Tag: Kentucky Speedway

  • Multi-Car Melee Rocks Initial Start of XFINITY Kentucky Race

    Multi-Car Melee Rocks Initial Start of XFINITY Kentucky Race

    SPARTA, Ky. — A combination of games played on the restart and other drivers trying to get a jump on the start resulted in a multi-car accident on the initial start of the day-late NASCAR XFINITY Series race in the Bluegrass State.

    Coming to the start/finish to take the initial start of the day-late Alsco 300 at Kentucky Speedway, Kyle Busch — rather than accelerate in the restart zone, as most drivers do — waited for the flagman to start the race.

    The rest of the field, probably anticipating Busch to accelerate in the restart zone, tried to time the start to get a jump on those ahead. This caused a stack up near mid-pack, resulting in Blake Koch ramming into the back of Brendan Gaughan, turning him up into the left-front wheel of Brandon Jones and came back down and made contact with Michael Annett.

    Ryan Reed received significant damage after he slammed into the back of Koch.

    Gaughan continued on in the race, only to crash out a few laps later when his car slammed the wall in Turn 2.

    Reed leaves eighth in points, 224 behind Elliott Sadler. Koch leaves 12th in points, 278 behind Elliott Sadler, with Gaughan in 13th behind 300.

  • Kyle Busch Stretches Fuel to Win in XFINITY at Kentucky

    Kyle Busch Stretches Fuel to Win in XFINITY at Kentucky

    SPARTA, Ky. — Kyle Busch demonstrated new tires weren’t entirely superior to worn tires and stretched his fuel to win the day-late NASCAR XFINITY Series Alsco 300 at Kentucky Speedway.

    After caution flew with 34 laps to go, he made the decision to stay out when race leaders Erik Jones and Ryan Blaney pitted. He took off on the restart and extended his record number of victories in the NASCAR XFINITY Series.

    He noted in victory lane that the win didn’t come easy and it was challenging.

    “That’s what racing is all about, these guys keep getting better and we just bide our time a little bit as well today. We did what we needed to do to be there at the end and gave it our best opportunity there. We took four tires and that kind of got us behind there with two pit stops to go and then some of those guys came in again. Obviously our car was really fast out front and once I got in clean air I didn’t think anybody had anything for us,” Busch said.

    It’s his 88th career victory in 333 XFINITY Series starts.

    Blaney rallied from an outside tire violation to finish runner-up and Jones rounded out the podium.

    Kevin Harvick and Ty Dillon rounded out the top-five.

    Joey Logano, William Byron, Justin Allgaier, Daniel Hemric and Tyler Reddick rounded out the top-10.

    RACE RECAP

    The field barely made it to the start/finish line for the initial start of the race before the accordion effect of stack up of cars resulted in a multi-car wreck on the frontstretch. It only went two laps green before a wreck in Turn 2, Brendan Gaughan, brought out the second caution on the eighth lap.

    The longest green flag run of the first stage was the second on the Lap 15 restart, stretching 11 laps, before caution, a scheduled competition flew on Lap 26

    On the Lap 6 restart, Jones passed teammate Busch exiting Turn 2 to take the lead and drove on to win the first stage. When he pitted under the caution, Blaney, who pitted under the competition caution, assumed the race lead and won a caution-free second stage with ease.

    With tire falloff not being as steep this weekend, he elected not to pit, as did the first 16 cars.

    Jones and Busch took the fight to Blaney on the Lap 100 restart, especially when he got loose exiting Turn 4, allowing the two of them to get to his inside. With a three-wide battle for first coming to the start/finish line, Busch edged out Jones and Blaney to retake the lead.

    When Joey Gase’s engine expired in Turn 2, spilling fluid down the backstretch, the leaders pitted, Jones took just two tires and exited with the race lead.

    Back to green on lap 137, Blaney caught him with less than 50 laps to go and spent a number of laps applying the pressure, until a solo-spin in Turn 2 by Ray Black Jr. with 34 to go brought out the eighth caution, setting up the run to the finish.

    OTHER CAUTIONS

    Paul Menard brought out a caution on Lap 104 when he got loose and rear-ended the Turn 2 wall.

    NUTS & BOLTS

    The race lasted two hours, 30 minutes and 56 seconds at an average speed of 119.258 mph. There were seven lead changes among four different drivers and eight cautions for 44 laps.

    Elliott Sadler leaves with a 45-point lead over Byron.

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  • Kyle Busch Captures Cup Series Pole at Kentucky

    Kyle Busch Captures Cup Series Pole at Kentucky

    SPARTA, Ky. — Kyle Busch will lead the field to the green flag tomorrow night after winning the pole for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Quaker State 400 at Kentucky Speedway.

    Inclement weather forced NASCAR to cancel the final round of qualifying.

    The driver of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota scored the pole with a new track record time of 28.379 and a speed of 190.282 mph.

    It’s his 22nd career pole in 444 career starts.

    Martin Truex Jr. will start second with a time of 28.392 and a speed of 190.194 mph. Matt Kenseth will start third with a time of 28.460 and a speed of 189.740 mph. Jamie McMurray will start fourth with a time of 28.464 and a speed of 189.713 mph. Denny Hamlin will round out the top-five with a time of 28.468 and a speed of 189.687 mph.

    Ryan Blaney, Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson, Daniel Suarez and Brad Keselowski will round out the top-10.

    Kyle Larson didn’t post a lap after failing to pass tech inspection on multiple tries. He’ll start 40th.

    No driver failed to make the race.

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  • XFINITY Race at Kentucky Postponed to Saturday at Noon

    XFINITY Race at Kentucky Postponed to Saturday at Noon

    SPARTA, Ky. — The NASCAR XFINITY Series Alsco 300 at Kentucky Speedway has been postponed to Saturday at noon ET due to rain showers approaching the track.

    Steve O’Donnell, NASCAR Executive Vice President and Chief Racing Development Officer, announced the decision, stating,  “NASCAR and Kentucky Speedway have decided to postpone tonight’s NASCAR XFINITY Series race until tomorrow. Fan safety is our No. 1 priority. Due to extreme weather forecasted deep into this evening, we did not see any opportunity to get the race completed tonight.”

    Tomorrow’s forecast has only a 10 percent chance of rain in the afternoon (Weather.com).

    Kyle Busch will lead the field to the green flag at noon. The race will be broadcast on NBCSN with radio coverage provided by PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

     

  • Kyle Busch Takes Pole Position in XFINITY at Kentucky

    Kyle Busch Takes Pole Position in XFINITY at Kentucky

    SPARTA, Ky. — Kyle Busch will lead the field to the green flag tonight after winning the pole for the Alsco 300 at Kentucky Speedway.

    The driver of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota nabbed pole position with a final round time of 29.681 and a speed of 181.935 mph. Erik Jones will start second in his No. 20 Gibbs Toyota with a final round time of 29.730 and a speed of 181.635 mph. Ryan Blaney will start third in his No. 12 Team Penske Ford with a final round time of 29.776 and a speed of 181.354 mph. Joey Logano will start fourth in his No. 22 Penske Ford with a final round time of 29.913 and a speed of 180.524 mph. William Byron rounded out the top-five in his No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet with a final round time of 29.975 and a speed of 180.150 mph.

    Tyler Reddick, Brennan Poole, Cole Custer, Paul Menard and Daniel Hemric will round out the top-10.

    Kevin Harvick and Ty Dillon will round out the 12 drivers that made the final round of qualifying.

    With 43 cars entered, three — Brandon Brown, Quintillion’s Houff and Morgan Shepherd — failed to make the race.

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  • Larson Fastest in Final Cup Practice at Kentucky

    Larson Fastest in Final Cup Practice at Kentucky

    SPARTA, Ky. — Kyle Larson topped the chart in final Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice at Kentucky Speedway.

    The driver of the No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet was the fastest with a time of 28.695 and a speed of 188.186 mph. Martin Truex Jr. was second in his No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota with a time of 28.848 and a speed of 187.188 mph. Chase Elliott was third in his No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet with a time of 28.892 and a speed of 186.903 mph. Ryan Blaney was fourth in his No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford with a time of 28.961 and a speed of 186.458 mph. Kyle Busch rounded out the top-five in his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota with a time of 28.991 and a speed of 186.265 mph.

    Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth, Jamie McMurray, Darrell Wallace Jr. and Clint Bowyer rounded out the top-10.

    Larson posted the fastest 10 consecutive lap average at a speed of 181.516 mph.

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  • Kenseth Doesn’t Expect JGR to be an Option Next Season

    Kenseth Doesn’t Expect JGR to be an Option Next Season

    SPARTA, Ky. — Matt Kenseth’s announcement that he doesn’t expect to return to Joe Gibbs Racing next season set off the 2017 silly season domino chain.

    It wasn’t a case of giving a vague answer that could be misinterpreted. He outright said he doesn’t think returning to JGR next season is an option.

    “I don’t think so. I don’t think it is (an option). Like I said, I don’t have a ride at this moment for next year. I haven’t worked on anything real hard, but I don’t think I will have the option to race at JGR next season, unfortunately,” he said.

    Compounding the dilemma for the 2003 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion is that he doesn’t have a ride for next season. While his name has been brought up a time or two in the discussion on drivers to replace Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the No. 88 Chevrolet, it’s important to note Hendrick Motorsports already has two young drivers, Alex Bowman and William Byron, waiting in the pipeline.

    With the wave of young drivers rising up through the NASCAR ranks in the last few seasons, it would appear Kenseth’s days are numbered, especially with rides hard to come by. But at the end of the day, he’s not panicking yet.

    “I’m not really worried about it,” he added. “As of today, I do not have a job for next year. So I certainly hope to still be racing next year. I think I got some wins left in me and, hopefully, I can race for championships. But right now, my focus is finishing up this year. As we talked about, it’s been kind of a slow start. Has not been a good year, at all. Not nearly up to my standards or my teams’ standards. So trying to get back to victory lane and, hopefully, get qualified for the playoffs here and have a shot at the playoffs is pretty much my focus at this point.”

  • McMurray Fastest in First Cup Practice at Kentucky

    McMurray Fastest in First Cup Practice at Kentucky

    SPARTA, Ky. — Jamie McMurray topped the chart in first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice at Kentucky Speedway.

    The driver of the No. 1 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet was the fastest with a time of 28.911 and a speed of 186.780 mph. Martin Truex Jr. was second in his No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota with a time of 28.963 and a speed of 186.445 mph. Kyle Larson was third in his No. 42 Ganassi Chevrolet with a time of 29.017 and a speed of 186.098 mph. Ryan Blaney was fourth in his No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford with a time of 29.023 and a speed of 186.059 mph. Kyle Busch rounded out the top-five in his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota with a time of 29.042 and a speed of 185.938 mph.

    Denny Hamlin, Danica Patrick, Clint Bowyer, Chase Elliott and Erik Jones rounded out the top-10.

    Busch posted the fastest 10 consecutive lap average at a speed of 183.148 mph.

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  • Kyle Busch Fastest in Final XFINITY Practice

    Kyle Busch Fastest in Final XFINITY Practice

    SPARTA, Ky. — Kyle Busch topped the chart in final NASCAR XFINITY Series practice at Kentucky Speedway.

    The driver of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was the fastest with a time of 29.607 and a speed of 182.389 mph. Ryan Blaney was second in his No. 12 Team Penske Ford with a time of 29.744 and a speed of 181.549 mph. Brandon Jones was third in his No. 33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet with a time of 29.794 and a speed of 181.245 mph. Tyler Reddick was fourth in his No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet with a time of 29.811 and a speed of 181.141 mph. Erik Jones rounded out the top-five in his No. 20 Gibbs Toyota with a time of 29.860 and a speed of 180.844 mph.

    Brennan Poole, Daniel Hemric, Ty Dillon, Joey Logano and Kevin Harvick rounded out the top-10.

    Blaney posted the fastest 10 consecutive lap average at a speed of 179.970 mph.

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  • 75 percent of ThorSport Racing collected in second stage wreck

    75 percent of ThorSport Racing collected in second stage wreck

    SPARTA, Ky. — An eight-place finish by Matt Crafton and 15th by Cody Coughlin salvaged what almost turned into a rotten night for ThorSport Racing after three-quarters of their stable, including Crafton, were involved in a multi-truck wreck early in the second stage of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Buckle Up In Your Truck 225 at Kentucky Speedway.

    Entering Turn 3 on the lap 42 restart, first stage winner Ben Rhodes was running below the No. 45 of TJ Bell when he got loose and spun out. He did roughly a 135° spin before hitting Bell with his left-rear corner, sending him up the track and into the path of Crafton, who made slight contact with the wall.

    After Rhodes made contact with Bell, his truck did another half spin before pounding the wall right-rear first. Teammate Grant Enfinger, who made the choice to go high to avoid the spinning Rhodes when he was still on the bottom, slammed into his rear-end.

    “I was underneath the 4 (Christopher Bell) trying to make a move. Then I saw him start to come down on me so I started backing out, and as we were going down to the groove we just all ran out of room,” Rhodes said. “I was trying to give everybody as much room as I could. Just unfortunate. I know all the restarts everybody was going as hard as they can. They were four-wide in front of me, so I was trying to do what I could with what I had. Just unfortunate we couldn’t come out a little bit better for our Safelite team. We had a lot of people here tonight to watch the race. Sorry I let them down. Just a big mistake on my part. Miscalculated it, and just need to re-evaluate our situation this year and try to get us in the playoffs.”

    Crafton leaves Kentucky fourth in points, 89 back of Johnny Sauter, with Rhodes and Enfinger tailing him in fifth and sixth. Coughlin leaves 13th in points.