Welcome to Talladega, the most entertaining racetrack in NASCAR. We watch something you and I haven’t got the guts to do, or just maybe we have enough brains not to. Fender to fender, side by side at 200 mph, and you sit in wonder that they have not wrecked yet. When they do wreck, something considered more of an eventuality than anything else, it often is spectacular. If that does not get your juices flowing, then might I interest you in the ballet, or maybe soccer or basketball is more to your liking.
There are other items of interest that popped up this week. Someone made the suggestion that NASCAR should consider paying refunds for rainouts or delays that force the event to be spread over a couple of days. Great idea, for those who do not understand economics. Expenses have been incurred, revenue is required to pay them off, and we all understand that the weather could play a role. If you are not prepared to pad your stay by a day, just in case, you take your chances. If it rains for a couple of days, some refund might be a consideration.
A return of Matt Kenseth could be in the offing. Reports have him coming in to replace Trevor Bayne, with the pair splitting the duties for the rest of the season at Roush-Fenway. Bayne’s health issues could be an issue behind the move or just a lack of performance. The No. 6 currently sits 26th in the standings. It will be good to see Matt back, but I wish it was under different circumstances.
Monster Energy will be back as the main sponsor for the Cup folks for 2019. After what will be just three seasons, there are no promises beyond that. Hell, Nextel lasted longer. I think we know the answer as to how bad Monster Energy has got it. What once had been a fever has turned into a mild case of the sniffles.
Skittles. M&M’s. Snickers. Kyle Busch drives a car that even the kids of his rivals love. That has to hurt, especially lately. When Kyle Larson lost to Busch at Bristol, the first thing 3-year-old Owen Larson asked his pops was if he had any Skittles for him. That had to hurt. You know, Mr. Larson, you are not you when you lose to Mr. Busch. Have a Snickers. What, too soon?
It is never too soon for Talladega. I bet you it could have a successful series all on its own. If the Professional Bull Riders can break away from rodeo with its own separate event, I think a Talladega series could make a go of it. I know I would be watching.
You can catch a preview this Sunday afternoon with our Hot 20 and their friends.
1. KYLE BUSCH – 3 WINS – 415 Pts
Why not four?
2. KEVIN HARVICK – 3 WINS – 324 Pts
3 wins, one of which is encumbered. It matters not, for the moment.
3. CLINT BOWYER – 1 WIN – 329 Pts
Stewart-Haas has yet to win at Talladega. Could times, they be a changin’?
4. MARTIN TRUEX JR. – 1 WIN – 284 Pts
Things were looking sweet on the track but went sour in the Richmond pits.
5. AUSTIN DILLON – 1 WIN – 208 Pts
You would have to think the Daytona winner would have a shot at Talladega.
6. JOEY LOGANO – 359 POINTS
Appeared to be the best damn car at Richmond, at least for the first half.
7. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 303 POINTS
5 times Talladega has been kind to him. Only a Gordon and a pair of Earnhardts have won more.
8. DENNY HAMLIN – 286 POINTS
An owner of Little Big Burger in Cornelius, N.C. might look familiar. Denny Hamburger?
9. RYAN BLANEY – 282 POINTS
If being wrecked is something you get used to, Blaney should be relaxed going into Sunday.
10. KURT BUSCH – 282 POINTS
Third SHR auto in the Top Ten, as all sit among the dozen best.
11. KYLE LARSON – 279 POINTS
Credit One Bank is a fine sponsor, but they are not exactly Skittles.
12. ARIC ALMIROLA – 248 POINTS
Has three Top Tens in 2018. Danica had three Top Tens from 2015 to 2017.
13. ERIK JONES – 233 POINTS
It promises to be a perfect Talladega Sunday, especially if he claims his first career win.
14. ALEX BOWMAN – 209 POINTS
Except for Texas, it has been nothing but Top Twenties, with a pair of Top Tens in his last four.
15. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 200 POINTS
Both crew chief and driver showed their worth last week.
16. WILLIAM BYRON – 192 POINTS
Drives an iconic car, but not exactly an iconic or even a recognizable name just yet.
17. RYAN NEWMAN – 186 POINTS
The RCR boys are in the mix, but lately, they have not been among the main ingredients.
18. PAUL MENARD – 183 POINTS
Was working his way back at Richmond, but an uncontrolled tire in the pits dashed all hope.
19. RICKY STENHOUSE JR. – 176 POINTS
Last year, he was the guy with the girl. This year, he is the guy who is the defending race winner.
20. CHASE ELLIOTT – 175 POINTS
Eight times a bridesmaid before becoming a bride. That was also his dad’s experience.
Sometimes you watch a race and you just know early what the outcome will be. Sometimes you discover you did not have a clue. Welcome to Richmond last Saturday night.
It appeared that pole sitter Martin Truex Jr. would have a great day. Then again, Joey Logano was the one to watch. He was in the end of the caution-free opening segment, one that left half the field in the dust, at least a lap down. Already the likes of Erik Jones, Alex Bowman, Paul Menard, A.J. Allmendinger, and Jimmie Johnson were out of it. Done. Gone but not forgotten. We were kind of wrong about that, too, as it turned out.
The second segment, more of the same. No cautions, as Kurt Busch took a turn up front, followed by Clint Bowyer. Then Logano made his return to claim the top bonus points. No doubt, Logano would be the one to beat. Right? Wrong.
The third frame was more of the same, and more familiar names leading the parade. We started with Kurt, then Bowyer, then Truex, before Kevin Harvick took a bow. Then the cautions started to fall, and so did our earlier expectations.
Sure, Truex did come back to lead the way for 35 laps. For a moment, we thought how it began, so would it end. We had no idea. A screwed up pit stop left the defending champion sucking wind, finishing 14th. So, who would finally emerge? Which one of our aforementioned heroes would shake the suds when it was all over?
None of them. Kyle Busch started deep in the field and led 31 of the final 32 laps to claim his third straight Cup victory with an overtime decision. It marked the 46th time he has claimed the prize, and in over the past 25 NASCAR races, it was the Rowdyman taking eight of them.
Great points day for Busch, and a good one for brother Kurt, yet it was Logano taking home a race-high 53 ducats in finishing fourth. With his eight career runner-up finish was Chase Elliott. As for Johnson, he who was lost and gone from view until Talladega next week, he finished sixth. Sixth. Be it God, Jesus, Mohammed, Buddha, the Great Manitou, or Chad Knaus up on the box, somehow a miracle took place. A big adjustment after the opening segment, a wave around late in the third, a couple of cautions, and some great driving greatly assisted in putting the seven-time king in a place to claim a Top Ten, which moves him into 15th in the season standings.
At Richmond, we discovered we knew nothing. At Talladega on Sunday, I expect one hell of an adventure. I am pretty sure I will not be wrong about that.
1. Kyle Busch: Busch controlled two late restarts and cruised to the win in the Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond, capturing his third consecutive win.
“Anything Kevin Harvick can do,” Busch said, “I can do just as well, like be one of the most disliked drivers in NASCAR. But it certainly didn’t look like I was disliked when I went into the stands to slap hands with my fans. It seemed like every fan there came down to greet me. And judging by race attendance, maybe they did.”
2. Kevin Harvick: Harvick led eight laps and finished fifth at Richmond, recording his sixth top 10 of the year.
“We were hurt by a pit road penalty,” Harvick said, “when one of my crew members tossed a track bar wrench over the pit wall. It hit another crewman right in the groin. It not only hit him, it ‘scrote’im’ as well.
3. Joey Logano: Logano won the first two stages and finished fourth at Richmond, and has posted top-10 finishes in all but one race this season.
“There was very little action for most of this race,” Logano said. “About the only notable occurrence was a crew member of Kevin Harvick’s team getting hit in the balls with a wrench. Harvicks’s team was penalized, while the crew member was ‘penile-ized.’”
4. Clint Bowyer: Bowyer finished ninth at Richmond, posting his fourth consecutive top-10 finish.
“I can’t wait to drive a Ford Mustang next year,” Bowyer said. “And if my car owner tells me to ‘take it for a spin,’ you know I’ll do it.”
5. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex started on the pole at Richmond, and was running second late before a slow pit stop cost him seven positions.
“We had a problem with the jack,” Truex said. “It was a real ‘let down.’”
6. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski started 28th and finished eighth in the Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond.
“The day belonged to Kyle Busch,” Keselowski said, “and he celebrated accordingly. Kyle went into the stands to celebrate with the fans. They seemed to be just as excited as he was. Honestly, I think the fans just want to touch Kyle. I can certainly relate. I’m just one, of certainly many, drivers who either want a piece of Kyle or can’t wait to get their hands on him.”
7. Kyle Larson: Larson came home seventh in the Toyota Owners 400.
“My Ganassi Racing teammate Jamie McMurray bumped me under caution for some reason,” Larson said. “And I have no idea why. I’m not sure what Jamie’s problem is, although I’d guess it has something to do with jealousy. It’s probably the fact that his car is No. 1, but he, in fact, is No. 2.”
8. Ryan Blaney: Blaney was collected in Ricky Stenhouse Jr.’s spin late at Richmond and limped home for a 22nd-place finish.
“In years past,” Blaney said, “the Richmond race has been run in the daytime. It doesn’t appear that racing at night made a real difference in attendance. So, as far as the actual running of the race, the difference was night and day. Not so much for attendance, though.”
9. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin finished third at Richmond and is sixth in the Monster Energy Cup points standings, 129 behind Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch.
“Kyle is racing with a ton of confidence,” Hamlin said. “He’s so confident, he went into the stands after the race to celebrate with fans. I don’t think Joe Gibbs was happy about that, given Kyle’s history as Richmond. Joe’s ordered Kyle never to go into those bleachers with the people again, by telling Kyle the fans ‘can’t stand you.’”
10. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson came home sixth at Richmond, posting his second straight top-10 result.
“We struggled to start the season,” Johnson said, “but we seem to be on to something. And that’s reason to celebrate. And that tells you the state of this team, from winning seven Cup championships at will to struggling for top 10’s. Our standards now are low, whereas they used to be Lowe’s.”
Kyle Busch scored his third straight victory of the year winning the Toyota Owners 400 in overtime at Richmond Raceway Saturday night. He dominated the field in the closing 30 laps of the race to capture his 46th career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series win.
It was his fifth triumph at the .75-mile short track and may have been his most challenging win at Richmond. Busch started in 32nd place but was able to maneuver his way to a sixth-place finish in both Stage 1 and Stage 2. It wasn’t until the closing laps of the third stage, however, that Busch began to make his presence known. He led three times (Lap 273, Laps 371-390, and Laps 392-402) for 32 laps) on his drive to Victory Lane.
He spoke about his winning streak and the possibility of four in a row as the series travels to Talladega Superspeedway next week and the unpredictability of restrictor plate racing.
“It’s definitely cool we’ve won three in a row,” Busch said. “We did it a couple years ago, and now I don’t know if you can shoot for four in a row. It’s hard to go to Talladega with that much of a winning streak and think that you can go to Victory Lane, but we’re going to go there anyway and give it a shot.
“We’ll see what we can do … I think it’s easier to win the Power Ball than to win at Talladega.”
Chase Elliott finished second, after taking advantage of the late-race cautions to gradually work his way to the front of the field for the final restart in overtime but he was unable to overtake Busch.
“Yeah, just very fortunate circumstances there at the end for us, with the way the restarts went,” Elliott said. “Having a short run there at the end was definitely in our favor. So it was nice to be on the good end of things for the first time in a while.
“Looking forward, we have to be realistic about how we ran tonight. I think the result shouldn’t weigh into how hard we worked this week because we have some work to do. I think that we have to keep that in mind.”
Denny Hamlin took third place followed by a disappointed Joey Logano who finished fourth after winning Stage 1 and 2,
“You know, we had a really good Shell Pennzoil Ford early in the race and got a couple stage wins early which was great. We maxed out those points which is awesome. We just lost the handle on the car and fell back to sixth or so. We had a bad pit stop and lost a bunch of spots and then had a really good pit stop and got them all right back and were able to come home with a top-five. I wish I could re-run that. I feel like we can do better if we tried again. I am sure the whole field would say that. I am proud of the speed we showed at Richmond. Just want to be a little better.”
Kevin Harvick rounds out the top five finishers in the Toyota Owner’s 400.
Busch retains the points lead after Richmond followed by Logano (-56), Clint Bowyer (-86), Harvick (-91) and Brad Keselowski in fifth (-112).
Next week the action continues when the Monster Energy Cup Series heads to Talladega Superspeedway for the Geico 500.
Follow @angiecampbell_ for the latest NASCAR news and feature stories.
We truly are in a sweet spot in the NASCAR schedule. Last Sunday (and Monday) it was Bristol. This Saturday night they race at Richmond. We conclude April with the test that is Talladega. Action good enough to convince anyone who enjoys pure entertainment to become attracted to the sport. At least, until Dover. Then again, that is a pretty cool trophy they hand out there.
Fans are talking about the Ford Fusion making way next season for the iconic Ford Mustang. There are few car models that instantly recall power and speed. There is a reason we again have the Chevy Camaro. We yearn for the Dodge Charger. Plymouth is gone, but we remember the Barracuda. It will be nice to see at least one more of those classic nameplates making a return to the sport.
Fan voting for the All-Star race pass is open. Eleven full-time drivers are eligible for having won the Cup title or a previous All-Star event. Five more are in due to having won a race since 2017. That leaves those who have not yet qualified to win at Richmond, Talladega, Dover, or Kansas, or one of three segments in the Monster Energy Open qualifying race, or get the most votes from fans among those not yet qualified. Deadline for voting is May 18.
Among our Hot 20, that leaves Aric Almirola, Erik Jones, Alex Bowman, Paul Menard, William Byron, and A.J. Allmendinger still seeking a berth. Outsiders on the outside of both include Darrell Wallace Jr., Chase Elliott, and Daniel Suarez.
Maybe that might change Saturday night in Richmond.
1. KYLE BUSCH – 2 WINS – 365 Pts
The best driver ever? Talk to me in about 15 more wins.
2. KEVIN HARVICK – 2 WINS (1 E.W.) – 290 Pts
Nothing runs like a Ford…a Ford Mustang that is. See you in 2019.
3. CLINT BOWYER – 1 WIN – 286 Pts
If you are as wacky a fan as Bowyer is a driver, Ford’s Hall of Fans wants to hear from you.
4. MARTIN TRUEX JR. – 1 WIN – 257 Pts
Start 450…which ranks 50th all-time.
5. AUSTIN DILLON – 1 WIN – 183 Pts
I thought Dillon was a good guy…and then I saw the color of his hat.
6. JOEY LOGANO – 306 POINTS
Adjustment to being a dad, “It’s a lot more than taking wedge out, I can tell you that much.”
7. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 271 POINTS
Sunday was good, Monday started well, but then came the fade, the tire, and the wall.
8. RYAN BLANEY – 267 POINTS
Considering what happened on Sunday, I wonder where Blaney spent his Monday?
9. DENNY HAMLIN – 252 POINTS
Best solution to the crap pit gun problem “is providing reliable equipment.”
10. KYLE LARSON – 249 POINTS
On Monday, he experienced one Kyle too many.
11. KURT BUSCH – 241 POINTS
Richmond has new garages and a media center but is probably more interested in Victory Lane.
12. ARIC ALMIROLA – 211 POINTS
The Cuban Missile invites Richmond fans to say hello to his little friend…as he drives off.
13. ERIK JONES – 209 POINTS
Erik. It is spelled the way a true Viking would spell it. A Viking from Michigan.
14. ALEX BOWMAN – 190 POINTS
Bowman. With a name like that he damn well better be driving a Chevy. No Bowties on a Ford.
15. RYAN NEWMAN – 181 POINTS
Team success is great, but personal success is even better… “this is a selfish sport, right?”
16. PAUL MENARD – 170 POINTS
His crew practices competitive frisbee tossing by catching tires…on rims.
17. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 169 POINTS
Now, if you want to talk about one of the best ever, we can start with him.
18. RICKY STENHOUSE JR. – 162 POINTS
Crew chief fined $10,000 for a loose lug nut. Can you buy a decent pit gun for $10,000?
19. WILLIAM BYRON – 154 POINTS
I don’t know. Billy Byron has a nice ring to it, but it is not near as stoic as William.
20. A.J. ALLMENDINGER – 150 POINTS
Will be at the Kroger store at 9351 Atlee Road, Mechanicsville, Virginia today at 5:30 p.m.
1. Kyle Busch: Busch overtook Kyle Larson late to win the Food City 500, which concluded on Monday due to weather delays. Busch led 200 laps and picked up his second consecutive win.
“Brad Keselowski’s spin with 30 laps to go helped me win the race,” Busch said. “But if he thinks I owe him gratitude, he can kiss it where the sun don’t shine, which is my ass, or Bristol on Sunday and Monday.”
2. Kevin Harvick: Harvick finished seventh at Bristol, posting his sixth top 10 of the year.
“The race at Bristol took 26 hours to complete,” Harvick said. “Other races this year have only felt like they lasted that long.”
3. Ryan Blaney: Blaney was collected in a lap 117 crash and finished 35th at Bristol.
“There was a lot of green and yellow seen during Sunday and Monday,” Blaney said. “I’m not even talking about flags; I’m talking about the weather radar.”
4. Joey Logano: Logano finished ninth in the Food City 500, posting his seventh top 10 finish of the season.
“We spent Sunday and Monday looking up to the skies,” Logano said. “The heavens opened up, and the few fans left said ‘What the hell are we doing here?’”
5. Clint Bowyer: Bowyer finished eighth at Bristol and is now fourth in the Monster Energy Cup points standings.
“Bristol Motor Speedway allowed school-aged children free admission to Monday’s race,” Bowyer said. “And there were quite a number of kids that showed up, thus making the crowd the most educated in NASCAR history.”
6. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex was involved in an early crash at Bristol, suffering damage that led to an eventual 30th-place finish.
“You probably saw me circling the track with no hood on my car,” Truex said. “That’s never good for speed, but I can assure you I was running ‘wide-open.’”
7. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski won Stages 1 and 2, but spun with 30 laps to go and hit the wall.
“That spin cost me a top-10 finish,” Keselowski said, “and likely gave Kyle Busch the win. That’s a brutal double whammy comparable only to what Kyle and Kurt Busch’s parents experienced.”
8. Kyle Larson: Larson led a race-high 200 laps at Bristol, but fell short to Kyle Busch’s fresh tires. Larson finished second and is ninth in the points standings, 116 out of first.
“Brad Keselowski’s accident was the break Kyle Busch and the No. 18 Skittles car needed,” Larson said. “If that doesn’t happen, I win. Victory was so close, I could taste it. All of a sudden, victory was so far away, I could taste the rainbow.”
9. Aric Almirola: Almirola started 19th and finished sixth at in the Food City 500.
“NASCAR-issued pit guns are still an issue,” Almirola said. “Denny Hamlin, among others, said these pit guns are accurate in only one instance—-shooting yourself in the foot.”
10. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin finished 14th after a loose wheel cost him any chance of winning.
“I place the blame squarely on these crappy pit guns NASCAR forces us to us,” Hamlin said. “And it probably cost me the win, which is not the first time I’ve had a problem with them. Personally, ‘I’m tired of getting screwed,’ which is one thing you’ll never hear a securely tightened lug nut say.”
Back in 1927, the Bristol Sessions marked what some call the “Big Bang” moment of country music. I bet you thought the city on the Tennessee-Virginia border was all about racing. Well, for a time over the past couple of days, it was. Here and there, at least.
While Bristol’s bang from the past involved Jimmy Rodgers and the Carter Family, the one that took place Sunday finished the hopes of Chase Elliott and Martin Truex Jr. within four laps. It ended the 99 lap dominance of Ryan Blaney before the end of the opening segment when the leader got taken out. You could say the rain then took care of the rest before the mid-way mark. That brought us to Monday.
Monday in Bristol was crap. It was cold and it was raining. They might as well have tried to run the sucker in Edmonton. At least we northerners are used to such nonsense. Hell, by the time we hit afternoon it was coming down heavy like Christmas morning up here. Oh, we think such weather in mid-April sucks, too.
Down south, when they finally resumed, raindrops were all over the windshields and the camera lenses. Who says NASCAR does not run in the wet? When they finally hit the end of the session, the midpoint of the race, Brad Keselowski was again the leader. Kyle Busch was making noise, and even Jimmie Johnson appeared to be something of a challenger.
Why not Kyle Larson? The gent got himself into the mix and look very sporty as he came up to run point. However, the point is to not go where someone has gone before, like on the inside. Ryan Newman was inside, Larson did not notice that fact until he got spun. The caution allowed him to stay third, with Keselowski and Busch on the lead row of the re-start, and Johnson beside Larson with 175 laps to run.
They remained our main quartet, with others coming in for a quick guest spot before fading back. Darrell Wallace Jr. popped up to lead his first ever laps in Cup before surrendering top spot to Busch. With about 70 to go, Keselowski started to fade, while the likes of Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Newman, Joey Logano, and Austin Dillon poked their noses out to say howdy. With about 30 to go, Keselowski had drifted down a lap when he tagged the fence after his left front went down.
However, it came down to the remaining trio of our former quartet to bring this one home. With a little bump and run with five to go, Busch took his second straight victory, the 45th of his career. Larson and Johnson also made the podium and enjoyed 40-plus point days. Stenhouse and Alex Bowman rounded out our Top Five. Neither Wallace or Dillon made the Top Ten in the end.
Next Saturday night, another short track event as they move slightly north to Richmond. As Rodgers might say, time for a little “Moonlight and Skies”…weather permitting.
BRISTOL, Tenn. — Photographers and race fans were all lining the catch fence as Kyle Busch did his celebratory burnout, grabbed the checkered flag and bowed to the fans that braced the cold and wintery mixture weather to watch the remainder of the postponed Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway.
“Well, it means a lot, you know, to come to Bristol, a place where everybody expects you to do so well, expects you to win, that we’re able to get one,” Busch said. “I wasn’t sure there late in the going with 50 to go with the vibrations and everything that I was feeling that I was going to be able to have a shot. I wasn’t sure if we were going to go green the rest of the way or what was going to happen.
“But fortunately for us, unfortunately for some others, that caution did come out and we were able to come down pit road and put four tires on that things. We restarted second on that inside lane, and I wanted to stay out of the spray to not get anything on my tires but ended up towards the exit I got down into some of those marbles, and then when Larson launched and took off, I was just spinning the tires. There was just nothing for me to go with.
“So I struggled really bad on the restart. I thought that’s where I lost it. Just put my head down and tried to get back going, just tried to chase those guys back down and do what I could to get there. Larson looked loose. It looked like he was kind of battling it there for a little bit. The 17 kind of got to him first, and then I got to the 17 and was able to get by him and then get back up and catch Larson again. He slipped up a few times and was able to give me that opportunity to get there, and we made the most of it.
“When it comes down to the end, it’s crunch time, you’ve got to go. I wasn’t sure if I made my move too soon. I thought so. But our car was fast enough that Larson never had a shot to get back to us to repay the favor.
“It was a pretty good race, I thought. It was pretty fun. The bottom, the top, all around, everywhere, so hopefully we can continue to develop a good tire here that we can not have those long‑run issues where we keep getting that bounce feel and even put on a better show.”
Busch put the chrome bumper to Kyle Larson twice to retake the lead with six laps to go to score his 45th career victory. It breaks a tie with Bill Elliott for 13th on NASCAR’s all-time wins list.
Larson brought his car home second, after leading a race high of 200 laps.
“I was just checked out there on that long run,” Larson said. “It was really, really good there, and was just hoping it would go green until the end and then we pitted, and I was actually fine with that, too, because I knew we’d leave as the leader and restart on the outside. I just didn’t expect to get that loose that run there. The 17 (Stenhouse) almost got by me, was able to hold him off. I thought the grip was getting better, which it did a little bit, but not nearly good enough.
“Not sure if the track changed a lot there or what, but I lost the balance on the car.”
Jimmie Johnson finished third, his first Top-five of the season and first since Dover last October.
“Yeah, definitely a strong race car,” Johnson said. “We’ve been talking about our cars performing better and driving better and creating speed the last three weeks or so, but to finally back it up with a solid finish is exactly what we needed. And to see my teammates with positive comments about their cars the last few weeks and some good results yielding from all of that, we definitely have it rolling in the right direction.
“And specifically on the 48, last weekend there was a lot of excitement with the speed in our car, but we just had some bad luck on track and on pit road and a variety of things that went on. And to really be so buttoned up on race calling, pit stops, what I did in the car, the whole thing, I really feel like we’re rolling in the right direction now.”
Stenhouse and Alex Bowman rounded out the Top-five.
“The guys brought me a great Sunny D Ford all weekend long,” Stenhouse said. “We were really, really strong and I felt confident coming into the race yesterday and today. We fought adversity. We lost track position multiple times and had to pass a lot of cars to get back to where we were. Brian made a great call coming down pit road and taking tires before that long green flag run that we had. We got into second and I was hoping it would just go green to the end, knowing that we had better tires than the 42, who was the class of the field all day. Then we restarted there at the end. Brian said he didn’t get to really check the stagger on these tires and maybe make an adjustment with it. We didn’t take fuel and that sometimes tightens you up a little bit, but, all in all, a great weekend for us. Hopefully, this will kind of get us going and kick start us into next week and the rest of the season.”
Aric Almirola, Kevin Harvick, Clint Bowyer, Joey Logano and Ryan Newman rounded out the Top-10.
RACE SUMMARY
BRISTOL, Tenn. – APRIL 15: Chase Elliott, driver of the #9 Mountain Dew Baja Blast Chevrolet, and Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Auto-Owners Insurance Toyota, are involved in an on-track incident during the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway on April 15, 2018 in Bristol, Tennessee. Photo: Sean Gardner/Getty Images
Kyle Busch led the field to the green flag at 1:34 p.m. It took only four laps for caution to fly when Michael McDowell got loose, made contact with Daniel Suarez and spun in Turn 4. He also collected Alex Bowman and William Byron, who couldn’t react in time to avoid him. Martin Truex Jr. slammed into the back of Bowman.
“Not much to say, just one of those weekends you want to forget about and turn your focus 100 percent on the next race,” Truex said after the race.
Back to green on Lap 10, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. bogged the inside lane down, allowing Ryan Blaney to move into second. From there, he passed under Busch going into Turn 1 on Lap 16 to take the lead. But with 10 laps to go to the competition caution on Lap 50, rain returned and blanketed the track. Caution flew five laps later. NASCAR brought the field down the backstretch four laps later and displayed the red flag. It was lifted after 25 minutes and 25 seconds.
The race went back to green on Lap 60, but caution flew again in Turn 3 when Erik Jones got loose, made contact with Stenhouse and spun him.
Restarting on Lap 67, the race settled into a long-run rhythm with Blaney working to navigate lap traffic one-by-one in classic Bristol fashion.
BRISTOL, Tenn. – APRIL 15: Ryan Blaney, driver of the #12 REV Ford, and Harrison Rhodes, driver of the #51 Industrial Construction Experts Inc. Chevrolet, are involved in an on-track incident during the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway on April 15, 2018 in Bristol, Tennessee. Photo: Ed Coombs/SpeedwayMedia.com
While Brad Keselowski caught him and battled him for the lead with six laps left in the first stage, however, Chris Buescher turned Trevor Bayne into the wall, who then bounced off and into Buescher, hooking him into the outside wall, triggering a five-car wreck on Lap 120 that took out race leader Blaney.
“I didn’t see much to be honest with you. By the time I could see anything they were already turned right and there was nowhere to go,” Blaney said. “Seeing the replay, I don’t know, people not cleared clearing themselves and then wrecking and take the leader out, so that’s unfortunate. Our car was pretty good today. We just kind of got held up there and we might not have been as strong at the end of that run, but I thought we could have at least held on for that stage and never got the chance. The positives you look at is that we had a good car and that’s something to hold your head high about.”
After a six-minute, 29-second red flag, NASCAR ended the first stage with a one-lap shootout, won by Brad Keselowski.
Kyle Larson exited pit road with the lead and led the field back to green on Lap 135. Chad Finchum spun out in Turn 4, but caution wasn’t thrown. When Trevor Bayne spun out and hit the wall in Turn 4, however, caution was thrown on Lap 155. Jones took over the race lead when he and the Top-six cars chose not to pit.
As the field circled around, waiting to restart, the rain slightly intensified to the point NASCAR brought the field back down pit road and red-flagged the race a third time.
Back to green on Lap 170, Larson pulled away from Denny Hamlin in second and started lapping everyone in his path. This continued until caution flew for the sixth time on Lap 200, once again for rain.
The weather this time was more severe and forced NASCAR to postpone the rest of the race to the following day.
After a slight delay close to the original 1:02 p.m. scheduled restart time, the field rolled off pit road shortly after 1:30. Everyone but Larson opted to pit.
The race restarted at 1:43 p.m. on Lap 217. For the final 33 laps of the second stage, Larson drove away as he did the day before. Keselowski kept chase with him, however, put the chrome bumper to Larson going into Turn 3, took the lead and won the stage.
Denny Hamlin exited pit road with the lead and led the field to green on Lap 263. Hamlin pitted from the lead two laps later with a loose wheel, handing it back to Keselowski.
BRISTOL, Tenn. – APRIL 16: Kyle Larson, driver of the #42 McDonald’s Chevrolet, and Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 Skittles Toyota, make contact during the rain delayed Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway on April 16, 2018 in Bristol, Tennessee. Photo: Sean Gardner/Getty Images
He, Larson and Kyle Busch dueled for the lead from Laps 280 to 325, with Larson taking it from 292 to 325 and Busch onwards, after Larson got turned by Ryan Newman exiting Turn 4.
Reed Sorenson brought out the caution with 147 laps to go when he spun out and rear-ended the outside wall in Turn 3. With bad weather approaching and the race past the point of being an “official race,” Daniel Suarez opted to stay out and take the lead.
The gamble failed, and he lost the lead by the time he exited Turn 4 to Keselowski with 134 to go. Darrell Wallace Jr. took a stint out front, passing him going into Turn 1 to take it with 125 to go. Busch passed him in Turn 2 to retake the lead with 120 to go.
The battle came down to him and Larson with less than 80 to go. After close to 20 laps of pressure, Larson put the bumper to Busch going into Turn 1 to take the lead with 63 to go. After Larson cleared the lap traffic, he drove away to a half-straightaway lead over Busch. Keselowski slammed the wall in Turn 2 with 30 to go, bringing out the caution and forcing everyone onto pit road.
Larson exited ahead of Busch and led the field back to green with 22 to go. Busch didn’t get going on the bottom and Stenhouse usurped him for second. While Stenhouse got to Larson’s bumper once, he couldn’t make the pass and got passed by Busch with 15 to go. With six to go, Busch put the chrome bumper to Larson twice, made the pass for the lead going through Turn 3 and drove on to victory.
NUTS & BOLTS
The race lasted three hours, 26 minutes and 25 seconds, at an average speed of 77.465 mph. There were 18 lead changes among eight different drivers, and 13 cautions for 113 laps.
BRISTOL, Tenn. — Kyle Busch knows there’s no better place to start at Bristol Motor Speedway than up front, and the smile on his face after winning the pole for the Food City 500 is all the evidence you need.
“Adam Steven and my guys, they do an awesome job, and the preparation and everything that we got going on right now has been really good for our Skittles Camry. Can’t say enough about JGR and TRD, Costa Mesa, all those guys with the motors and stuff too. It’s nice to come out here and grab a front row starting spot, but I got to be careful and mindful. I got to make sure that I have a good race car, because anytime I’ve ever started up front, I have not finished up front. And anytime I’ve ever started in the back, I’ve finished up front. We’re trying to change things here this time around this weekend. Thankfully, we’ve got a fast race car to do that with. We’ll just keep working at it, and find some more things tomorrow that’ll help us for Sunday.”
The driver of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota took pole position with a final round time of 14.895 and a speed of 128.822 mph.
Following him are brother Kurt, with a time of 14.897 and a speed of 128.804 mph, Brad Keselowski with a time of 14.960 and a speed of 128.262 mph, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. with a time of 14.961 and a speed of 128.253 mph and Ryan Blaney with a time of 14.969 128.185 mph.
Most of the cars didn’t hit the track in mass in the first round until the final four minutes and 20 seconds. Kyle Busch topped the chart with ease, followed by brother Kurt, Joey Logano, Paul Menard and Ryan Blaney.
It was the same in the second round, only most of the field waited even later in the round (less than two minutes remaining) before departing pit road. The Busch brothers swapped positions in the running order for the second round, with Blaney, Brad Keselowski and Kyle Larson rounding out the Top-five.
Kevin Harvick, who wrecked his primary car in the closing minutes practice earlier today, didn’t turn a lap in qualifying and will start last. Jimmie Johnson will join him in the back, after his team changed a cut left-front tire (you’re required to start on the tires on which you qualified).
Some bad luck/traffic in round 2 of qualifying has us starting 17th… and then the amazing news of a cut left front tire means we are now starting last. 🤬
Texas. That may have been the worst NASCAR race I ever watched. If not, I hope I never remember a worse one. Indianapolis in 2008 might challenge it, but that was due to having to throw out a caution every 10 laps to prevent the damn tires from exploding. That race was a disaster due to the tires. Texas was a disaster all on its own. If you saw it and liked it, I envy you.
Bristol. This is where all those bad feelings about horrid racing should all go away. It is where Darrell Waltrip won a dozen times, including seven straight. Nine times Cale Yarborough, Dale Earnhardt, and Rusty Wallace each shook the suds. It is where Kyle Busch will try to claim his second straight this year to up his own total to seven.
Bristol is where they have been providing NASCAR thrills twice a year since 1961. Earnhardt and Wallace both won their first there. It was where Davey Allison edged out Mark Martin by inches in 1990. It is where Busch won over Jeff Burton in 2007 and then Martin in the fall race of 2009 by a combined margin of under two-tenths of a second.
The former Southeastern 500 has had Food City as its sponsor since 1992. Wallace claimed this particular Bristol offering six times. Jimmie Johnson won it last year. Well, there is no time like the present.
If you watched last week, come on back. This is Bristol. Things will be different this Sunday. I promise.
1. KEVIN HARVICK – 3 WINS – 257 Pts
A damn lug nut and some damn lug who could not even tighten a nut. That was Texas.
2. KYLE BUSCH – 1 WIN – 316 Pts
Finally got to walk down the aisle, but Harvick did his best to ruin the party again.
3. MARTIN TRUEX JR. – 1 WIN – 250 Pts
He coulda been a contender. He coulda been somebody, instead, a tire blew and he was done.
4. CLINT BOWYER – 1 WIN – 249 Pts
A win and averaging over 35 points per race. How sweet life is.
5. AUSTIN DILLON – 1 WIN – 159 Pts
The only member of the Bowtie Brigade with a checkered flag.
6. JOEY LOGANO – 278 POINTS
So, this is a comeback year? If only his 2017 Richmond win had not been encumbered.
7. RYAN BLANEY – 265 POINTS
Fifth straight Cup guy to win a Xfinity race. I wonder what those ratings are like?
8. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 237 POINTS
Brad has nothing to say regarding the questionable air guns. When did that ever happen before?
9. KURT BUSCH – 224 POINTS
All I hear is how great Kyle is at this or how wonderful Kyle did that! Kyle, Kyle, Kyle!
10. DENNY HAMLIN – 222 POINTS
A pair of pit penalties could not do what that wreck early in the final segment accomplished.
11. KYLE LARSON – 202 POINTS
The wheels on the car get ground, ground, ground and then they make a terrible sound.
12. ERIK JONES – 193 POINTS
Thinks 400 miles at Texas would be enough. I think 40 feet is enough.
13. ARIC ALMIROLA – 177 POINTS
Texas was lovely for Almirola until it wasn’t.
14. ALEX BOWMAN – 154 POINTS
Wished he could have had a day like Almirola. Bowman’s was messed up by the second lap.
15. PAUL MENARD – 146 POINTS
30th in Texas and still on this chart. It gives you an idea how bad the day went for others…
16. RYAN NEWMAN – 145 POINTS
…like Newman. He was 27th after another tire left another driver hitting another wall.
17. WILLIAM BYRON – 135 POINTS
A Top Ten. See, Texas did not suck for everybody.
18. CHASE ELLIOTT – 128 POINTS
A brace that supports the rear window did not meet specs in Texas, at a cost of 20 points.
19. DARRELL WALLACE JR. – 126 POINTS
A new look driver, an old look number, and an old-time sponsor for Bristol.
20. A.J. ALLMENDINGER – 123 POINTS
Okay, this is the Hot 19 along with a trio currently on simmer.
21. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 123 POINTS
Lose a couple of pounds, eat a chocolate cake. Gain a few points, then get wrecked. Same idea.
22. RICKY STENHOUSE JR. – 123 POINTS
Are drivers athletes? Well, just ask Kansas football coach David Beaty.
