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  • Noah Gragson Claims Pole for the World of Westgate 200

    Noah Gragson Claims Pole for the World of Westgate 200

    With a dominating time of 30.331 seconds at 178.036 mph, Noah Gragson will start in the top spot for this evening’s World of Westgate 200 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. He was only 0.005 seconds shy of the qualifying record.

    Stewart Friesen will start to his outside in the second position. Grant Enfinger, Chris Eggleston and Riley Herbst rounds out the top five. The other drivers to make the final round of qualifying include Johnny Sauter, Brandon Jones, John Hunter Nemechek, Brett Moffit, Todd Gilliland, Tanner Thorson and Justin Haley. All drivers will start in that respective order.

    “We were fast there earlier on in the spring with my Safelite AutoGlass Toyota Tundra,” stated Gragson as he reflected on his race earlier this year. “We restarted the final restart in second place, but the left-rear tire was chorded, so we didn’t get the result that we showed all throughout the race, but we ran in the top three the whole time. It’s another opportunity to chase a checkered flag.”

    Gragson was fastest in the first round of qualifying at his hometrack, with Stewart Friesen and Kyle Busch Motorsports teammate Brandon Jones rounding out the top three starting positions. Gragson was fifth fastest in final practice, but only 16th during first practice; however, he set the fastest 10 consecutive lap average over Matt Crafton. All four KBM trucks made the final round of qualifying.

    Two playoff contenders did not make the second round of qualifying. Ben Rhodes was only able to place himself in the 18th starting position in his No. 41 The Carolina Nut Co. Ford. The other was Matt Crafton, who starts 30th with an unusual qualifying run, and puts him in an uphill battle being one of the playoff contenders. Earlier in the day, the No. 88 Ideal Door / Menards Ford was fourth and third fastest in both practices respectively.

    Some trucks were required to qualify on speed, but the unfortunate three that did not make the field included Tate Fogleman, JJ Yeley and Norm Benning.

    Tune into the only September Truck race of 2018 by listening live on radio with MRN (Motor Racing Network) or watch on television with FS1 later this evening at 9:00pm ET.

     

    Time Trial Results
    Las Vegas Motor Speedway
    22nd Annual World of Westgate 200
    Qualifying Round: 2

    Pos Car Driver Team Make
    1 18 Noah Gragson (P) Safelite AutoGlass Toyota
    2 52 Stewart Friesen (P) We Build America Chevrolet
    3 98 Grant Enfinger (P) Champion Power Equipment/Curb Records Ford
    4 54 Chris Eggleston H2O Fire Protection Toyota
    5 46 Riley Herbst Advance Auto Parts Toyota
    6 21 Johnny Sauter (P) Allegiant Chevrolet
    7 51 Brandon Jones(i) Delta Faucet/Menards Toyota
    8 8 John H. Nemechek(i) Berry’s Manufacturing Chevrolet
    9 16 Brett Moffit (P) TZ Toyota
    10 4 Todd Gilliland # JBL/SiriusXM Toyota
    11 20 Tanner Thorson GO Share Chevrolet
    12 24 Justin Haley (P) Fraternal Order Of Eagles Chevrolet

     

    Qualifying Round: 1

    Pos Car Driver Team Make
    1 18 Noah Gragson (P) Safelite AutoGlass Toyota
    2 52 Stewart Friesen (P) We Build America Chevrolet
    3 51 Brandon Jones(i) Delta Faucet/Menards Toyota
    4 54 Chris Eggleston H2O Fire Protection Toyota
    5 8 John Hunter Berry’s Manufacturing Chevrolet
    6 4 Todd Gilliland # JBL/SiriusXM Toyota
    7 46 Riley Herbst Advance Auto Parts Toyota
    8 21 Johnny Sauter (P) Allegiant Chevrolet
    9 98 Grant Enfinger (P) Champion Power Equipment/Curb Records Ford
    10 16 Brett Moffit (P) TZ Toyota
    11 20 Tanner Thorson GO Share Chevrolet
    12 24 Justin Haley (P) Fraternal Order Of Eagles Chevrolet
    13 13 Myatt Snider # Century Container Ford
    14 25 Timothy Peters Kingman Chevrolet
    15 2 Cody Coughlin GOD FALSE
    16 02 Austin Hill Young’s Building Systems/Randco Chevrolet
    17 17 Bo LeMastus # Crosley Brands Toyota
    18 41 Ben Rhodes (P) The Carolina Nut Co. Ford
    19 04 Cory Roper Preferred Industrial Contractors Inc. Ford
    20 7 Korbin Forrister TruClear Toyota
    21 30 Austin Theriault Cross Insurance Toyota
    22 87 Joe Nemechek Harrah’s Chevrolet
    23 38 TJ Bell Niece Equipment Chevrolet
    24 15 Ross Chastain(i) Premium Motorsports Chevrolet
    25 22 Austin Wayne Self GO TEXAN Chevrolet
    26 97 Jesse Little JJL Motorsports Ford
    27 10 Jennifer Jo Cobb Waldo’s Painting Company Chevrolet
    28 OP 83 Bayley Currey Chevrolet
    29 OP 88 Matt Crafton (P) Ideal Door/Menards Ford
    30 OP 45 Justin Fontaine # ProMATIC Automation/Superior Essex Chevrolet
    31 OP 49 Wendell Chavous Sobriety Nation Chevrolet
    32 OP 3 Jordan Anderson Commercial Property Services Chevrolet
    33 12 Tate Fogleman Solid Rock Carriers Chevrolet
    34 33 JJ Yeley(i) Reaume Brothers Racing Inc. Toyota
    35 6 Norm Benning H&H Transport Chevrolet
  • The View From My Recliner – Smoke is on Fire!

    The View From My Recliner – Smoke is on Fire!

    In the middle of what should have been an amazing weekend for Tony Stewart, Smoke has shown that he is had enough and Homestead can’t get here soon enough for him.

    Coming off his solid run in Michigan, Stewart was running in the top-five in practice at Sonoma when he came up on slower cars heading into turn 11 and it set off the fireworks. Later in practice, Jamie McMurray cut him off and received the one-finger salute from the three-time champion.

    After practice, Stewart said to the gathered media, “I’m ready to go run stuff that makes me happy and driving a Sprint Cup car does not make me happy right now. A lot of things have changed. The atmosphere has changed. There is so much stuff in the garage area that has changed that it was time for me to make a change with it.

    “I’ve dedicated 18 years of my life to this series and it’s done great by me,” Stewart said. “I’ve made a great living doing it, but at the same time, there are other things in life I want to do other than be at a NASCAR track three days a week for 38 weekends out of 52 weeks a year. There are just other things I want to do now.”

    Reading Stewart’s quotes to the media makes me wonder about the shape NASCAR is in as a sport. One thing that Stewart has said was when he was coming up, drivers learned from Mark Martin, didn’t cross Dale Earnhardt and would get a lecture from Rusty Wallace if they didn’t obey the unofficial rules of practice or the race.

    Folks, please take notice. NASCAR is a better place with Tony Stewart in the race car and in the garage. Tony Stewart basically said yesterday he can’t wait to be done with NASCAR. That is sad.

    The state of NASCAR is up in the air.

    The majority of competitive NASCAR team owners are in their 60s and 70s,  Who is the next group of racers who want to own teams? How many drivers are in cars because they bring sponsorship with them? Paul Menard, Brian Scott and Danica Patrick are drivers who are either funded by family companies or just a marketing machine and probably not in their rides without the sponsorship they bring to the table.

    The XFINITY Series can’t develop the next group of drivers because they will run with the funding Cup drivers bring with them to theXFINITY Series rather than take a chance on a good young driver like Ryan Truex, Corey LaJoie and Brandon McReynolds.

    Attendance is down everywhere and television ratings are down, where is the opportunity to grow the sport?

    The television contract with Fox Sports 1 and NBC Sports Network put more races on cable networks that are building an audience from scratch and people are too fickle or lazy to go searching  for what channel it is on.

    A couple comments from a post-practice interview yesterday, really made me question where does NASCAR go from here? Think about it, if Tony Stewart doesn’t want to be in Sprint Cup racing, why would anyone else want to watch it?

     

  • Donovan McNabb Ignorantly Claims Jimmie Johnson Is Not An Athlete

    Donovan McNabb Ignorantly Claims Jimmie Johnson Is Not An Athlete

    The huge smiles on the faces of NASCAR fans across the country following the epic CWTS season finale were quickly replaced by looks of utter bewilderment and complete disgust.

    What caused such a drastic and sudden change in emotions? Well, it was the result of retired NFL quarterback Donovan McNabb’s ignorant statement regarding five-time Cup champion Jimmie Johnson on Fox Sports Live after the race. McNabb said “Do I think he’s an athlete? Absolutely not.” He then went on to say, “He sits in a car and drives. That’s not athletic.”

    It didn’t take long for social media and Twitter specifically to explode with irate race fans and members of the racing community slamming McNabb to the ground for his comments.

    NASCAR Nation Reacts

    Jimmie Johnson: The debate continues… Everyone is entitled to an opinion. #DriversAreAthletes

    Kyle Larson: “Donovan McNabb is a moron. Says Jimmie Johnson isn’t an athlete because he doesn’t do anything active, just drives a car….I’d like to see him drive a stock car for 500 miles.”

    “Donovan McNabb must be mad he never won a championship and Jimmie just keeps winning them over and over again.”

    Ricky Stenhouse Jr: “Wow Donovan McNabb really? Got to b an idiot. I’d like to see him keep up with Jimmie Johnson in a workout. And drive our cars for 500miles.”

    Jeff Burton: We need a cup owner to provide a current car, go to Bristol,put McNabb in for 500 laps by himself. Then ask if drivers are athletes #educate

    Jeff Gordon: 20+ yr debate. @NASCAR driver athlete? Never met a “athlete” who actually drove a racecar that doubted it. Care to take a ride Donovan?

    Sherry Pollex (MTJ Girlfriend): “Wow McNabb just said Jimmie Johnson isn’t an athlete on Fox Sports 1. Ummm what?!! The guys a machine. #smdh #cantfixstupid”

    DeLana Harvick: “Hearing people “discuss” our sport who have no freakin clue what they’re talking about is awesome…”

    Jeffrey Earnhardt: “Can we find a way to put Donovan McNabb in a racecar for saying Jimmie Johnson isn’t a athlete? Anyone’s thoughts?”

    The terms Donovan McNabb, #NASCAR & #PeopleMoreAthleticThanDonovanMcNabb quickly began trending nationwide on Twitter. Later, Fox Sports Live tweeted “Any race fans on Twitter tonight? Tough to find a more passionate fan base!” My favorite tweet of the night came from @TheMiniChad who said “well done Donovan McNabb – you did something we all thought impossible. you brought every nascar fan on twitter come to JJ’s side!”

    Here is full video of the that statement that has the racing community so angry: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nWVmEvgByto&feature=youtu.be

    This isn’t McNabb’s first NASCAR related blunder either. Earlier this year, he mistakenly congratulated Danica Patrick on her Daytona 500 victory when she had in fact, only earned pole position for the race proving that this guy has no prior knowledge of the sport and therefore, shouldn’t be talking about it on national television. Then there was the infamous Golden Tate incident a couple years back as well.

    McNabb Responds To NASCAR Nation’s Anger: “Glad to see that you are watching Fox Sports Live. If you have any questions to what I said, look up the word and you will have your answer.”

    The misconception that racecar drivers aren’t athletes has been an issue for a while. The problem is people have literally nothing to compare it to except for driving a street car on the highway at 60mph which obviously takes very little effort. In reality, there are no similarities between driving a street car and a racecar other than the fact they both have steering wheels and pedals. I’ve been in a racecar at speeds upwards of 170mph and let me tell you, there are no comparisons whatsoever to what you feel in a street car.

    Is it a coincidence that arguably the fittest driver in the garage is the most successful? No, it is not. It’s a sport that requires you to endure temperatures similar to that of the Sahara Desert inside the cockpit. You need to have reflexes on par with a fighter pilot’s and an endurance that rivals an Olympic track runner. In a race, one needs to maintain an extremely high level of alertness for three to four consecutive hours while at the same time fighting G-forces that are constantly pulling your arms down and putting a fair amount of pressure on your chest and legs.

    Oh, and occasionally fighting the symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning as well. You hang onto 3,000 pound machines that are about as controllable as an incensed bull, inches away from your closest competitor and knowing very well that any lapse in judgement could spell the end of your day, possibly your career and in the most severe circumstances, your life. There are no errors or fouls allowed in NASCAR; you must be perfect at all times or face catastrophic consequences.

    The hand-eye coordination needed to control the car at the absolute edge of its capabilities and at breakneck speeds is just like the hand-eye coordination needed to hit, catch and throw a ball except for the obvious fact that the stakes are much higher at 200mph. How about breaks? In football, plays last no longer than a few seconds and baseball players get to sit on a bench for about half the game. In NASCAR, you’re only break usually is a few minutes worth of caution.

    Lets focus on physical toughness now. We’ve seen drivers race with broken ribs, concussions, dislocated shoulders, faces swollen to the point where they can’t see and a multitude of other injuries while some players in other sports sit out due to a sprained thumb. Drivers have collapsed following races due to sheer exhaustion on numerous occasions and you are going to try to tell me that it takes no physical effort to race in NASCAR?

    If NASCAR drivers aren’t athletes, then I don’t know what an athlete is.

    Jimmie Johnson’s Training Routine: http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=9984515

    Via @TheStrengthGuys
    Via @TheStrengthGuys
  • Monica Palumbo Primed and Ready for Her Favorite Event NASCAR After The Lap™

    Monica Palumbo Primed and Ready for Her Favorite Event NASCAR After The Lap™

    For the fifth year in a row, NASCAR After The Lap™ will be back in Las Vegas during champion’s week and at least one of the co-hosts Monica Palumbo is primed and ready for her ‘favorite’ event.

    Palumbo, former Miss Sprint Cup and current reporter for NASCAR Race Hub on Fox Sports 1, will be sharing the hosting duties with Marty Smith of ESPN. Palumbo will be handling the fans in the crowd, while Smith will be managing the drivers on stage.

    The event this year will take place on Thursday, December 5th at 5:00 PM at the Pearl Palms Concert Theater inside the Palms Casino Hotel.

    “I actually worked NASCAR After The Lap™ twice already and it’s my favorite event because the guys are so loose and it’s an intimate setting,” Palumbo said. “You can see it on nascar.com but it’s not televised so I feel like it’s a little bit more special.”

    “The drivers are really showing off their personalities that you don’t necessarily get to see throughout the season,” Palumbo continued. “It’s just one of my favorite events.”

    Palumbo advised that her role at the event will be one of liaison between the crowd, sponsors and the drivers, however, the emphasis from her perspective is indeed on the fans in this unique event.

    “It’s a very fan-friendly event and that’s one thing NASCAR is really big on,” Palumbo said. “It’s about the fans first.”

    “They are going to have notecards so the audience can submit their questions in advance,” Palumbo continued. “Then I’ll go through them and pick out the questions to be asked.”

    “So, I’ll be out there taking questions from the audience and making sure everybody has a good time.”

    Palumbo is also primed and ready for the sweepstakes and giveaways that accompany the NASCAR After The Lap™ event. This year, fans can win an all-inclusive VIP trip to Las Vegas for the event, trips to either the 2014 Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte or the 2014 Ford Ecoboost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, as well as the grand prize, a 2014 Ford F-150 Tremor.

    “I’m really excited about the big sweepstakes,” Palumbo said. “They’re giving away a 2014 Ford Tremor, which is pretty awesome.”

    “Coca Cola and Ford are both giving away tickets to the Coca Cola 600 and the Ford Champions Week for 2014,” Palumbo continued. “So, the sweepstakes winners will be there and they will also have a shot to win a car.”

    “We’ll be doing that in the audience as well, which is pretty cool to get a free car.”

    Palumbo is also primed and ready to get to Las Vegas, a place that she assesses as ‘perfect’ for this type of fan-interactive post-season event.

    “Vegas itself just equals celebration to me,” Palumbo said. “So, I feel like it is a fun event.”

    “Everybody is so relaxed,” Palumbo continued. “The season is over and it’s a time for celebration.”

    So, who is Palumbo predicting will be in the champion’s seat for the event and at the head table come banquet time?

    “It’s definitely down to Jimmie Johnson and Matt Kenseth now and we know how well they are both running,” Palumbo said. “We know that Jimmie is so great at Phoenix so it’s really a toss-up between the two.”

    “I can’t even bet on either one,” Palumbo continued. “I’m ready to put my money down on one but I can’t because I don’t want to lose.”

    “Everybody is on pins and needles because we know Jimmie can do it obviously,” Palumbo said. “But Matt Kenseth is really giving him a run for his money.”

    “I think the fans love seeing that and the two drivers are definitely keeping it exciting.”

    Palumbo is also primed and ready for the NASCAR After The Lap™ event because of where the proceeds go, helping individuals, children and families in need through the NASCAR Foundation, a nonprofit charitable organization.

    “The tickets are only $20 and all the money, one hundred percent of the proceeds, goes to the NASCAR Foundation, which is unreal,” Palumbo said. “It’s probably one of the best charity events where all of the drivers are together in a relaxed way, cutting up with each other, joking about incidents that have happened during the year, and some have even gotten up and danced.”

    “It’s a great event to get the drivers out of their element,” Palumbo continued. “There is not an event like this throughout the whole season.”

    “This is a one of a kind,” Palumbo said. “You might have the drivers together for media day but they are so focused on that race.”

    “This is the end of the season and they can all breathe,” Palumbo continued. “They’re all ready to have a good time, hang out with the fans and answer their questions.”

    “There is just nothing like it.

    Palumbo is not alone in her enthusiasm for the NASCAR After The Lap™ event.

    “Celebrating its fifth consecutive season, NASCAR After The Lap has evolved into one of the most talked about events of NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion’s Week™ and provides two long-standing partners, Ford and Coca-Cola, a valuable platform to connect with our brand-loyal fan base,” Norris Scott, NASCAR vice president of marketing, said. “It is an event unlike any other in sports that gives our fans the chance to see the drivers with their helmets off and their guard down.”

    “Over the last five years as event sponsor, Ford has enjoyed some remarkable and very unpredictable moments with our NASCAR drivers,” Tim Duerr, motorsports marketing manager for Ford Racing, said. “The NASCAR after the Lap Sweepstakes continues to provide Ford with a great avenue to engage with fans by offering them a chance to not only win a trip out to Las Vegas, but also an opportunity to go home with a brand-new 2014 Ford F150 Tremor.”

    “This sponsorship delivers results to Ford on many levels.”

    “As a long-time partner, Coca-Cola is proud to celebrate the 2013 season with the stars of NASCAR at this year’s NASCAR After The Lap,” Ben Reiling, director of motorsports for Coca-Cola North America Group, said. “In our fifth year as an event sponsor, we are offering fans a stellar experience to interact directly with members of our Coca-Cola Racing Family and a chance to win a trip to our marquee event, the Coca-Cola 600.”

    “We’re looking forward to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion’s Week and it’s definitely going to be a wild ride.”

    For more information or to purchase tickets, fans can visit  www.NASCARafterthelap.com.

    For fans unable to attend in person, NASCAR.com will offer a live stream of the event.