Tag: Bristol Motor Speedway

  • NASCAR Xfinity Series Power Rankings – Bristol II

    NASCAR Xfinity Series Power Rankings – Bristol II

    The Food City 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway marked just one race to go until the 2020 Xfinity Series Playoffs begin at Las Vegas Motor Speedway this Saturday. 

    Many eyes were on Justin Allgaier who previously swept both of the Richmond races, while Chase Briscoe uncharacteristically struggled and was looking for a rebound at Bristol. 

    Early on in the race, it looked like it was going to be the Allgaier Show again as the JR Motorsports driver won both stages and led the most laps of 126. However, after the second stage, Allgaier never contended for the win as his car stabilized behind the leaders and new contenders emerged such as Briscoe, Austin Cindric and Ross Chastain. Ultimately, it was Briscoe who grabbed the checkered flag after moving race leader Cindric out of the way cleanly with just six laps to go. 

    While Briscoe is looking like the championship favorite in the Xfinity Series, a few other drivers had notable nights and we’ll detail that in this week’s Xfinity Series Power Rankings. 

    1. Justin Allgaier – Allgaier won both of the stages and led the most laps before coming home with a disappointing fifth-place finish. He has been on fire as of late and if he can keep the momentum going into Las Vegas this week, the JR Motorsports driver might be an easy favorite for the race victory as it appears he is peaking at the right time.

      Previous Week Ranking – First
    2. Ross Chastain – Another top-five finish for Chastain who came oh so close to his first Xfinity Series victory of the season. The Floridian almost made the bump and run to pass Cindric in the remaining laps but was unsuccessful in his attempt. As Chastain couldn’t pass then race leader Cindric, this allowed Chase Briscoe to not only go by Chastain for second but ultimately take the race win by passing Cindric. Chastain finished second, led 117 laps, finished fifth and fourth in both stages respectively, and now will be seeded eighth in the Playoffs.

      Previous Week Ranking – Third
    3. Chase Briscoe – After a disappointing finish the week prior at Richmond, Briscoe rebounded nicely to score his seventh victory of the 2020 season after passing Cindric with only a few laps remaining. Previous to winning the race, the Indiana native was successful in Stage 1 and 2, finishing third in each segment. Briscoe is now one win away from eight, the goal he set out to achieve at the beginning of the season.
    4. Austin Cindric – Before Cindric finished third in the running order, he led 42 laps and was out front late in the going before being passed by eventual race winner Briscoe. In addition, Cindric placed fourth and third in both stages after a solid night at Bristol. Certainly, a great turnaround for Cindric who crashed out in the spring race at Bristol earlier this season.

      Previous Week Ranking – Fourth
    5. Harrison Burton – Even though he led no laps in Friday’s race, Burton, like Briscoe, rebounded to score a much needed fourth-place finish prior to the Playoffs starting this upcoming weekend at Las Vegas. Burton ended up 10th in Stage 1 and seventh in the second stage. It was a great points night for Burton and the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing team.

      Previous Week Ranking – Fifth 

    Fell Out 

    1. Justin Haley – Haley had a great Stage 1 finish of second but it all went south in Stage 2 when right-front problems plagued the No. 11 Chevrolet. Haley continued to fight these conditions, before finishing 16th in the running order, one lap down.

    Previous Week Ranking – First

  • Almirola, Kurt Busch and Bowyer claim final transfer spots to the Round of 12

    Almirola, Kurt Busch and Bowyer claim final transfer spots to the Round of 12

    The 2020 Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday, September 19, was the site of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoff’s Round of 16 finale. Following an eventful 500-mile battle under the lights at Thunder Valley, with a number of competitors vying for transfer spots to the Round of 12 in the Playoffs, four competitors had their title hopes for this season eliminated. While some were left disappointed, others were left with relief feelings of transferring to the second round. Among those left satisfied included Aric Almirola, Kurt Busch and Clint Bowyer, all of whom were three of 12 competitors who will continue to battle for the title entering the second round of the Playoffs.

    For Almirola, he came into Saturday night’s race at Bristol with a four-point cushion above the top-12 cutline after finishing ninth and eighth during the first two races of this year’s Playoffs at Darlington Raceway and at Richmond Raceway, respectively.

    Starting in 10th place in his No. 10 Smithfield Ford Mustang, Almirola dealt with early loose-handling conditions. Under caution past the Lap 30 mark, he pitted for fresh tires and adjustments and was able to drive up to as high as sixth place on the ensuing restart. During a long green flag run, Almirola fell back to the top 15 and went on to conclude the first stage on Lap 125 in 18th place.

    Restarting in 17th place for the second stage, Almirola was able to fight his way back inside the top 10, where he spent throughout the stage. Racing in ninth place by Lap 236 and gaining a spot on pit road, he went on to conclude the second stage in seventh place as he earned a handful of stage points.

    Restarting in seventh place for the final stage, he made his way into the top five with less than 100 laps remaining. With approximately 92 laps remaining, the caution flew for a multi-car wreck and Almirola was one of six competitors left on the lead lap. Hitting pit road for the final time under caution, Almirola restarted in sixth place and was able to drive his way up to fifth place with 50 laps remaining. For the remainder of the race, Almirola retained fifth place on the track as his top-five result was more than enough for him to transfer into the second round of the Playoffs.

    Almirola’s career-high sixth top-five result at Thunder Valley not only extended his momentum and surge in competing for the title, but it also extended the Floridian’s consistent stretch since June as he claimed his 14th top-10 result since June at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

    “Yes, we’re moving on to round two in the Playoffs and keeping our championship hopes alive,” Almirola said in a post-race statement on Twitter. “We had a top five tonight at Bristol, which was a great run for us. We missed it a bit to start. [Crew chief Mike] Buga [Bugarewicz] and the guys just kept fighting and kept adjusting. I was scrapping in the car to get everything I could get. We drove back into the top 10 after falling behind and then, was able to make some more adjustments and drive up into the top five and finish fifth. Really proud of everybody on this race team. Excited to be going on to round two in the Playoffs. Thank you to Smithfield, Ford,…everybody that makes this deal go round. It felt so good to have 30,000 fans back in the stands tonight. That was really nice tonight. Looking forward to Vegas, kicking off round two in the Playoffs and seeing if we can’t go get some more.”

    Since this year’s Playoffs began at Darlington Raceway, Kurt Busch came into the postseason with a game plan and a competitive approach to contend for this year’s championship since he won his first and only title in 2004. After finishing eighth and 13th during the first two Playoff races, Busch and his No. 1 Monster Energy Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE team were also four points above the top-12 cutline.

    Lining up in 13th place, the Las Vegas, Nevada, native dropped back inside the top 20 during the early portions of the race. He was scored in 17th place by Lap 30 and under caution. Restarting in 16th place on the ensuing restart and after pitting while addressing loose-handling conditions to his race car, Busch methodically made his way towards the front and was able to crack the top 10 as the long run under green progressed. By the time the first time concluded on Lap 125, Busch was scored in sixth place as he collected valuable stage points.

    Restarting inside the top 10 for the second stage, Busch was able to carve his way into the top five despite battling loose-handling conditions to his car. He kept himself well inside the top five throughout the stage and he brought the No. 1 car home in fifth place when the second stage concluded, thus collecting more stage points.

    Lined up in fifth place for the final stage, Busch quickly fell back to 10th place while reporting a vibration to his No. 1 car. He surrendered his track position to make an unscheduled pit stop with approximately 175 laps remaining. Nearly twenty-five laps later and by the time he returned to the track, he was scored in 26th place, three laps behind the leaders and on the bubble zone in vying for a transfer spot to the Playoffs. For the remainder of the race, Busch gained one of his laps back, but he was unable to make up the lost time and positions from the vibration issues. When the checkered flag flew, Busch finished in 15th place, two laps behind the leaders. His result, nonetheless, was enough for him to transfer into the second round of the Playoffs.

    Though Kurt Busch has yet to score his first victory of this season, his 15th-place result marked his third consecutive top-15 result to start the Playoffs as he sets his focus on the second round of the Playoffs, beginning next weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, his home track.

    Photo by Tim Jarrold for SpeedwayMedia.com.

    “It was a good day, we had a loose wheel and we battled after that, but our stage points are what really helped the Monster Energy Chevy tonight.” Busch said. “That gave us the cushion we needed to absorb the problem that we had. All-in-all we advanced and that’s what we expected to do and that is what we have to continue to do. We will do it through teamwork and execution. The next round we have a mile-and-a-half [Talladega] Superspeedway and then the [Charlotte] Roval. We’ve just got to be on our toes, keep adjusting and adapt to all the things that are coming our way in the next round.”

    For Bowyer, his results during the first two races of this year’s Playoffs have been like his 26-race regular-season stretch, where they have been consistent. Having finished 10th at Darlington and Richmond, the Emporia, Kansas, native started the night at Bristol holding sole possession of the 12th and final transfer spot to the Round of 12 by a mere three points over William Byron.

    Starting in 11th place in his No. 14 Rush Truck Centers/Cummins Ford Mustang, Bowyer was scored in 10th place through the first 30 laps of the race while under caution. Throughout the stage and under a long green flag run, the handling of Bowyer’s car went away as he was fighting loose conditions. Losing spots on the track, he went on to conclude the stage in 19th place. 

    Restarting in 16th place for the second stage, Bowyer kept himself inside the top 20 throughout the stage. By then, however, he was scored outside of the top-12 cutline and was in jeopardy of not advancing to the second round of the Playoffs. Then, in the closing laps of the stage, good fortune came for Bowyer and his No. 14 team when William Byron, whom Bowyer was battling for a transfer spot in the Playoff standings, wrecked. Pitting under caution and finishing in eighth place in the second stage while also collecting a handful of stage points, Bowyer moved back inside the top-12 cutline.

    Scored in eighth place for the final stage, Bowyer began to make his way into the top five. With approximately 80 laps remaining, he was one of six competitors scored on the lead lap following an on-track incident. Restarting in second place on the ensuing restart, Bowyer dropped back to sixth place as he battled with teammate Aric Almirola for position. Knowing he needed to race cautiously for the remainder of the event, Bowyer brought the No. 14 car home in sixth place and was able to race his way into the second round of the Playoffs.

    Bowyer’s accomplishment allowed three of Stewart-Haas Racing’s four-car lineup to transfer into the Round of 12 in the Playoffs. For Bowyer, notching three consecutive top-10 results to start the Playoffs gave him an extra sense of boost to conclude this season on a high note with his racing plans for next still currently undetermined.

    “I was struggling, way too loose pretty much all night,” Bowyer said in a post-race conference on Zoom. “I saw [Byron’s wreck]. That’s a shame for William. He had a good run going. It’s short track racing. You don’t have time to think about points and all that stuff. There’s nothing you can do. You attack the race track one hundred percent every lap, especially at a bull ring like this. I love these short tracks. Obviously, [I] was hoping to be a little bit better, but at the end of the day, we did what we came here to do. That was to advance. You come here to win the race, but proud of [teammate] Kevin Harvick and everybody at Stewart-Haas Racing for winning the race here, taking care of business with the Nos. 10 and 14. We’ll move on and live to see another round here in the Playoffs.”

    With their accomplishments, Almirola, Kurt Busch and Bowyer join Kevin Harvick, Brad Keselowski, Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano, Martin Truex Jr., Austin Dillon, Chase Elliott, Alex Bowman and Kyle Busch as the 12 competitors who will continue to compete for this year’s Cup title in the Round of 12 in the Playoffs.

    Almirola, Kurt Busch and Bowyer, along with their fellow competitors, will return for the next scheduled NASCAR Cup Series Playoff race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday, September 27, at 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

  • NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Power Rankings – Bristol

    NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Power Rankings – Bristol

    Bristol Motor Speedway hosted race No. 17 for the 2020 Truck Series season for the first race of the Playoffs. 

    Just 10 drivers are entered in the Playoffs this year including Brett Moffitt, Grant Enfinger, Tyler Ankrum, Todd Gilliland, Matt Crafton, Sheldon Creed, Austin Hill, Christian Eckes, Ben Rhodes and Zane Smith. 

    While those 10 drivers had high hopes of winning Thursday night’s race at Bristol, none of that fell their way. Instead, part-time Truck Series and newly announced Xfinity Series driver, Sam Mayer, stole the show and claimed the checkered flag. Moffitt was the highest ranked playoff driver, finishing second after leading the most laps of 117. 

    With Mayer finding victory in his early career, many of the playoff drivers were left puzzled about their finishing result following the 200 lap event. 

    Here are this week’s Power Rankings following the UNOH 200. 

    1. Brett Moffitt – Moffitt had the best Truck for the middle portions of the race and led from Lap 114 to 170, 57-laps in total. He was on his way to his first checkered flag of the season but his Truck started to fade a little bit as the laps wore down. Once Mayer caught and passed Moffitt, all the Iowan could do was watch and maintain his second-place finish. Despite finishing second, Moffitt won Stage 1 and finished third in Stage 2 and came home with the playoff points lead with a 36 point buffer.

      Previous Week Ranking – Fourth
    2. Grant Enfinger – Enfinger made his 100th Truck Series career start last Thursday night, which is hard to believe since his first Truck Series race came 10 years ago in 2010. The Alabaman had an up and down night with his Truck shutting off and on due to a potential electrical issue. The ThorSport driver managed a Stage 1 finish of fifth before earning his 63rd Top 10 of his career, his 10th of the season.

      Previous Week Ranking – Third
    3. Tyler Ankrum – Ankrum earned his first career stage win by winning the second stage, and in addition, he finished second in Stage 1. However, most of his race somewhat went south when there was a miscommunication between the crew chief and driver during the stage break caution. Ankrum missed the pit stall the first time around before eventually pitting the second time. While Bristol is what could have been for Ankrum, he finished seventh, gaining his eighth Top 10 finish of the year.

      Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
    4. Matt Crafton – Crafton had a respectable finish of 10th after Trevor Bayne, who originally finished fifth, was disqualified, which Crafton moved up in the finishing order. The finish was Crafton’s 10th top-10 of the year. As for the stages, he finished sixth and seventh, respectively.

      Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
    5. Ben Rhodes – A ho-hum night for Ben Rhodes who came home in the 13th position after winning the Darlington race the week prior to Bristol. Rhodes couldn’t gain a top-10 in either stage, unfortunately. It was certainly a disappointing and forgettable Bristol outing for Rhodes and company.

      Previous Week Ranking – First 

    Fell Out 

    1. Austin Hill – A frustrating night for the 2020 Regular Truck Series Champion Austin Hill, who finished 25th, five laps down. The Georgian’s night got off to a rough start when he got collected in an incident on Lap 8 with the No. 52 of Stewart Friesen. Hill received right-rear bumper damage from the contact. Throughout the night, Hill maintained as much as he could but continued to fight an ill-handling Truck due to brake issues. More problems arose on Lap 156 when Hill was involved with an accident involving the No. 22 of Austin Wayne Self. The final incident pretty much put a damper on Hill’s first race of the playoffs.

      Previous Week Ranking – Second
    2. Todd Gilliland – 14th place finish for playoff contender Todd Gilliland, who is now eight points below the cut line after fighting a loose handling Truck for much of the night.

      Previous Week Ranking – Fifth 
  • Four Takeaways from the NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Race at Bristol

    Four Takeaways from the NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Race at Bristol

    The NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series visited Bristol Motor Speedway this past Thursday night for race No. 1 of the 2020 Truck Series Playoffs, and for the most part, the racing didn’t disappoint. 

    Surprisingly, the UNOH 200 was run mainly under caution-free conditions and provided a new series winner. Sam Mayer, one of the up and coming rising stars in the stock world, broke through and won for the first time in the NASCAR Truck Series after passing teammate and playoff driver, Brett Moffitt, with less than 30 to go. The Wisconsin native became the second-youngest winner in Truck Series history at the age of 17.

    While Mayer got the victory in the series, there were other drivers who also enjoyed their most recent best runs of the night. But most of the playoff grid struggled with Moffitt being the highest of the 10 in the point standings, finishing second in the running order. 

    Let’s take a look at some of the highlights and stories you may have missed in this week’s Takeaways following the UNOH 200 at Bristol Motor Speedway. 

    1. Tanner Gray Matches Career-Best – Tanner Gray in the No. 15 DGR-Crosley Ford enjoyed another career-best of third Thursday night at Bristol. Gray’s 2020 rookie season has been a learning curve for the most part since coming over from the NHRA Pro Stock division the year prior. The third-place finish was his second of the year since he finished third at Michigan earlier in the summer. It was a great run that was needed after having recent finishes outside the Top 15.
    2. Chandler Smith and Parker Kligerman Grab Top Five Finishes – Speaking of much needed runs, Chandler Smith grabbed a top-five finish at Bristol. Smith has not had a kind 2020 so far with most of his finishes coming in either 20th or 23rd place. In fact, his last top-five finish in the Truck Series came last year at Phoenix where the Georgia native finished third for Kyle Busch Motorsports. Meanwhile, Parker Kligerman was back in the No. 75 Henderson Motorsports Chevrolet for his sixth start of the season. Kligerman used strategy to his advantage and ran a clean race to bring home the No. 75 for a fourth-place result, his best finish at Bristol since 2018.
    3. Trevor Bayne Disqualified – Trevor Bayne was entered in only his third Truck start of his career and season last Thursday for Niece Motorsports. The Nashville, Tennessee driver originally finished fifth in the running order, in what would have been his best career Truck Series finish. Unfortunately for Bayne, he was disqualified and relegated to a last-place finish for failing post-race tech due to ride heights.
    4. Camping World Returns In 2021 – Announced late last week, previous title sponsor Camping World, will return to sponsoring the Truck Series next year for 2021. Camping World last sponsored the series in 2018, before Gander RV and Outdoors took over in 2019 and through the end of this year.
  • Blaney, Custer and DiBenedetto fail to transfer in the 2020 Cup Playoffs

    Blaney, Custer and DiBenedetto fail to transfer in the 2020 Cup Playoffs

    While the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday, September 19, was a good race for some, it was a disappointing night for others, particularly those vying for a transfer spot to the Round of 12 in the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs and came into Bristol on the outside of the top-12 cutline in the standings. When the checkered flag flew, the championship runs for Ryan Blaney, Cole Custer and Matt DiBenedetto came to an end as they joined William Byron in failing to transfer to the Round of 12 in the Playoffs.

    For Custer, he was coming off 12th- and 14th-place results during the first two Playoff races of this season. Despite the top-15 results, he was eight points below the top-12 cutline to advance to the Round of 12 in the Playoffs.

    Starting back in 12th place while battling with early loose landing conditions to his No. 41 HaasTooling.com/Autodesk Ford Mustang, the Ladera Ranch, California, native was in 14th place by Lap 30 under the competition caution. On the ensuing restart, Custer jumped to 11th place and he continued to run in that position through Lap 50. Twenty-five laps later, he was back in 21st place. By Lap 100, Custer had fallen back to 24th place. By the time first stage concluded on Lap 125, he settled in 24th place.

    Throughout the second stage, Custer continued to struggle with the handling of his No. 41 Ford as he was mired outside the top 20 on the track. Falling a lap behind the leaders, he could only move up to 21st place when the second stage concluded on Lap 250, the halfway point of the race.

    Battling tight conditions to his car and still pinned a lap behind the leaders while also struggling to keep pace with his Stewart-Haas Racing teammates, Custer was on the verge of being eliminated while running below the top 20. With 100 laps remaining, he fought his way up to 16th place. Though he was scored in 13th place under the final 100 laps of the race, he made multiple pit stops to have the front nose of his car repaired as a result of making contact prior to a restart. The loss of track positions and the laps behind the leaders ended his run towards the front as he crossed the finish line in 23rd place, three laps behind the leaders.

    With his result, Custer was eliminated from title contention, having missed the cutline by 28 points, while teammates Kevin Harvick, Aric Almirola and Clint Bowyer advanced to the Round of 12. Being eliminated from title contention was a disappointing outcome for the Californian in a season where he achieved his first Cup career win at Kentucky Speedway in July and wrapped up the 2020 Cup Rookie-of-the-Year title in being the lone rookie candidate to make this year’s Playoffs.

    “We just struggled here,” Custer said. “I don’t know why. I’ve always liked Bristol, it just hasn’t come together this year here. We’ve just really struggled. I just can’t thank everybody enough at SHR, everybody at HaasTooling.com, Autodesk. I just wish we had a better night. We were just a little bit off. I think we can hang our heads high on what we’ve done this year, but we still have a lot of races to win the rest of this year, so we just have to keep building.”

    If there was an underdog that was a part of this year’s Playoffs, it was DiBenedetto in the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford Mustang. For DiBenedetto, he was coming off 21st- and 17th-place results during the first two races of the Playoffs. With his pair of results, the Grass Valley, California, native was 25 points below the top-12 cutline and needed a strong run at Bristol Motor Speedway to keep his title hopes alive.

    Starting in 16th place in the No. 21 Menards/Dutch Boy Ford Mustang, DiBenedetto had a decent opening run on Saturday night as he settled inside the top 15 on the track. Nearing the Lap 30 mark and when the first caution flag of the race flew, DiBenedetto and the No. 21 crew made an early gamble and came out of pit road with the lead following a two-tire pit stop. Restarting in first place on Lap 40, he led a total of seven laps, including under caution, before he was overtaken by Brad Keselowski on Lap 43. Despite only have two fresh tires compared to the majority of the field, DiBenedetto continued to run in second place. For nearly the next 50 laps, he continued to run in second place until he was overtaken by Chase Elliott. From there, DiBenedetto continued to slide backwards throughout the long run under green as he dropped out of the top five. When the first stage concluded on Lap 125, he was out of the top 10 and was scored in 12th place as he failed to record a stage point.

    In the early laps of the second stage, DiBenedetto was in 15th place. By then, he was scored outside of the top-12 cutline in the Playoff standings. As the race progressed, he dropped back to the top 20. Near the Lap 190 mark, things started to fall apart for DiBenedetto when he was forced to pit under green due to a loose right-rear wheel as a result of running over debris on the track. By the time he returned to the track, he was three laps behind the leaders and was unable to regain the lost laps for the remainder of the second stage.

    For the final half of the 500-lap race, DiBenedetto was en route to regain the lost laps from the second stage. Running in 11th place at one point in the race, he, ultimately, crossed the finish line in 19th place, three laps behind the leaders. As a result, he fell 41 points shy of transferring to the second round in the Playoffs.

    The end result served as a disappointing outcome for DiBenedetto, who started this season as the newest driver of the iconic No. 21 Ford Mustang for Wood Brothers Racing and achieved two top-five results and seven top-10 results throughout the 26-race regular-season stretch, including a 12th-place run in the regular-season finale at Daytona International Speedway in August, to make this year’s Playoffs.

    “If we didn’t have bad luck, we wouldn’t have any luck at all,” DiBenedetto said on NBCSN. “I don’t know. It’s just frustrating. I wanted to get Menards, Dutch Boy, this team a good run like they deserve because we’ve had a rough couple of weeks. Had a loose wheel, overcome it, drive through the entire field and a lot of green flag [run]. We get seventh hoping for a caution, but either way, we drove in the top 10, good run. And I was screaming debris in [Turn] 1 three damn times and we found it. We ran it over multiple times and that cuts the right rear [tire], and it just ruins our day.”

    Though he was disappointed in being eliminated from title contention, DiBenedetto remained positive and was pleased with the opportunity in making his first Playoff appearance as a title contender and experiencing the competitiveness with the Wood Brothers Racing team this entire season. Though he does not have his racing plans for next season set, he sets his primary focus towards the final seven races of this season in earning as many strong results before the season concludes.

    “I can’t possibly explain to people the emotional roller coaster of doing this for a living,” DiBenedetto added. “I am very appreciative to do it, love it and I hope I’m driving for this team next year and hope to keep on doing it. We have a lot to build off of. We’re just barely getting started. It is tough. I’m glad we made the Playoffs, I’m proud of my team. Tonight shows the fight we have as a team, rebounding like that. I just hate we missed the next round and had some not good races, bad luck, you name it. We got a lot of season left. We still have a lot of position in position to fight for. We have fast race cars like you see tonight. So, we still have a lot of stuff left and hopefully, lot of good things to come.”

    A few days prior to the Bristol Night Race, Blaney issued a stern warning to his fellow competitors and the competition that he would do whatever it took, especially with a fast race car, to move others out of his path to win by any means and keep his title hopes alive. After coming off finishes of 19th and 13th in the first two races of this year’s Playoffs, Blaney was 27 points below the top-12 cutline in the Playoff standings and in jeopardy of not transferring to the second round in the postseason.

    Starting in 14th place, Blaney wasted no time making his way to the front in the No. 12 Advance Auto Parts Ford Mustang. By Lap 60 and after methodically fighting his way towards the front, he was scored in fifth place while his two Penske teammates, Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano, were also running at the front. Initially primed for a strong result in the first stage, things slowly backfired as the race went into a long run under green. During the run, he dropped out of the top five and out of the top 10 as he continued to lose more spots while battling tight conditions. By the time the first stage concluded on Lap 125, Blaney was mired back in 23rd place.

    Throughout the second stage, Blaney was mired back in and out of the top 20 on the track and was struggling to fight his way back to the front. During an eight-lap dash to the conclusion of the stage, however, he was able to march his way back inside the top 15 and conclude the stage in 11th place, missing an opportunity claim a stage point by one position.

    Needing to win and give it his all in the final stage, Blaney started the final stage on a strong note as he made his way back into the top 10 and not long after, in the top five. Less than 150 laps remaining, however, Blaney pitted under green due to a right front issue on his No. 12 Ford. Falling back, Blaney managed to work his way back to 13th place, two laps down, when the checkered flag flew and he finished.

    The top-15 result, however, was not enough for Blaney to keep his championship hopes alive as he missed the top-12 cutline by 37 points. The end result at Bristol served as a disappointing outcome for Blaney and his No. 12 Ford team following an up-and-down 26-race regular-season stretch, where he won at Talladega Superspeedway in June, achieved eight top-five results, 11 top-10 results and started the season with veteran crew chief Todd Gordon. Blaney’s team was also hit with a 10-point penalty prior to the Playoff opener at Darlington Raceway early in September due to an improperly mounted ballast that was discovered on his car, a penalty that had Todd Gordon suspended for one race.

    “We started off tight and then that second run, we got really tight after the competition caution,” Blaney said on NBCSN. “[We] Lost a lot of track position. After that, we kind of was able to drive up through there. I think we got to fifth or sixth at one time. We got super tight again and it went really long. That just kind of made it worse. We just got behind there. The track just swung really tight. I was tight all night, but it swung really tight on us. That was just the wrong direction that the track needed to be at. That stinks. I thought we got our car pretty close there in the second half of the race, second stage and then, we were on the cycle of pitting and getting laps down and was on old stuff. Unfortunate end for this No. 12 group, but I’m really proud of the effort this year. We’re not done, for sure. We can still go try to win races and try to get fifth in points. Thanks to Advance Auto Parts, Menards and Ford for what they do. We got seven more races.”

    Blaney, Custer and DiBenedetto, along with their fellow competitors, will return for the next scheduled NASCAR Cup Series Playoff race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday, September 27, at 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

  • Byron’s title hopes ends at Bristol

    Byron’s title hopes ends at Bristol

    A long season filled with on-track challenges, resilience and late momentum for William Byron, crew chief Chad Knaus and the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE team ended with a disappointing outcome in the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday, September 19. Following an on-track incident with a lapped car in the closing laps of the second stage throughout the main event, Byron ended his night in the garage and as one of four competitors who were knocked out of title contention this season.

    For Byron, he was coming off a fifth-place run at Darlington Raceway, the Playoff opener in the beginning of September, and a 21st-place result last weekend at Richmond Raceway. Coming into Bristol, he was three points below the top-12 cutline and he needed a strong run under the lights at Thunder Valley to transfer into the Round of 12 of the Playoffs.

    Starting in 15th place, Byron gained four spots on the track through the first 30 laps of the race and just as the first caution of the race flew for an on-track incident. During the ensuing restart, he was able to crack the top 10 as he continued to methodically work his way towards the front. When the first stage concluded on Lap 125, Byron and the No. 24 Liberty University Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE were scored in eighth place as he collected a handful of stage points. By then, the Charlotte native moved back inside the top-12 cutline.

    Restarting in seventh place when the second stage started, Byron remained within the top 10 on the track for the majority of the stage and was in position of transferring to the second round of the Playoffs.

    It all came to a crashing end, however, with less than 20 laps remaining in the second stage. He was running in 10th place when he ran into the back of Christopher Bell, who checked up for the lapped car of Joey Gase, and sustained front-nose damage with smoke coming out of the No. 24 car. The damage was enough to force Byron to nurse his No. 24 Chevrolet to the garage, where he parked it and climbed out dejected as his hopes of winning at Bristol and advancing to the second round of the Playoffs came to an end.

    The final scoreboard placed Byron in 38th place, 268 laps shy of the finish, while teammates Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman transferred to the Round of 12 in the Playoffs after finishing seventh and 16th, respectively.

    “I think [Gase] – it was like a black and green car – checked up in the middle of the straightaway,” Byron said on NBCSN. “As fast as we were running the top [lane], I was riding behind [Christopher Bell] and I had, literally, nowhere to go. You can’t stop in the middle of the straightaway when everybody’s so committed to the top like that. Just ridiculous that that’s what takes us out. I thought, honestly, we had a shot to run top five or seven. The car was really, really good. We just needed a couple good pit stops. We were running ninth or 10th there. Just super disappointing. I gotta go back and watch that because that was ridiculous.”

    The late misfortune of not advancing to the Round of 12 in the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs served as a disappointing end to Byron’s run for a first Cup title following an up-and-down 26-race regular-season stretch, where he finished in last place in the season-opening Daytona 500 due to an early accident, earned nine top-10 results and rallied by scoring his first Cup career victory in his 98th career start at Daytona, the regular-season finale, in August and to claim a Playoff berth for this season, second of his career.

    The Charlotte native will remain as a Hendrick Motorsports competitor in the NASCAR Cup Series through 2022.

    Byron, along with his fellow competitors, will return for the next scheduled NASCAR Cup Series Playoff race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday, September 27, at 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

  • Harvick scores ninth Cup victory of 2020 at Bristol

    Harvick scores ninth Cup victory of 2020 at Bristol

    Having won two weeks ago at Darlington Raceway and securing his spot to the second round of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, Kevin Harvick came into the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday, September 19, with an objective to win again and extend his momentum to a dominating season. Under the lights at Thunder Valley and with the grandstands packed with a limited number of fans, Harvick accomplished his mission after outlasting a vicious battle from Kyle Busch over the final 40 laps and grabbing another thrilling victory of this season. The victory marked Harvick’s career-high ninth of the season and the 58th of his Cup career, which kept him in ninth place in the all-time Cup wins list.

    The starting lineup was based on four statistical categories: current owner standings, the driver’s result from a previous Cup race, the team owner’s result from a previous Cup race and the fastest lap recorded from a previous Cup race. With that, Team Penske’s two-car lineup occupied the front row with Brad Keselowski on pole position and teammate Joey Logano starting next to him.

    Prior to the race, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin and Erik Jones started at the rear of the field due to their respective cars failing pre-race inspection twice. J.J. Yeley also dropped to the rear of the field due to a driver change along with Bubba Wallace and Corey LaJoie, both due to unapproved adjustments.

    When the green flag waved and the race started, Keselowski jumped ahead with the lead as he led the opening lap while Kevin Harvick moved up to second place over Logano. Behind, Chase Elliott moved up to fourth place followed by Martin Truex Jr., Alex Bowman and Austin Dillon.

    Five laps into the race, Keselowski stabilized a nearly two-tenths of a second lead over Harvick. Behind, teammates Aric Almirola and Clint Bowyer battled for eighth place in front of teammate Cole Custer, all of whom were also vying for transfer spots to the Round of 12 in the Playoffs. Settling behind Custer were Ryan Blaney and Matt DiBenedetto, both of whom started the evening below the top-12 cutline.

    With the first 10 laps of the race complete and the early racing around the circuit settling in, Keselowski continued to stabilize his advantage to nearly three-tenths of a second over Harvick followed by Logano, Elliott and Truex. Behind, teammates Kyle Busch, Hamlin and Jones made their way into the top 30 after starting at the rear of the field.

    On Lap 18, Harvick made his way into the lead after passing Keselowski. Two laps later, Harvick started to extend his advantage to nearly a second over Keselowski followed by teammate Logano, Elliott and Truex while Austin Dillon was closing in for a top-five spot. Way behind the leaders, Kyle Busch was using the high lane to march his way to the front. By then, he was scored inside the top 25. 

    The first caution of the race flew near the Lap 30 mark when contact from Jimmie Johnson entering Turn 2 sent Ricky Stenhouse Jr. spinning and making head-on contact into the inside wall just before he slid across the banking in Turn 3. The damage to Stenhouse’s No. 47 Kroger Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE, which was engulfed in flames and spilling oil through Turns 3 and 4, was enough to end his night with a wrecked race car. The caution for Stenhouse’s incident served as the competition caution originally planned on Lap 30. By then, Harvick was ahead by nearly two seconds over Keselowski.

    Under competition caution, the leaders pitted and DiBenedetto, driving the Wood Brothers Racing’s No. 21 Menards/Dutch Boy Ford Mustang, emerged with the lead following a two-tire stop. Tyler Reddick exited in second place after he also elected for a two-tire stop followed by Keselowski (the first on four tires), Logano, Harvick and Elliott. During the pit stops, Kyle Busch was pinned behind Daniel Suarez in his pit box and was shuffled all the way back to 25th place. In addition, Ryan Newman was sent to the rear of the field for speeding on pit road. 

    When the race restarted on Lap 40, DiBenedetto retained the lead followed by Keselowski and Logano. On Lap 43, Keselowski reassumed the lead from DiBenedetto. Behind, Reddick slipped back to ninth place behind Logano, Elliott, Bowman, Almirola, Blaney and Truex.

    By Lap 50, Keselowski extended his advantage to more than a second over DiBenedetto while Logano also trailed by more than a second. Meanwhile, Harvick was in 10th place followed by teammate Cole Custer, Christopher Bell, Austin Dillon, Bowyer and William Byron. Hamlin was in 16th followed by Kurt Busch while Kyle Busch was back in 22nd behind Erik Jones.

    Ten laps later, on Lap 60, Keselowski was still ahead by nearly two seconds over DiBenedetto while Logano was locked into a battle with Elliott for third place. In addition, Blaney and his No. 12 Advance Auto Parts Ford Mustang cracked the the top five while Almirola and Truex stared to catch Alex Bowman for sixth place. By then, Harvick was in ninth, Byron was in 13th, Hamlin was in 15th and Kyle Busch moved back into the top 20. With that, all 16 Playoff contenders were running inside the top 20.

    Another 10 laps later, on Lap 70, and with the leaders starting to approach lapped traffic, Keselowski and his No. 2 Discount Tire Ford Mustang were ahead of second-place DiBenedetto by more than two seconds with Logano and Elliott trailing by approximately three seconds. By then, Kyle Busch and his No. 18 Skittles Toyota Camry continued to muscle towards the front in 14th place behind Austin Dillon’s No. 3 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE.

    With the laps winding down in the first stage, Keselowski was still leading by more than two seconds over DiBenedetto, who was still holding strong with two fresh tires, while Elliott made his way into third place over Logano. Blaney continued to run in fifth place while Harvick muscled his way into sixth place in front of Bowman and Truex. In addition, Kyle Busch made his way up to ninth place followed by Almirola, Reddick and Byron. Kurt Busch, Austin Dillon, Hamlin and Clint Bowyer were running in the top 20 while Cole Custer was the lowest-running Playoff competitor in 24th place. 

    By Lap 93, Elliott made his way into second place after passing DiBenedetto. In addition, Harvick passed Blaney and started to track DiBenedetto and Logano for more. Additionally, Kyle Busch started to challenge Blaney for sixth place.

    When the field reached the Lap 100 mark, Keselowski was still ahead by more than a second over Elliott. Behind, Kyle Busch made a bold move on the inside lane in Turn 3 to move into fourth place ahead of DiBenedetto and Harvick. Soon after, Busch moved into third place after passing Logano. By then, Harvick was still stuck behind DiBenedetto as Bowman started to join the party. 

    With the battling around the track continuing to intensify, the battle for the lead started to ignite as Elliott cut the deficit to a tenth of a second over Keselowski. On Lap 107, Elliott and his No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE emerged with the lead over Keselowski. 

    By Lap 110, Elliott extended his advantage to nearly a second over Keselowski while Blaney fell all the way back to 14th place. Kyle Busch was still in third place followed by Logano, Harvick and Bowman while DiBenedetto had fallen back into eighth place ahead of Kurt Busch and Byron.

    With five laps remaining in the first stage, on Lap 120, Elliott was still leading by less than a second over Kyle Busch, who continued to close for the lead while encountering heavy lapped traffic, while Harvick passed Keselowski to move into third place. 

    When the first stage concluded on Lap 125, Elliott was able to claim his seventh stage win of the season. Kyle Busch settled in second place followed by Harvick, Bowman and Bell. Kurt Busch, Keselowski, Byron, Logano and Bubba Wallace were scored in the top 10. With his top-10 result in the first stage, Logano clinched his spot for the Round of 12 in the Playoffs. By the time the first stage concluded, Hamlin, DiBenedetto, Truex, Almirola, Bowyer and Austin Dillon were in 11th, 12th, 15th, 18th, 19th and 20th. In addition, Blaney fell all the way back to 23rd place ahead of Custer.

    Under the stage break, the leaders pitted and Kyle Busch emerged with the lead followed by Elliott, Harvick, Bowman and Kurt Busch. Prior to the restart and under the Choose Rule effect, Bowman moved up to the front row beneath Kyle Busch while Elliott and Logano lined up in the second row. Byron and Harvick lined up in the third row followed by Kurt Busch, Hamlin, Keselowski and Wallace, 

    The second stage started on Lap 136 with Kyle Busch launching ahead with the lead while Bowman was able to move in front of teammate Elliott and retain second place. Elliott, Harvick, Logano and Kurt Busch retained third through sixth in a single-file line followed by Keselowski, Byron, Hamlin and Bell. Behind, Truex and DiBenedetto were in 14th and 15th while running in front of teammates Bowyer and Almirola. Custer and Austin Dillon were mired back in 21st and 22nd while Blaney was back in 26th. 

    By Lap 150, Kyle Busch was ahead by less than a second over Elliott. Harvick and Logano moved up to third and fourth while Bowman settled back in fifth place ahead of Kurt Busch and Keselowski. By then, Bowyer, Custer, DiBenedetto and Blaney were scored outside the top-12 cutline in the Playoff standings.

    Ten laps later, on Lap 160, Elliott cut Kyle Busch’s advantage to nearly six-tenths of a second while Harvick was trailing the two leaders by more than a second. Logano continued to run in fourth place followed by Kurt Busch, Bowman, Hamlin, Keselowski and Byron. Truex was back in 14th in front of Erik Jones, DiBenedetto, Bowyer and Almirola. Austin Dillon was mired back in 21st followed by Blaney and Custer while names like Ryan Newman, Daniel Suarez and Corey LaJoie were pinned a lap behind the leaders.

    By Lap 175, Kurt Busch was scored in fifth place ahead of Hamlin while Bowman slipped back to seventh place. At the front, Kyle Busch was still leading by four-tenths of a second over Elliott with Harvick closing in on his rear bumper for the spot. Meanwhile, DiBenedetto and Blaney were mired back in 19th and 20th while Austin Dillon and Custer were in 21st and 23rd. 

    Nearing the Lap 190 mark, DiBenedetto made a pit stop under green due to a loose right-rear wheel. By the time he returned to the track, he was three laps behind the leaders as his title hopes for this season was slowly diminishing. At the front, Kyle Busch continued to lead despite encountering lapped traffic while Elliott and Harvick continued to battle for second place. 

    When the raced reached its 200-lap mark, Elliott and Harvick closed in to the rear bumper of Kyle Busch’s No. 18 Toyota for the lead while Custer, who was in 23rd place, was fighting to remain on the lead lap. Behind, Logano and Hamlin were still in the top five followed by Kurt Busch, Bowman, Bell, Keselowski and Byron. Almirola was in 13th while Bowyer was in 16th place, two spots ahead of Blaney. Truex and Austin Dillon were mired back in the top 20. 

    Nearing the Lap 220 mark, Truex made a pit stop under green due to a tire issue as a result of tapping the Turn 2 outside wall a few laps earlier, where he went straight into the wall. During Truex’s incident, teammate Hamlin, who had nowhere else to go, ran into the back of Truex’s No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota. Despite the damage to the front nose of his No. 11 FedEx Toyota, Hamlin continued to run in sixth place and the race remained under green.

    By Lap 220, Kyle Busch was still leading by more than a second over Harvick and Elliott while Logano and Kurt Busch were in the top five. Ten laps later, on Lap 230, Harvick and Elliott were less than a second behind Kyle Busch while Logano and Kurt Busch continued to run inside the top five. Hamlin continued to run in sixth place despite the damage while Keselowski, who fell back inside the top 20, was lapped by Kyle Busch. 

    With less than 20 laps remaining in the second stage, the caution flew when smoke started billowing out of the No. 24 Liberty University Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE driven by William Byron as a result of Byron running into the back of Christopher Bell, who checked up for the lapped car of Joey Gase, and damaging the front nose of his Chevrolet on the track. The smoke was enough to send Byron to the garage as his hopes of moving to the second round of the 2020 Playoffs came to an end.

    Under caution, the leaders pitted and Kyle Busch retained the lead following his pit stop ahead of Harvick and Logano. 

    With eight laps remaining in the second stage, the race restarted and Kyle Busch received a strong start to retain the lead. Harvick was in second place followed by Logano, Elliott and Kurt Busch. By then, teammates Almirola and Bowyer moved inside the top 10 along with Austin Dillon while Blaney was outside the top 10.  

    The second stage concluded under caution when Ryan Newman spun in Turn 2. At the front of the field when the stage concluded, the leader Kyle Busch was able to claim his second stage victory of the season. Harvick was scored in second place followed by Elliott, Logano and Kurt Busch. Bowman, Almirola, Bowyer, Erik Jones and Austin Dillon settled in the top 10 ahead of Blaney and Keselowski. With his result in the second stage, Elliott clinched his spot for the second round of the Playoffs.

    In terms of points, Bowyer moved back inside the top-12 cutline while Custer, DiBenedetto, Blaney and Byron were scored outside of the cutline and in position of being eliminated from title contention.

    Under the stage break, some like Keselowski, Bell, Matt Kenseth, Michael McDowell, Truex and Hamlin pitted while the rest led by Kyle Busch, Harvick and Elliott remained on the track. Prior to the restart and under the Choose Rule effect, Logano moved up to restart in second place beneath Kyle Busch while Harvick and Kurt Busch restarted in the second row.

    With 240 laps remaining, the final stage commenced and Kyle Busch retained the lead following a strong start on the outside lane. Harvick moved up to second place in front of Logano while Elliott and Kurt Busch were in the top five. Behind, Blaney’s car started to come back alive as he moved up to eighth place behind Bowyer following his early struggles. In addition, Austin Dillon fought his way back to 10th place. 

    With 220 laps remaining, Harvick started to battle Kyle Busch for the lead. A lap later, Harvick emerged with the lead for the first time since Lap 34 following a pass on the outside lane. By then, Elliott was in third place ahead of Logano followed by Kurt Busch, Bowman, Blaney, Bowyer, Jones and Almirola. Austin Dillon was back in 11th place, Keselowski was in 13th and Custer was all the way back in 23rd. DiBenedetto was mired back in 24th while Truex was back in 28th. 

    Down to the final 200 laps of the race, the battle for the lead between Harvick and Kyle Busch continued to ignite while Keselowski was lapped by the leaders as he was battling power steering issues to his No. 2 Ford. In addition, Bowman made an unscheduled pit stop due to a vibration report on the No. 88 AXALTA Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE. Elliott continued to run in third place while Logano and Kurt Busch settled in the top five. Blaney, who was still scored outside of the top-12 cutline in the Playoff standings, continued to march forward in sixth place while Bowyer, grasping with sole possession of the 12th and final transfer spot in the Playoffs, was in seventh place.

    With less than 190 laps remaining, Blaney made his way into the top five in fifth place followed by Bowyer. At the front, Harvick continued to lead by approximately half a second over Kyle Busch while Elliott and Logano continued to run in third and fourth. A few laps later, Keselowski, who was black-flagged and pitted to address the issues to his No. 2 Ford, made the turn to the garage.

    Fifteen laps later, with 175 laps remaining in the race, Harvick stabilized his advantage to more than a second over Kyle Busch while Elliott, Logano and Blaney continued to run in the top five. By then, non-title contenders like Erik Jones, Reddick and Jimmie Johnson were running inside the top 10. In addition, Kurt Busch, who was running in 12th place, made an unscheduled pit stop under green due to a loose wheel on his No. 1 Monster Energy Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE.

    Down to the final 150 laps of the race, Harvick extended his advantage to less than two seconds over Kyle Busch while Elliott trailed by less than six seconds. Meanwhile, Bowyer moved up into fourth place followed by Reddick, Logano, Johnson, Jones, Almirola and Austin Dillon. By then, Blaney, who fell back to 13th place, was lapped by Harvick as only 12 competitors were scored on the lead lap. Soon after, Blaney made a pit stop under green due to a right front issue.

    With approximately 130 laps remaining, 10 competitors were scored on the lead lap. Not long after, Logano made a pit stop under green as Harvick continued to lead. 

    With 120 laps remaining, Harvick was still leading by less than four seconds over Kyle Busch. Behind, Elliott remained in third place, trailing the two leaders by six seconds, while Bowyer was in fourth place in front of Reddick and Johnson. Almirola was in eighth, Austin Dillon was in ninth and DiBenedetto was in 11th, a lap behind.

    Down to the final 100 laps of the race, Harvick continued to navigate his way through the lapped traffic and maintain a nearly six-second lead over Kyle Busch. By then, eight competitors were scored on the lead lap while Austin Dillon was lapped in ninth place. In addition, pit stops under green started to occur as Hamlin pitted. 

    With 93 laps remaining, the caution flew when James Davison spun and made contact into the Turn 1 wall following on-track contact with Austin Dillon. The contact into Davison was a result of Dillon reacting to Harvick, who was slowing down, pulling his car below the apron and was initially prepared to pit before opting out due to the wreck, thus escaping with no damage. The wreck also nearly collected Custer, Truex and Johnson as Davison’s No. 53 car was coming back down from the banking. By then, six cars were scored on the lead lap.

    Under caution, the leaders pitted and Harvick retained the lead followed by Kyle Busch, Bowyer, Reddick and Almirola. Prior to the restart and under the Choose Rule effect, Bowyer moved into second place and beneath teammate Harvick on the front row while teammates Jones and Kyle Busch lined up in the second row. 

    With 82 laps remaining, the race restarted and the outside lane continued to prevail as Harvick retained the lead followed by Kyle Busch and Bowyer. Jones settled in fourth followed by Reddick and Almirola with only six competitors scored on the lead lap. DiBenedetto was the first competitor a lap behind in seventh place followed by Chris Buescher, Ryan Preece and Michael McDowell.

    At the front, the battle for the lead between Harvick and Kyle Busch started to ignite with 70 laps remaining. With both separated by three-tenths of a second, Busch would gain a run running on the outside lane entering the turns, but Harvick would have enough momentum entering the straightaways to maintain his advantage while running on the inside lane.

    Ten laps later, with 60 laps remaining, Kyle Busch gained another run towards the rear bumper of Harvick’s No. 4 Busch Light Ford Mustang in his pursuit for the lead. Despite his late charge, Harvick managed to stabilize his advantage by less than half a second over Busch’s No. 18 Toyota. Behind, Erik Jones trailed by nearly three seconds while Bowyer was in fifth place in between Reddick and Almirola.

    With less than 45 laps remaining, Harvick approached a handful of lapped traffic that included Austin Dillon and Blaney. With Harvick stalled behind the lapped cars of Blaney and Gray Gaulding, Kyle Busch made a move beneath Harvick and reassumed the lead with 41 laps remaining, though Harvick kept Busch within his sights.

    With approximately 30 laps remaining, Harvick reassumed the lead following a tight, vicious battle with Kyle Busch, who was being held up by Logano’s No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang. By the time both cleared Logano, Harvick was back ahead by four-tenths of a second over Kyle Busch while Jones trailed by two seconds. 

    With approximately 20 laps remaining, Harvick and Kyle Busch continued to run in first and second, separated by two-tenths of a second. Meanwhile, Bell made contact into the wall after cutting a tire, but the race remained under green. 

    Down to the final 15 laps of the race, Harvick was still ahead by two-tenths of a second over Kyle Busch while Jones was behind by approximately a second and trying to close in on the two leaders. Five laps later, with 10 laps remaining, Kyle Busch continued to close by being a tenth of a second behind Harvick and with Jones trailing in third place by a second.

    With five laps remaining, only three-tenths of a second separated Harvick and Kyle Busch with Erik Jones behind by eight-tenths of a second. Though Kyle Busch continued to remain within sight of Harvick, he could not close the gap to his rear bumper. 

    On the final lap, Harvick was still ahead with a narrow margin over Kyle Busch. Entering Turn 3, Busch gained a run and tried to run into the back bumper of Harvick’s No. 4 Ford to loosen him up for the lead and the win. He could not, however, draw himself to the rear bumper of Harvick entering the turn as Harvick had enough momentum to win and claim the checkered flag by three-tenths of a second over Busch.

    With his victory, Harvick became the first competitor to claim two victories in this year’s Cup Playoffs, he claimed his third win at Bristol Motor Speedway and he notched his 35th win while driving for Stewart-Haas Racing in NASCAR’s premier series. In addition, Stewart-Haas Racing claimed its 65th Cup career win while Ford claimed its 17th victory of 2020.

    “Yeah! Bristol, baby!” Harvick exclaimed on the frontstretch on NBCSN. “Man, I just wanna say thank you to all the fans. Thank you, guys! I was so jacked up when we started this race because of you guys and Bristol Motor Speedway. Just proud of everybody on our Busch Light Ford…To beat Kyle Busch at Bristol, I kind of got myself in a little bit of a ringer there. I hit a lapped car and got a hole in the right-front nose, but just kept fighting. We don’t have anything else to lose. We were here to try to win a race. I know how much [crew chief] Rodney [Childers] really enjoys coming here. Hell, how could you not enjoy coming here with all this enthusiasm. Everybody’s tired of being at home! I’m glad we’re all here having a hell of a time. Thank you!”

    Kyle Busch settled in a disappointing second-place result for the fourth time this season and for his 12th top-five result of this season despite rallying from the rear of the field as his winless streak to the 2020 Cup season extended to 29 races. Though Busch was displeased with the lapped traffic, particularly at Logano, for interfering with his chances of beating Harvick, the lone silver lining for Busch and his No. 18 team was transferring to the Round of 12 in the Playoffs with an opportunity to defend last year’s title.

    “[I] Just didn’t have enough there at the end,” Busch said on pit road on NBCSN. “The guys did a great job and gave me a really good piece tonight to contend and at least be up there and be close. Unfortunately, just didn’t have enough. Lapped cars were definitely a problem, but it’s part of racing. You got to try to get around them where you can. There’s just no room for me to do what I needed to do on a couple of those opportunities to get pass them. [Harvick], obviously, had the better car, the faster car, than us tonight. [Crew chief] Adam [Stevens] made some good adjustments on that last run in order to keep us in the ball game and keep us close…I don’t know. Just come up short. What do you say?”

    Erik Jones finished in third place for his seventh top-five result of this season and as the highest-finishing non-title contender followed by Reddick. Teammates Almirola and Bowyer finished fifth and sixth as both Stewart-Haas Racing competitors transferred to the Round of 12 in the Playoffs. Elliott ended his night in seventh place, a lap behind, while Buescher, Preece and McDowell finished in the top 10. Jimmie Johnson finished 17th in his 38th and final run at Bristol.

    Kevin Harvick, Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, Chase Elliott, Martin Truex Jr., Alex Bowman, Austin Dillon, Aric Almirola, Kyle Busch, Clint Bowyer and Kurt Busch transferred into the Round of 12 in the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. Cole Custer, Matt DiBenedetto, Ryan Blaney and William Byron were eliminated from title contention.

    There were 14 lead changes for eight different leaders. The race featured five cautions for 50 laps.

    Results.

    1. Kevin Harvick, 226 laps led, 

    2. Kyle Busch, 159 laps led, Stage 2 winner

    3. Erik Jones

    4. Tyler Reddick

    5. Aric Almirola, one lap led

    6. Clint Bowyer

    7. Chase Elliott, one lap down, 23 laps led, Stage 1 winner

    8. Chris Buescher, one lap down

    9. Ryan Preece, one lap down

    10. Michael McDowell, two laps down

    11. Joey Logano, two laps down

    12. Austin Dillon, two laps down

    13. Ryan Blaney, two laps down

    14. Matt Kenseth, two laps down

    15. Kurt Busch, two laps down

    16. Alex Bowman, two laps down

    17. Jimmie Johnson, two laps down

    18. Ty Dillon, three laps down

    19. Matt DiBenedetto, three laps down, seven laps led

    20. John Hunter Nemechek, three laps down

    21. Denny Hamlin, three laps down, one lap led

    22. Bubba Wallace, three laps down

    23. Cole Custer, three laps down

    24. Martin Truex Jr., four laps down

    25. Ryan Newman, four laps down

    26. Daniel Suarez, five laps down

    27. Gray Gaulding, 12 laps down

    28. Christopher Bell, 13 laps down, one lap led

    29. Quin Houff, 17 laps down

    30. J.J. Yeley, 21 laps down

    31. Joey Gase, 37 laps down

    32. Garrett Smithley, 64 laps down

    33. Corey LaJoie – OUT, Steering

    34. Brad Keselowski, 88 laps down, 82 laps led

    35. James Davison – OUT, Accident

    36. Reed Sorenson – OUT, Electrical

    37. Timmy Hill – OUT, Steering

    38. William Byron – OUT, Accident

    39. Josh Bilicki – OUT, Fuel pump

    40. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – OUT, Accident

    Bold indicates Playoff contenders

    Playoff standings.

    1. Kevin Harvick – Advanced

    2. Denny Hamlin – Advanced

    3. Brad Keselowski – Advanced

    4. Joey Logano – Advanced

    5. Chase Elliott – Advanced

    6. Martin Truex Jr. – Advanced

    7. Alex Bowman – Advanced

    8. Austin Dillon – Advanced

    9. Aric Almirola – Advanced

    10. Kyle Busch – Advanced

    11. Clint Bowyer – Advanced

    12. Kurt Busch – Advanced

    13. Cole Custer – Eliminated

    14. Matt DiBenedetto – Eliminated

    15. Ryan Blaney – Eliminated

    16. William Byron – Eliminated

    The Round of 12 in the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs will commence at Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the South Point 400. The race will occur on Sunday, September 27, at 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

  • Chase Briscoe takes the victory at Bristol Motor Speedway

    Chase Briscoe takes the victory at Bristol Motor Speedway

    Bristol has been called many things but the most fitting is the Last Great Colosseum. With its high banks, it favors no driver. But one driver tonight, Chase Briscoe in his No. 98 Ford Performance Racing School Ford Mustang, had what it took to win, earning him his seventh win of 2020.

    “I am so thankful that we are back with the race fans. You guys are the best. It’s not the same without you guys. We can’t wait to get you back all the time, but man, what a race.” When asked about the bump and run Briscoe added, “I was so mad after last week. I told all the guys there ain’t no way we are getting beat today. I was so mad after how we ran last week and I get on the internet all the time and see guys count us out after one bad race and I know what this team is capable of and I’m just so happy to get the Ford Performance Racing School back in Victory Lane.”

    Also having a good run was Ross Chastain who brought his No. 10 RSS Chevy home in second place.

    Coming home in third place was Austin Cindric in his No. 22 Penske Racing Ford.

    Harrison Burton and Justin Allgaier would round out the top five. Anthony Alfredo, Noah Gragson, Brandon Jones, Jeb Burton, and Riley Herbst finished sixth through 10th, respectively.

    Seven drivers started the race tonight already having clinched a playoff spot. Briscoe led the way with six wins and Cindric tallied up five. Allgaier and Jones each had three, while Gragson, Justin Haley, and Burton had two each.

    Chastain, Michael Annett, Herbst, Ryan Sieg, and Brandon Brown made it into the playoffs by points.

    Stage one had a competition caution and another minor caution that brought out the red flag briefly for cleanup. Justin Allgaier had the car to beat and would win stage one.

    Stage two was very similar to stage one, only having one caution which again brought out the red flag for cleanup. Allgaier would go on to win this stage as well.

    In the final stage, Allgaier lost the handling of the car leaving the door open for other drivers to pass. This stage was mainly between Cindric and Chastain for the lead. Cindric lost his power steering as he was leading and couldn’t protect the bottom of the track leaving the door open for Briscoe who would then go on to take the win.

    The NASCAR Xfinity Series heads next to Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sept. 26 to begin their Playoffs.

    Xfinity Series Playoff Driver Points Prior to Las Vegas

    RankDriverPoints
    1Chase Briscoe2050
    2Austin Cindric2050
    3Justin Allgaier2033
    4Noah Gragson2025
    5Brandon Jones2020
    6Justin Haley2018
    7Harrison Burton2014
    8Ross Chastain2010
    9Ryan Sieg2002
    10Michael Annett2002
    11Riley Herbst2001
    12Brandon Brown2000
  • Same song, second verse for Sam Mayer as he sweeps Thursday night at Bristol

    Same song, second verse for Sam Mayer as he sweeps Thursday night at Bristol

    Sam Mayer collected one checkered flag earlier in the night after winning the NASCAR Gander Outdoors & RV Truck Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway but he was looking for more. He strapped into the ARCA Menards Series car for double duty, though the GMS Racing driver had to work for his ARCA victory.

    At one point, the Wisconsin native followed Ty Gibbs to pit road to pit for new adjustments. During the second segment Mayer picked up debris to his left-front which could have potentially caused handling issues but he escaped without further damage and won for the second consecutive time of the night.

    Practice was canceled due to the remnants of Hurricane Sally that brought heavy rains to the North Carolina and Bristol areas. However, they were able to get the track dried in time for the ARCA Menards Series race. With practice canceled, the qualifying order was set by team owner points and that meant the No. 18 of Ty Gibbs sat on the pole with Mayer in the second position.

    There were three segments taking place at Laps 75, 150 and 200.

    Segment 1: Lap 1 – Lap 73 (Segment ended early due to late caution)

    The first segment was a busy one for the ARCA drivers as six cautions flooded the segment with the first one coming as early as Lap 3 with the No. 53E of Max Gutierrez. The last caution of the segment took place on Lap 73 when debris came off Chandler Smith’s No. 20 due to the sway bar coming apart.

    With the late segment yellow, ARCA officials decided to call the segment early and allow teams to change tires and add fuel to their cars. Gibbs, Mayer, Max McLaughlin, Michael Self, Drew Dollar, Mason Diaz, Parker Retzlaff, Hailie Deegan and Derek Griffith were the top 10 finishers for segment 1.

    Segment 2: Lap 76 – Lap 150

    As it has been happening all season long, Gibbs and Mayer found themselves battling for the lead off the restart. Though, Gibbs broke away this time, and checked out with the race lead and Mayer following in pursuit. The two actually would make contact at the halfway mark, when Mayer slightly touched the No. 18 of Gibbs left-rear. Gibbs and Mayer continued to soilder on despite the contact.

    Four laps later, the first yellow of segment two flew on Lap 104 after the No. 11 of Owen Smith had oil leaking underneath his car. Meanwhile, two others cars ended up spinning in the process, those being the No. 97 of Justin S. Carroll and the No. 6 of Nick Sanchez.

    During the caution flag, Gibbs made a pit stop for a left-rear flat, as did Mayer who pitted for adjustments on his No. 21 Chevy.

    A few more incidents were seen throughout the rest of the segment. On Lap 124, Michael Self was sideways off Turn 4 while leading the race and hit the outside wall, which allowed the No. 1 of Max McLaughlin to assume the lead.

    The final yellow would fly on Lap 132 after Parker Retzlaff went spinning on the fronstretch, as the No. 15 of Drew Dollar retaliated against Retzlaff from an earlier incident during the course of the summer.

    Despite these incidents, Mayer found his way back into the lead, just before the second segment break on Lap 150. Following Mayer was McLaughlin, Gibbs, Diaz, Gray, Holmes, Griffith, Deegan, Dollar, and Dean the Top 10.

    During the segment break, Bret Holmes played a different pit strategy and stayed out, taking the lead.

    Segment 3: Lap 154 – Lap 200

    When the green flag flew for the final segment, Holmes struggled to maintain the lead and Mayer took the lead back on Lap 156. Even though one more caution flew on Lap 160 for a Gus Dean spin, Mayer held on for the final 45 laps of the Toyota 200 to claim his fifth overall ARCA Menards Series victory of 2020 excluding his lone victory in the East Series at Dover.

    There were 10 cautions for 61 laps and nine lead changes among five different leaders.

    Mayer led four times for 116 laps en route to victory at Bristol.

    Official Results following the Toyota 200 ARCA Menards at Bristol Motor Speedway.

    1. Sam Mayer, led 116 laps
    2. Ty Gibbs, led 53 laps
    3. Max McLaughlin, led 19 laps
    4. Mason Diaz
    5. Michael Self, led nine laps
    6. Hailie Deegan
    7. Taylor Gray
    8. Bret Holmes, led three laps
    9. Derek Griffith
    10. Justin S. Carroll, 2 laps down
    11. Nick Sanchez, 2 laps down
    12. Gus Dean, 5 laps down
    13. Jason Kitzmiller, 8 laps down
    14. Max Gutierrez, 11 laps down
    15. Kris Wright, 17 laps down
    16. Con Nicolopoulos, 18 laps down
    17. Kyle Sieg, 20 laps down
    18. Drew Dollar, 46 laps down
    19. Parker Retzlaff, OUT, Crash
    20. Dave Mader III, OUT, Overheating
    21. Chase Cabre, OUT, Crash
    22. Owen Smith, OUT, Engine
    23. Chandler Smith, OUT, Sway Bar
    24. Mike Basham, OUT, Brakes
    25. Brad Smith, OUT, Electrical
    26. Wayne Peterson, OUT, Electrical

    Up Next: The ARCA Menards Series will continue their 2020 run to the championship by visiting Winchester Speedway Saturday September 19 live on NBC Sports Trackpass at 3 p.m./ET with a delayed telecast on MAVTV beginning at 6 p.m./ET.

  • Sam Mayer scores first career Truck Series victory at Bristol

    Sam Mayer scores first career Truck Series victory at Bristol

    In just seven Truck Series starts, 17-year-old Sam Mayer played spoiler for the playoff Truck Series drivers as he became the second-youngest winner in series history after passing GMS Racing teammate Brett Moffitt with less than 30 to go to achieve his first Truck Series victory.

    “What? Oh my gosh, Bristol dude. I love this place,” Mayer said after the race. “This is win No. 3 for me here and man, I don’t know what to say. I can’t thank the guys back at the shop enough.

    “They work their tails off. We fired off so good. We only made like one trackbar adjustment all day, that’s it. That feels so good.”

    Despite heavy rain showers earlier in the day due to the remnants of Hurricane Sally, NASCAR officials were able to get the half-mile track dried just in time for the 200-lap event which marked the first of seven playoff races for the Truck Series. Stages of 55-55-90 laps made up the three stages. And only one driver, Jennifer Jo Cobb, had to drop to the rear due to unapproved adjustments.

    Stage 1: Lap 1 – Lap 55

    The action was quick from the start and as early as Lap 5 when playoff driver Austin Hill found trouble after contact with the No. 52 of Stewart Friesen. The contact gave Hill right-rear bumper damage which hurt the handling of the No. 16 Toyota. Eventually, the yellow would fly on Lap 8 when the debris flew off the No. 16.

    Throughout the rest of the stage, there were no cautions but a few notable incidents among other playoff drivers. It was reported after the Lap 13 restart that Grant Enfinger faced potential issues as he reported the engine kept shutting off and on. Fast forward to Lap 34, when Friesen had handling problems with his No. 52 truck. Although the issue was never diagnosed throughout the race, the Halmar Friesen Racing team reported the truck could have had an ignition problem.

    From there, Brett Moffitt took the stage victory with Tyler Ankrum, Sheldon Creed, Zane Smith, Enfinger, Matt Crafton, Mayer, Derek Kraus, Johnny Sauter, and Christian Eckes completing the Top 10.

    Stage 2: Lap 67 – Lap 110

    Just one caution slowed the second stage after the No. 30 of Danny Bohn spun off Turn 4 when contact was made with the No. 20 of Spencer Boyd. However, during the caution, playoff driver Creed came to pit road to take fresh tires and adjustments for the No. 2 Chevy but was penalized for being too fast on pit road.

    The rest of the stage remained green, only this time Ankrum took the top spot for the Stage 2 victory. Sauter, Moffitt, Zane Smith, Mayer, Kraus, Crafton, Carson Hocevar, Parker Kligerman, and Eckes rounded out the Top 10 finishers.

    During the stage break caution, Sauter and Friesen were penalized for being too fast entering pit road and were sent to the rear prior to the Stage 3 restart. Meanwhile, Stage 2 winner Ankrum, missed his pit box the first time coming to pit road as he and the No. 26 team had a miscommunication and Ankrum was forced to come down pit road a second time to finally make his pit stop.

    Stage 3: Lap 119 – Lap 200

    Like Stage 2, the final stage was surprisingly clean with just a few minor incidents. On Lap 150, Creed and Kraus make notable contact on the backstretch. Despite the contact, both drivers were able to keep racing and no yellow was flown. Unfortunately, the night would only get worse for playoff contender Austin Hill who was involved in an incident seven laps later on Lap 157 when the No. 22 of Austin Wayne Self came up the track and got turned by Hill going into Turn(s) 3 and 4. After the contact, Hill came to pit road to fix the damage but received a penalty for too many men over the pit wall and he also owed NASCAR two laps due to being under the damage vehicle policy from an earlier incident.

    The last restart of the night came with 33 to go with Moffitt leading the way. However, it was his GMS Racing teammate, Mayer, who shined under the lights after taking the lead with 29 to go on the backstretch. From there, Mayer had a rocket ship with his No. 24 Chevy and went on to claim his first Truck Series victory with Moffitt following in the second position.

    Mayer led just one time for 30 laps.

    There were five cautions for 41 laps and four lead changes among three different leaders.

    Updated Playoff Grid following Round 1 at Bristol Motor Speedway

    1. Brett Moffitt, +36
    2. Sheldon Creed, +28
    3. Zane Smith, +25
    4. Grant Enfinger, +24
    5. Tyler Ankrum, +19
    6. Matt Crafton, +13
    7. Ben Rhodes, +6
    8. Austin Hill, +2
    9. Christian Eckes, -2
    10. Todd Gilliland, -8

    Official Results following the UNOH 200 at Bristol Motor Speedway.

    1. Sam Mayer, led 30 laps
    2. Brett Moffitt, led 117 laps, won Stage 1
    3. Tanner Gray
    4. Parker Kligerman
    5. Chandler Smith
    6. Grant Enfinger
    7. Tyler Ankrum, led 53 laps, won Stage 2
    8. Ross Chastain
    9. Johnny Sauter
    10. Matt Crafton
    11. Sheldon Creed
    12. Christian Eckes
    13. Ben Rhodes
    14. Todd Gilliland
    15. Derek Kraus
    16. Zane Smith, 1 lap down
    17. Carson Hocevar, 1 lap down
    18. Raphael Lessard, 1 lap down
    19. Camden Murphy, 1 lap down
    20. Timmy Hill, 3 laps down
    21. Tate Fogleman, 3 laps down
    22. Clay Greenfield, 3 laps down
    23. Jordan Anderson, 3 laps down
    24. Danny Bohn, 4 laps down
    25. Austin Hill, 5 laps down
    26. Josh Bilicki, 8 laps down
    27. Spencer Boyd, 8 laps down
    28. Jennifer Jo Cobb, 10 laps down
    29. Natalie Decker, 14 laps down
    30. Cody Erickson, 17 laps down
    31. Codie Rohrbaugh, OUT, Brakes
    32. Stewart Friesen, 33 laps down
    33. Austin Wayne Self, OUT, Crash
    34. Norm Benning, OUT, Suspension
    35. Josh Reaume, OUT, Suspension
    36. Trevor Bayne, Originally finished fifth, but was disqualified for failing post-race tech.

    Up Next: The NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series will continue its 2020 Playoff run next Friday, Sept. 25 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, live at 9 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 and MRN Radio.