.”

    Every driver from third on down must race for their official position in the Can-Am Duel races on Thursday night.

    [pdf-embedder url=”http://www.speedwaymedia.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/01dis2018qualresults.pdf”]

  • Byron Fastest in Second Practice at Daytona

    Byron Fastest in Second Practice at Daytona

    William Byron topped the chart in second Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice at Daytona International Speedway. The driver of the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet with a time of 44.625 and a speed of 201.681 mph.

    With less than 13 minutes in the second of five practice sessions for the 60th running of the Daytona 500, the lead went back and forth between Byron and Kevin Harvick. Both drivers were part of a 12-car pack.

    Byron took the lead from Denny Hamlin, who took it from Danica Patrick.

    Taking to the track as part of a six-car pack, along with Denny Hamlin, Daniel Suarez, Brendan Gaughan, DJ Kennington and Ty Dillon, she hopped to the top of the leaderboard with roughly 30 minutes to go in the second of five practice sessions for the 60th running of the Daytona 500.

    It ended 20 minutes of single-car runs.

    Ricky Stenhouse Jr. finished the session second, with a time of 44.632 and a speed of 201.649 mph. Joey Logano was third with a time of 44.641 and a speed of 201.608 mph. Hamlin was fourth with a time of 44.673 and a speed of 201.464 mph. David Ragan rounded out the top-five with a time of 44.764 and a speed of 201.054 mph.

    Paul Menard, Trevor Bayne, Daniel Suarez, Ryan Blaney and Michael McDowell rounded out the top-10.

    First Practice Results

    [pdf-embedder url=”http://www.speedwaymedia.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/01dis2018prac2.pdf”]

  • Kyle Busch Fastest in First Daytona Practice

    Kyle Busch Fastest in First Daytona Practice

    Erik Jones topped the chart in first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice at Daytona International Speedway. The driver of the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was the fastest with a time of 45.058 and a speed of 199.743 mph.

    He was part of a four-car Gibbs pack in the closing minutes of the session that included teammates Erik Jones, Denny Hamlin and Daniel Suarez. Jones jumped to the top of the leaderboard with less than three minutes to go, but was usurped by Busch the following lap.

    This came only a few minutes after Austin Dillon and Jamie McMurray ended the run of single-car laps and posted the fastest time.

    Hamlin finished the session second, with a time of 45.085 and a speed of 199.623 mph. Suarez finished third with a time of 45.088 and a speed of 199.610 mph. Jones finished fourth with a time of 45.109 and a speed of 199.517 mph. Dillon rounded out the top-five with a time of 45.621 and a speed of 197.278 mph.

    McMurray, Ty Dillon, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Alex Bowman and Kyle Larson rounded out the top-10.

    The session was red-flagged with roughly 30 minutes remaining after a car dropped gear fluid on the backstretch.

    Second Practice Results

    [pdf-embedder url=”http://www.speedwaymedia.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/C18S1_PRAC1.pdf”]

  • Blaney Fastest in Clash Practice at Daytona

    Blaney Fastest in Clash Practice at Daytona

    Ryan Blaney topped the chart in the final Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice for the Advance Auto Parts Clash at Daytona International Speedway. The driver of the No. 12 Team Penske Ford was the fastest with a time of 45.090 and a speed of 199.601 mph.

    With 20 minutes to go in the only practice session for The Clash, Blaney — as part of a six-car pack which included Joey Logano, Brad Keselowski, Kasey Kahne, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Kyle Larson — ran a lap roughly two-tenths faster than Kyle Busch.

    Up until 35 minutes remaining in the session, every driver was running single-car laps. The Toyota brigade of, in order, Denny Hamlin, Busch, Erik Jones and Martin Truex Jr. went out on track and topped the chart. Hamlin led for a lap before he was usurped by Truex, who was fourth in line. On the final lap with the current order, Busch took over the lead in practice.

    Logano finished the session in second, with a time of 45.103 and a speed of 199.543 mph. Stenhouse finished third with a time of 45.111 and a speed of 199.508 mph. Keselowski finished fourth with a time of 45.115 and a speed of 199.490 mph. Larson rounded out the top-five with a time of 45.120 and a speed of 199.468 mph.

    Kahne, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Hamlin and Jones rounded out the top-10.

    [pdf-embedder url=”http://www.speedwaymedia.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/C18S1_PRACFINAL.pdf”]

  • The White Zone: NASCAR’s Safety Team Needs Some Work

    The White Zone: NASCAR’s Safety Team Needs Some Work

    There’s one thing I have zero tolerance for in the world of motorsports, and that’s when incompetence puts the safety of drivers at risk. NASCAR, your safety team needs a lot of work.

    On Lap 142 of the Ford EcoBoost 400, Danica Patrick got loose in Turn 1, the result of a flat right-rear tire, and hit the wall, and was rear-ended by Kasey Kahne.

    As she drove her car back to pit road, the caved-in right-front tire caught fire down the backstretch. She then decided to drive it to the garage, but the fire spread when she reached the entrance to the pits. She parked it and quickly exited the car.

    From the moment the caution came out, her wheel was on fire for over a minute.

    So a few questions come to mind:

    Why did nobody from NASCAR tell her to stop the moment the wheel caught fire?

    And don’t tell me they couldn’t. NASCAR has spotters manning the entire perimeter of the speedway, not to mention cameras trained on every inch of the track. They had to know this was happening. And if they don’t, that’s another major problem.

    Why was a safety truck not tailing Patrick back, considering her car was on fire?

    Again, someone from NASCAR should’ve sent a safety truck straight to her, one, to make sure her damaged car gets back to pit road, and two, to assist her extraction from the burning car. One belt strap doesn’t come undone, running the Daytona 500 and Indianapolis 500 next season suddenly becomes the least of Patrick’s concerns.

    And this isn’t the first time the safety team has come under fire.

    Earlier this season, Kevin Harvick blasted them for their pitiful response time to his wreck at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

    “The worst part was the medical response. It took them forever to get to the car,” Harvick said. “I thought we made that better, but obviously we haven’t.”

    But as Denny Hamlin revealed on Playoff media day back in September, it only got worse as the season progressed.

    He told the story of how Aric Almirola’s ambulance that took him from his wrecked car at Kansas Speedway in May to the infield care center got lost.

    “His ambulance got lost inside the race track and I mean, he had a serious injury,” Hamlin said. “So that was an issue, for sure. I know they’re trying to do the best they can. They’re not doing it every week, they’re just doing it when we come to town.

    “People argue it should be the same team everywhere, others think that the ambulance crew should be familiar with just that racetrack.

    “I don’t know what the correct answer is, but we for sure can get better because we’re not good right now.”

    NASCAR, this farce you call a safety team has gone on long enough. This should’ve changed after Almirola’s mishap, and it needs to change now. And by change, I mean get an actual safety team, like IndyCar uses.

    Sooner or later, this will get a driver seriously hurt, or killed.

    That’s my view for what it’s worth.

  • Truex Holds Off Kyle Busch in Final Laps to Win Cup Championship Title

    Truex Holds Off Kyle Busch in Final Laps to Win Cup Championship Title

    Four years ago, Martin Truex Jr. sat on his front porch thinking his career was over. Four years later, he held off a hard charging Kyle Busch to win the Ford EcoBoost 400 and the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship.

    When the final caution flew with 39 laps to go, everyone hit pit road for tires and fuel. Truex exited with the race lead.

    It went back to green with 34 to go.

    Busch was held up a few laps by Joey Logano, which, in his words, is what cost him in the end.

    Once he passed Logano for third with 25 to go, he essentially hit the nitro button, because it took him only seven laps to run down and pass Kevin Harvick for second.

    Five laps later, he caught up to Truex.

    The gap between him and Truex went back and forth from 13 to go, until eight to go, when it remained around three-tenths of a second to the checkered flag.

    “I don’t even know what to say,” a teary-eyed Truex said after getting out of his car. “We just never gave up all day long. We didn’t have the best car. I don’t know how we won that thing. Never give up, dig deep. I told my guys, ‘We’re gonna dig deeper than we ever have today.’ With 20 to go, I thought I was done. They were all better than me on the long run all day long. I just found a way. I found a lane that I could use and I found a lane that blocking enough of the air that they couldn’t use it. I just made it happen.”

    HOMESTEAD, Fla. – NOVEMBER 19: Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats Toyota, celebrates with teammates after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Championship and the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Championship Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on November 19, 2017 in Homestead, Florida. Photo: Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images

    As Truex drove his car down the front stretch of Homestead-Miami Speedway, fans and pit crews lined along the outside pit wall to congratulate the journeyman his share of frustration, heartache and tragedy. Even Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Race Director David Hoots told Truex, “Congrats, you finally did it.”

    When he got out, he was swarmed by his overjoyed crew and he joined in the sea of emotion.

    “It’s overwhelming. You think about all the rough days, the bad days, the days that we couldn’t run 20th to be here. I never thought this day would come and to be here is unbelievable!

    “I can’t believe it. I’ve wanted it since I was a little kid. Just never give up. Just never give up on your dreams, no matter what happens, or what kind of crap you go through. Thank you Barney (Visser). I wish you were here buddy.”

    Busch finished second and Kyle Larson rounded out the podium.

    “Yeah, that’s what happens when you lose in this format. But we gave it everything we had. We gave it our all. So congratulations to the 78 (Truex). They deserved it probably on every other race, but today, I thought we were better. Don’t matter though. They were out front when it mattered most. Just unfortunate for us that that caution came out and ruined our race strategy and we weren’t able to get back to where we needed to be and then I had to fight way too hard with some of those guys trying to get back up through there. But that’s racing.”

    “Yeah, we had a great Credit One Bank Chevy today,” Larson said. “Throughout the first half especially. It seemed like the 18 and them guys were probably a little bit faster than me the first, I don’t know 15 laps a run and then I was really, really good. I was definitely better than them in front of me, but I was just stuck in their dirty air a little bit. I was going to race them, I just could never get close enough. I wanted to win the race bad, but a good way to end the year. It showed we had a lot of speed all year long and congrats to the No. 78 (Martin Truex, Jr.) team they were the class of the field all year. It is pretty neat to see the top three there they were the three best cars all season. I wish I could have been a part of the final four, but had a little bit of bad luck here lately. It’s nice to see a checkered flag, it’s been about a month since I’ve seen one. That was good and yeah, we will try and make our stuff even better than next year just fine tune on little things and try and come back even stronger. Hats off to everybody on my Chip Ganassi Racing team. They busted their tails throughout the off season and that prepared us to be good this year. Thanks to them and thanks to all of our other partners, Target, wish they were still with us, but we will miss them. Looking forward to our future with all of our other partners. Good year all-in-all.”

    Kevin Harvick and Chase Elliott rounded out the top-five.

    “We just got really loose and then got a hole in the nose and it started to get tight in. We got that fixed,” Harvick said. “We were pretty good on the next-to-last run and we were just really loose on the last run. I want to thank everybody on my Jimmy John’s, Busch Ford for everything they’ve done. It was great to have a chance. We were in the mix all day. Didn’t quite have what we needed at the end. I want to thank Mobil 1, Hunt Brothers Pizza, Morton Building, Textron, everybody at Stewart-Haas Racing. Thank you guys for everything you did all year. We’ll be back.”

    Joey Logano, Brad Keselowski, Matt Kenseth, Denny Hamlin and Ryan Newman rounded out the top-10.

    RACE SUMMARY

    Hamlin led the field to the green flag at 3:15 p.m., but didn’t lead a single lap as Truex quickly took the lead in Turn 1. He led the first 13 laps, before Larson passed him in Turn 1 to take it. Aside from one lap by Keselowski during the first stage break and Busch during a cycle of green flag stops on Lap 122, Larson lead from Lap 13 to Lap 160, sweeping the stages in the process.

    Truex exited pit road during the second stage break with the race lead and led the field back to green on Lap 166. Busch swung around him through Turns 1 and 2 to take the lead on Lap 179.

    Keselowski hit pit road with 69 laps to go. Truex and Harvick pitted a few laps later.

    Rather than follow suit, Busch elected to stay out until 55 to 50 to go to get within the 55-lap fuel window to one-stop the rest of the race. His plan went up in flames when Kurt Busch spun out in Turn 3 and laid debris on track, bringing out the caution with 39 to go and setting up the run to the finish.

    NOTES OF INTEREST

    Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished 25th in his final career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series start.

    Jimmie Johnson’s 27th-place finish ended his 13-year streak of winning at least one race in the Playoffs.

    Danica Patrick brought out the third caution of the race on Lap 142 when she got loose and slammed the Turn 1 wall, and was rear-ended by Kasey Kahne. She finished 37th.

    NUTS & BOLTS

    The race lasted three hours, two minutes and 11 seconds, at an average speed of 131.900 mph. There were 13 lead changes among four different drivers and five cautions for 26 laps.

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