AVONDALE, Ariz. — Denny Hamlin finds redemption from last week’s mistake to secure his spot into the Championship 4 by winning the Bluegreen Vacations 500 at ISM Raceway.
“I can’t believe it,” Hamlin said post-race.
Hamlin was below the cutoff race and lost 44 points in a single race. Today’s win negates that mistake as the driver of the No. 11 FedEx Toyota will go for his first career NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series championship.
“This race team worked so hard this whole year. They deserve to be there. I put them in a bad hole last week. I told them today in the meeting, I said, I’m going to give everything I’ve got to make up for the mistake I made last week. That’s all I got.”
Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick and Martin Truex Jr. will join Hamlin and go for their second championship. If one of them wins next weekend, they will become the second active driver in the field with multiple championships (Jimmie Johnson holds seven titles).
“Guys did a great job, this M&M Camry was good,” Busch shared. “Thanks to everybody at JGR, Stanley, Toyota, TRD. It’s cool to have a chance to go race for a championship.”
Truex was the first driver to lock in after winning at Martinsville.
“I know we’re ready for Homestead,” stated a confident Truex. “To put three (JGR) cars in the Championship 4 is pretty incredible, so thanks to TRD and Toyota and all those guys. Bass Pro, Auto-Owners, everybody that helps us on the 19, and we’ll see what we can do next week.”
Harvick will be the second seed with his 49th career victory last weekend at Texas Motor Speedway.
“The one thing about this particular year, it seems like you’ve had great weeks, you’ve had mediocre weeks so that momentum thing is kind of hit-or-miss as you go through it,” Harvick explained the various parts of his season as being a momentum factor. “Just really proud of everybody on our Mobil 1 Ford.”
Joey Logano comes to pit road for full service, four tires and fuel. The adjustments the crew made would hurt the car instead of help, as the No. 22 team fell one lap down. Photo courtesy of Rachel Schuoler with Speedway Media.
Stage 2 winner and Playoff contender Joey Logano was competing up front in the first half of the race. After the conclusion of Stage 2, Logano’s crew made an adjustment on the car that appeared to not agree with the track conditions. When the field returned to green flag racing, Logano dropped through the field and even fell a lap down. He could never recover, finished ninth, and was the first driver eliminated from the Playoffs after being above the cutoff line to start the day.
“I went from a car that could lead and win a stage and run really well, and from what they told me, it was an air pressure adjustment made it go from a winning car to can’t stay on the lead lap, and one of the tightest things I’ve ever driven. I don’t really understand it. It doesn’t make any sense. You change tires and change a half pint of air, that sounds ridiculous. It is what it is. Just wasn’t our year to make it, I guess. But we’ll fight for fifth, I guess, in points for this year, and we’ll move on.”
“It stinks. It hurts a little bit, but we’ll live,” Logano said. “Everything is going to be OK. Life is a lot worse in other ways for some. We’re still fortunate to be here and get to do what we love. It’s a bummer for sure. It doesn’t take anything away from that, but it’s just part of the game sometimes.”
Three other drivers in must-win situations were also eliminated from the Playoffs: Kyle Larson, Ryan Blaney and Chase Elliott. For Elliott, he battled for the lead throughout the first half of the race, but a blown tire in Turn 1 caused race-ending damage on his No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet.
“Yeah, it’s just a continuation of our first two weeks, unfortunately, ” Elliott said. “I feel like we were in a good position to run solid. I’m not sure why we had a tire go down. I think that’s what happened, at least; it seemed like it. It’s unfortunate. Like I said, these last three weeks have been pretty rough. So, hopefully, Homestead goes better and we can get prepared good for next season and get a good notebook for next year.”
“All in all, a great season for our team,” Larson shared after the race. “A little rocky at the start, but we kept our heads down and kept working hard and got our stuff a lot better and more consistent throughout this season. We’ll try to go to Homestead next week and get a win.”
Busch, Blaney, Larson, Harvick and Truex finished in the top six respectively. Erik Jones was the highest non-Playoff driver who finished in seventh. Clint Bowyer, Logano and Brad Keselowski completed the top 10 positions. Elliott, the final Playoff driver, finished 39th after crashing out on Lap 166.
The champion for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series will be crowned next weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Martin Truex Jr. led a record-setting 464 laps dominating the First Data 500 at Martinsville Speedway to score his seventh victory of the season. It was his 26th NASCAR Cup Series win, the first at the .526-mile track and his 12th top-10 finish in 28 starts at Martinsville.
It
also locks Truex into the Championship 4 for a shot at the series title at
Homestead-Miami Speedway in three weeks.
“I’m just really happy about it, obviously,” said Truex. “I’ve
been trying to work on getting a Martinsville win for a long time. It’s a
tough track. It’s one that, you know, everybody I think wants to win at,
the history here, and it’s such a big part of NASCAR.
“Really proud of everybody on our team for what they did and the
car they brought, the pit stops today were incredible and the guys did a great
job. So just all around a great day. To lead that many laps here is
pretty incredible.”
While Truex stole the show in
Victory Lane, Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano provided the encore with an altercation
after the race. The tension was a result of an incident on Lap 458 when the two
made contact causing Logano to hit the outside wall. What started as a
discussion quickly turned into a wrestling match.
“Yeah,
I just wanted to talk to him about it and was pretty frustrated,” Logano
explained.
“He just kind of came off the corner like there wasn’t another car on the outside of him and ruined our day, a shot at the win for sure. We probably weren’t going to beat the 19 but we had a top-five for sure coming our way, but we were just able to survive there.
“I
don’t really know what happened because once he started hitting me, he didn’t
lift, he just kept finishing me off. We ran each other fine all day, so I don’t
know. I don’t really know what happened.”
The
situation escalated when Logano shoved Hamlin and ended with both crews pulling
the drivers apart. Not
surprisingly, Hamlin’s take on the disagreement was quite different.
“We were having a discussion,” he said.
“Everything was civil, and then, like Joey does, he does a little push and then
runs away. So that’s Joey. Scared. He said, ‘Do you want to go?’ I said, ‘Yes,
I’m here.’ But then he runs away.”
Hamlin also insinuated that the contact was incidental.
“I
got close off of Turn 4,” he said. “It looks like we got together and
it looks like collateral damage. He blew a tire.”
William Byron turned in a strong performance but had to settle for second place, his 13th top-10 finish this year.
“This
isn’t a place that I’ve loved coming to,” said Byron, “and it just
clicked this weekend. The things we did with the car going into qualifying and
then obviously our race. So, I’m super excited, but second is not super fun
either. So, we’ll try to get one spot better next time.”
Brad Keselowski
finished third followed by Hamlin in fourth and Ryan Blaney in fifth. Kurt Busch, Kevin Harvick, Logano, Kyle Larson
and Ryan Newman rounded out the top-10 at Martinsville.
Truex, Hamlin, Kyle Busch and Logano are currently
the top four drivers in the points standings but Truex is the only driver
locked into the Championship 4. Kevin Harvick (-14), Ryan Blaney (-15), Larson
(-24) and Chase Elliott (-44) are all below the cut line with only two races remaining
before the finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 17.
Tune in next Sunday as the Cup Series heads to Texas
Motor Speedway.
Follow @angiecampbell_ for
the latest NASCAR news and feature stories.
1. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin won the Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas in a cut-off race that narrowed the field to eight drivers.
“Anytime it’s an elimination race,” Hamlin said, “things can get crazy. So, even though this race was sponsored by Hollywood Casino, ‘all bets were off.’”
2. Kyle Busch: Busch took third in the Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas.
“This is the time of year when pressure builds,” Busch said. “That was evident in Saturday’s Xfinity race when Daniel Hemric and Cole Custer were involved in an altercation. Things got physical, and a little sexy, because the ‘fight’ was really just a very intense hug.”
3. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex finished sixth in the Hollywood Casino 400 and joins Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin in the Playoff Round of 8.
“It’s me, Denny, and Kyle,” Truex said. “Some people would call that ‘Two Men And A Baby.’”
4. Kevin Harvick: Inspection issues forced Harvick to start 40th but he worked his way through the field to post a ninth. He heads to Round 3 of the Playoffs in fifth, 18 out of first.
“I didn’t even get to qualify,” Harvick said. “But there’s something cool about starting at the back of the field. Starting at the ‘ass-end’ of the field, you get a true perspective of the ‘ass-end’ of talent in this series.”
5. Kyle Larson: Larson finished 14th in the Hollywood Casino 400 and is seventh in the Playoff points standings, 35 out of first.
“I had a run-in with the lapped car of Joey Gase,” Larson said. “He was in my way and I needed to be somewhere, so I moved him. It’s football season so I gave Joey the ‘punt, the pass, and the kick (to the curb).’”
6. Joey Logano: Logano survived a late accident and slide through the grass to finish 17th at Kansas and advanced to the Round of 8, where he’ll be the sole representative of Penske Racing.
“I feel like it’s me against the world,” Logano said. “So, I’m gonna go out there and be a ‘world beater.’ Unfortunately, no one will care, because the general opinion of me is a ‘world of indifference.’”
7. Chase Elliott: Elliott finished second at Kansas which was good enough to secure the final playoff spot.
“That was close,” Elliott said, “and I get the cigar. And, as the kids say, it was ‘lit.’”
8. Ryan Blaney: Blaney finished 21st at Kansas and heads to Martinsville eighth in the Playoff points standings.
“I’m last among the eight drivers in the Playoff field,” Blaney said. “I feel like I’m the forgotten driver in the Playoffs. But I very well could quietly sneak in and eliminate the rest of the field. Then you could call me ‘champion,’ and Kurt Busch could call me ‘assassin.’”
9. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski finished 18th at Kansas and narrowly missed advancing to the next round of the Playoffs.
“Had a late caution came out just a fraction of a second later,” Keselowski said, “I’d be in the Playoff field. But we all know NASCAR wanted that extra restart. I’d like a do-over because I have some ‘un-finish-ed’ business I’d like to take care of.”
10. William Byron: Byron finished fifth at Kansas and failed to make the Playoff Round of 8.
“You probably heard about the flock of birds flying into the NASCAR Hall Of Fame,” Byron said. “I guess they really wanted to get in. But come on birds, show some manners. Don’t you know, ‘Birds of a feather knock together.’”
He didn’t quite have the best car or the dominating car, but Martin Truex Jr. was there at the end in case Kyle Larson would happen to make a mistake and leave an opening.
Truex Jr had a decent car at Dover International Speedway, taking the lead away from his teammate Denny Hamlin on Lap 229. It would be the only time that Truex was out front. When he took the Stage 2 win, one of the No. 19 pit crew members slipped while coming around to change the right rear tire. The stop would eventually cost Truex the race win.
It caused Truex to lose a couple of spots on pit road. It was just enough and he was unable to take the lead from Larson and challenge him for the race win. He did have a little bit of help in the late stages but he ultimately fell short and wound up second.
“Just ran out of time there,” Truex Jr told MRN Radio. “Got bobbled up in traffic pretty good and so did the 42 (Larson). We just really ran out of time. We were six seconds back after the pit stop. At the end, we were maybe one. We did a good job of gaining on them but it’s always gaining on the leader but a harder time with the lap guys. The same thing being said, I caught some at the end and they weren’t very courteous. It’s just the way it goes.”
“We had a very fast car, our Bass Pro Toyota was strong. We had a shot at winning for sure. It’s the playoffs, it’s the best of the best and one little tiny mistake like that, five positions or whatever on the restart, it’s game over. I hate that it happened, but I know our guys are working hard to get it cleaned up. Overall, it was a really good points day. Just go to Talladega next week and hopefully, we can at least make it to the finish, which we haven’t been good at there. I’m feeling good going forward and looking forward to Kansas as well.”
The second-place finish was Truex’s 13th top five of the season.
Martin Truex Jr. came into the final Round of 16 with momentum after collecting two of the three wins in the first round. Coming into the Charlotte Roval Truex was looking to sweep the entire round for the first time in his career.
Things were looking great for the No. 19 team until final practice on Saturday afternoon. Truex’s Toyota Camary engine expired in the backstretch chicane, forcing Truex and his team to change the motor and sending the team to a backup car.
The disappointment carried over to Sunday’s race where the New Jersey native missed the chicane and had to stop the on the front stretch. From there, the team struggled in the race trying to play pit strategy to gain track position. Truex was unable to get any top-10 stage finishes and wound up a disappointing seventh-place finish after winning the first two races in the Round of 16.
“It was up and down for sure,” Truex said to PRN Radio. “To start from the back like that, get penalized from the beginning for avoiding a wreck for missing the chicane is pretty stupid. Started way behind there, made our way up to second. Just didn’t have a good enough car or to take the lead. Then I just got really lose at the end. We probably should have got tires, but we didn’t expect all those cautions at the end.”
Truex will be seeded in the second position, five points behind his teammate Kyle Busch.
After making contact with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. mid-race, Martin Truex Jr. was able to rebound. He took the lead from his teammate Kyle Busch with 25 laps to go en route to his sixth victory of the season.
“Yeah, that’s unbelievable, that’s the craziest thing that’s ever happened to me in my whole racing career,” Truex Jr said to MRN Radio. Thanks to all the fans coming out tonight, everyone at Bass Pro Shops; our Camary was really fast tonight. Just takes a lot of people to make this happen.”
“I felt good coming into the race. We’ve had a lot of heartbreakers over the years at Richmond and to come here to sweep this year, I guess it’s meant to be. Thanks to all of our guys. Toyota, TRD, Auto-Owners, all of our partners that let us do this. Everyone back at Joe Gibbs Racing, they’re building unbelievable racecars. I hope we can keep this up and we came here to get bonus points, and we sure did.”
Brad Keselowski qualified on the pole Friday afternoon, while Truex qualified eighth. Only one car had to go to the back and that was the No. 27 Quin Houff for unapproved adjustments.
Stage 1: Lap 1- Lap 100
It was clean and green for the first stage. Truex took the lead from pole-sitter Brad Keselowski on Lap 54 and held on to win Stage 1. There were no cautions.
Kyle Busch, Keselowski, Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick, Clint Bowyer, Matt DiBenedetto, Chase Elliott, Erik Jones and Jimmie Johnson rounded out the top-10 finishers for the first stage. One minor incident took place during the stage break. The No. 13 of Ty Dillon was too fast on pit road and the No. 36 of Matt Tifft was too fast as well. Kyle Busch assumed the race lead after pit stops.
Stage 2: Lap 108- Lap 200
One caution broke out during the second stage. On Lap 111, Alex Bowman was sent spinning around after contact with the No. 3 of Austin Dillon. A few laps before, Bowman made slight contact with Dillon. Under the caution, Joey Logano who was struggling all night received the free pass. Kurt Busch and Keselowski also made pit stops.
Stage 2 ended on lap 200 and Kyle Busch went on to win the stage. Truex, Hamlin, Jones, Keselowski, Ryan Newman, Harvick, Elliott, Bowyer and Johnson swept the top-10 spots for the second stage. Kurt Busch and William Byron were penalized on pit road for being too fast after stops.
Stage 3: Lap 209- Lap 400
Just two cautions took place in the final stage. On Lap 242, Reed Sorenson hit the wall on the backstretch. During his attempt at a pit stop, Jimmie Johnson missed his pit stall and had to come back down to complete his pit stop. Almirola was caught with a speeding penalty during stops.
Keselowski was able to take the lead on Lap 246 and led for 36 laps before Truex retook the lead on Lap 282. As the race was going smoothly, a major incident happened on Lap 316 when Stenhouse, on cold tires, accidentally made contact with race leader Truex. Truex went spinning around on the front stretch.
After the caution and pit stops, Kyle Busch assumed the lead again and was making his way around the track. However, Truex began to reel in his teammate as laps started to click away. With 25 to go, he was finally able to take the lead from Busch and eventually the win.
“I was just trying to stay out of the fence and tried to get it straightened out,” Truex added to MRN Radio. “Luckily we got a caution and ended up in a pretty good spot, and came down pit road. We had a pretty big lead there and we took advantage of it. From there, we just battled, had to pass the 11 (Hamlin), the 18 (Busch). I knew it was going to be really tough to get by both of them. They were strong all night long and track position was important. I don’t know if the 18 fell off on the long run or if we were a little better at the end, and made a move.”
Kyle Busch ended up in second after winning Stage 2 and leading the most laps with 202.
“We were a little bit off,” Busch told MRN Radio. “Just missed a little bit. We were pretty fast and led a lot of laps, but when we’re out front leading, he could keep close to me pretty well. That kind of worried me for a finish like that and wasn’t sure we would be able to hold him off. At the start of that last run, Denny (Hamlin) pressured me a little bit, so I tried to make sure to stay ahead of him and that’s when Martin started to come on. Martin was just on better tires there throughout the rest of the run, so I don’t know if I hurt my stuff or what. Great job to the team. Everybody on this MMS Camry did a great job. We can now just focus forward.”
With Truex winning and Kyle Busch finishing second, both are locked into the Round of 12. Kevin Harvick also clinched a spot in the next round.
Truex swept both Richmond races this year. This was his sixth victory of the season. He led three times for 109 laps for the 25th victory of his career.
There were five cautions for 32 laps and seven leaders among six lead changes.
UPDATE: Erik Jones’ car failed post-race inspection. He will be credited with a last-place finish and receive one point.
Playoff Standings
Truex Jr, 2 wins, 2141 points
Kevin Harvick, +69
Kyle Busch, +66
Brad Keselowski, +55
Denny Hamlin, +54
Joey Logano, +50
Chase Elliott, +37
Kyle Larson, +25
Ryan Newman, +14
Ryan Blaney, +8
Aric Almirola, +3
William Byron, + Below the Cut Line
Alex Bowman, -2
Clint Bowyer. -4
Kurt Busch, -14
Erik Jones, -45
Official Results
Martin Truex Jr., led 109 laps, won Stage 1
Kyle Busch, led 202 laps, won Stage 2
Denny Hamlin
Brad Keselowski, led 89 laps
Ryan Newman
Kyle Larson
Kevin Harvick
Clint Bowyer
Daniel Suarez
Jimmie Johnson
Joey Logano
Bubba Wallace
Chase Elliott, one lap down
Matt DiBenedetto, one lap down
Ricky Stenhouse Jr, one lap down
Aric Almirola, one lap down
Ryan Blaney, one lap down
Kurt Busch, two laps down
David Ragan, two laps down
Matt Tifft, three laps down
Michael McDowell, three laps down
Austin Dillon, four laps down
Alex Bowman, four laps down
William Byron, four laps down
Daniel Hemric, four laps down
Ty Dillon, four laps down
Paul Menard, five laps down
Landon Cassill, five laps down
Corey LaJoie, five laps down
Ryan Preece, six laps down
Chris Buescher, seven laps down
Austin Theriault, eight laps down
J.J. Yeley, nine laps down
Spencer Boyd, 12 laps down
Quin Houff, 16 laps down
Ross Chastain, OUT, Brakes
Reed Sorenson, OUT, Crash
Erik Jones, failed post-race inspection
Up Next: The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series competes next week at Charlotte Motor Speedway, home of the Roval and the final race in the Round of 16.
1. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex won Stage 2 at Las Vegas and later passed Kevin Harvick for the lead with 20 laps to go. Truex then eased to victory and secured his place in the next round of the playoffs.
“In this case,” Truex said, “what happens in Vegas doesn’t stay in Vegas. It follows you all the way to the second round of the playoffs.”
2. Kyle Busch: Busch fell two laps down early, but charged back to the lead lap at Las Vegas before a collision halted his ascent. He finished 19th but is still fourth in the Monster Energy points standings.
“That collision was with Garrett Smithey,” Busch said. “Who is Garrett Smithey? He must be the new kid on the block.”
3. Kevin Harvick: Harvick led 47 laps and took the runner-up spot in the SouthPoint 400 at Las Vegas.
“I was leading,” Harvick said, “and ran into some traffic. That’s when Truex pounced and went from ‘Martin Truex, II‘ to ‘Martin Truex I.’ But I’m thrilled to start the playoffs with a runner-up. And my team would second that emotion.”
4. Joey Logano: Logano captured Stage 1 of the Southpoint 400 at Las Vegas, but ran into trouble in Stage 2 when contact with Daniel Suarez caused significant damage to the No. 22 Penske Ford. Logano recovered to finish ninth.
“I think Daniel Suarez really screwed me,” Logano said. “So I gave him the middle finger. I hate to point fingers, so I didn’t point my middle finger. It was aimed straight up at the sky.”
5. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin finished 15th at Las Vegas as Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Martin Truex Jr. sailed to the win.
“Beside Martin,” Hamlin said, “JGR drivers struggled. I finished 15th, Kyle Busch finished 19th, and Erik Jones may just be finished.”
6. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski finished third at Las Vegas.
“Former NFL superstar Marshawn Lynch drove the pace car in Sunday’s race,” Keselowski said. “Marshawn was known for going ‘Beast Mode,’ which makes sense here, because, after all, this is the Monster Energy Cup series.”
7. Chase Elliott: Elliott enjoyed a solid start to the playoffs with a fourth-place finish at Las Vegas.
“I’m happy we got off to a good start in the playoffs,’” Elliott said. “Some others weren’t so lucky, like Kyle Busch. He had some issues with a couple of ‘backmarkers.’ Just to clarify, ‘backmarkers’ aren’t ‘tramp stamp’ tattoos on the lower back of NASCAR fans; ‘backmarkers’ are cars that have been lapped. Most drivers don’t want to see either.”
8. Kurt Busch: Busch cut a tire and slammed the wall hard on lap 187, ending his race at Las Vegas. He finished last.
“Of course it’s not how you want to start the playoffs,” Busch said. “I was the first driver out of the race. So my day came to an abrupt ending. You might as well call me ‘Curt Busch.’”
9. Ryan Blaney: Blaney finished fifth at Las Vegas and is now 10th in the points standings.
“The temperature was 100 degrees when the race began,” Blaney said. “Ask any respectable NASCAR fan what’s the best way to deal with heat like that, and they’ll tell you, ‘warm beer.’”
10. William Byron: Byron started 14th and finished seventh at Las Vegas.
“If case you didn’t hear it,” Byron said, “Paul Menard announced his retirement. In case you did hear it and forgot, Paul Menard announced his retirement.”
LAS VEGAS, NV — Martin Truex Jr. becomes the first driver to lock himself into the Round of 12 NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series Playoffs. The No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota wins at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in the South Point 400.
It is his fifth win of the season, but it also came during a string of races with a combination of finishes. Since his last win at the road course of Sonoma Raceway, he has earned three top fives, but also four finishes of 15th position or worse.
“We took a gamble, qualified 24th,’’ said Truex, who led 32 laps. “For a while, it wasn’t looking too smart with the 4 (Harvick) out front. Got the right adjustments in the end. Had a great car all day long.
“Hell of a way to make a championship run. Get some good bonus points, move on to the next round, see what we can do there.’’
Kevin Harvick led 47 laps in total, but fell short in the closing laps to finish second.
“I knew the Gibbs cars would be tough,’’ the 2014 Cup champ said. “Martin was just so much better on the second half of the run. He made up that ground there, was able to stay close enough to us. My car started to get loose and push the front. It was just in kind of a four-wheel drift.
“We did some things this weekend that we probably will have to undo going forward. I think we can do a little bit better going forward.’’
Earlier in the race, Brad Keselowski appeared to have engine issues, with the No. 2 Ford team pulling the hood up to investigate internal issues with the racecar. Whether they were able to dodge a bullet or get diagnose the issue, the car seemed to run at full speed. He fell back as far as outside of the top 20 late in the race, but was able to charge his way through the field to finish third.
Chase Elliott was the highest finishing Chevrolet and finished fourth, leading 12 laps. Ryan Blaney rounded out the top five with his fifth place effort. The rest of the top 10 was filled with Playoff drivers: Alex Bowman, William Byron, Kyle Larson, Joey Logano and Ryan Newman respectively.
For Byron, it was his first Playoff race of his young career. However, his crew chief Chad Knaus has now been in every Playoff since its formation back in 2004.
“Survive the whole race and try to compete,” said Byron who finished a career-high at Vegas with a seventh place run. “I was really happy with that (finish). We have to be aggressive coming up. Richmond’s going to be a tough short track.”
Drivers got aggressive on the restarts, as many went three-wide into Turn 1. Photo courtesy of Rachel Schuoler for Speedway Media.
The rest of the Playoff drivers finished outside of the top 10. Aric Almirola led earlier in the race and stayed in the top 10 for most of the race, but finished 13th.
“The goal was to leave here in a decent in the points,” Almirola shared after the race. “We just gotta fight hard. Nobody’s going to give it to you. Every point matters, every stage matters.”
Denny Hamlin finished 15th, and Kyle Busch, with multiple issues throughout the race, wound up 19th. Busch hit the wall on Lap 4, and went two laps down early in the race. He was able to rally back to battle for a top five run until a collision with Garrett Smithley knocked the nose of the car and the splitter askew. The handling of the car seemed to be destroyed, and he fell back to finish a lap down.
Pole sitter Clint Bowyer fell back early and was not able to recover. The No. 14 Ford ended the event in the 25th position after leading just the opening lap. Erik Jones had transmission issues that put him behind the wall for 15 laps until the team could make repairs to the car. He finished 36th, 13 laps down. Kurt Busch hit the outside wall in Turn 3 after a left front flat tire caused from contact between him and Truex Jr. on a restart on Lap 185. He would finish in last place, the 39th position.
LOGANO SHOWING EARLY STRENGTH IN STAGE ONE
Logano started 22nd, but took over the race lead by Lap 34. Photo courtesy of Rachel Schuoler for Speedway Media.
As the green flag dropped, drivers were aggressive right out of the gate. While Bowyer was on pole for the first time in 12 years, Daniel Suarez took over the race lead over the next several laps after his Stewart Haas Racing teammate led the first lap. A couple drivers made quick climbs through the field, including non-Playoff driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who made his way up as high as third in the running order.
But the opening laps proved the drama of the Playoffs was alive and well. On Lap 4, Kyle Busch got loose in Turn 2 and hit the wall. The race stayed green, but he was forced to come down pit road a few laps later to replace a flat right rear tire. The crew spent a few extra seconds to pull sheet metal away to provide clearance for the new tires. He would eventually end up two laps down further into the stage.
Just passed halfway through Stage 1, Almirola took over the lead. However, that was short lived as Logano took over the race lead on Lap 34. He originally started in the 22nd position. During green flag pit stops, all drivers came for fuel and tires except for Michael McDowell, who wanted to stretch out his run as far as they could go. The driver of the No. 34 Ford eventually came down pit road, cycling the lead back to Logano who went on to win the stage.
PLAYOFF HOPES SCATTER FOR MANY DRIVERS IN STAGE TWO ONWARD
On the restart, Jones appeared to potentially miss a shift or have a mechanical issue with the transmission of his Toyota Camry as he was stuck in second gear. The crew diagnosed the issue behind the wall in the garage, and the Southern 500 winner was able to rejoin the race 15 laps down.
No one appeared to have any major issues during the second set of green flag pit stops, but Elliott had one of the biggest gains on pit road and found his way up to second in the later half of the stage. Truex was able to get around late in the run, but it Logano seemed to be the car to beat. Truex won Stage 2.
During the pit stops at the conclusion of the Stage 2, Larson received a safety violation penalty and was forced to restart at the tail end of the field. At the time, he had worked his way up into the third position. Front runners ran aggressive on the restart of the final stage. Byron made contact with a few drivers, and had a flat tire to spin on the exit of Turn 4. No contact with the wall was made, so he was able to continue but the yellow flag did fly. Teammate Elliott saw him on pit road as his crew replaced the tires, and backed off to allow him to stay on the lead lap.
Logano, Harvick and Elliott (outside to inside) battle for second behind race leader and eventual race winner Truex. Photo courtesy of Rachel Schuoler for Speedway Media.
Cars were four-wide during the restart. Contact between Truex and Kurt Busch caused the No. 1 Chevrolet Camaro to have a tire rub on the left front. The team went back on forth on if they should come down pit road, but the decision was just a lap too late. His left front tire gave way down the backstretch, and the 2004 champion was not able to get the car slowed in time. He hit the outside wall in Turn 3, and came to rest at the entrance to pit road. He would be the first car out of the race and finish in last place.
With 50 laps to go, Harvick led over Truex and Keselowski. The Team Penske driver had the hood up earlier in the race on pit road as the team was diagnosing strange performance issues, but they were able to resolve those and fight their way into the top three. The other big mover was Kyle Busch, who moved into the top 10 for the first time in the day.
In the closing laps, a few drivers decided to stretch their run as far as they could. Unlike Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race where fuel mileage played a potential role, it was definitely too far for their cars to go in one run. Two drivers included Byron and Larson stayed on track to see if a caution would get them in a strong position. At this point, all other Playoff drivers were a lap down according to scoring.
It was not meant to be. The race stayed green, and the rest of the field was forced to pit. Harvick was able to regain the lead, but Truex was able to fight his way around and take over the lead on Lap 248.
As Kyle Busch climbed his way to start battling for the top five, he chose the middle lane when battling with Elliott and Bowman. Smithley however was in the middle lane running slower than Busch expected. The No. 18 Toyota slammed into the rear of the lapped car, caving in the nose and tweaking the splitter on the right front. Busch fell far off pace to finish in 19th, one lap down.
Out front, Truex led the remaining 20 laps to win his fifth race of the season. The victory secures his spot into the next round. The Cup series will compete next at Richmond Raceway as the Round of 16 continues.
Erik Jones and the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing team were facing the possibility of not making the 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs as they headed into the weekend at Pocono Raceway.
But Jones was able to improve his chances with a much needed strong run Sunday afternoon after using various pit strategy throughout the Gander RV 400. The Michigan native qualified fourth giving him great track position for Sunday’s race and was able to capture a second-place finish.
However, it was almost a disastrous day for the No. 20 JGR driver. It all started in the first stage during the pit stops when Jones pitted from the top five in order to gain track position for Stage 2 and the wrench broke during the stop. In what could have been a prominent problem for Jones, he caught a lucky break when the wrench did not become an issue. Jones went on to finish seventh in Stage 1.
For Stage 2, Jones would wind up restarting back in the pack and would have to work his way back up through the field once more. With a few lucky cautions and pitting again during the second stage, he would once again finish seventh in the second stage.
Things got a bit more interesting in the final stage when fuel became a concern among the drivers, including Jones, who was in the top three. He was told by his crew that he was two laps short with 33 to go. From there, Jones was trying all he could do to save what he needed in case the race went green the rest of the way.
Jones, who was leading the race, was passed by eventual race winner and teammate Denny Hamlin with 17 to go, then he was passed by Truex a couple of laps later. The No. 20 team caught a timely caution with eight to go, allowing Jones to save fuel under the caution period.
Despite having one more shot at the win, the JGR driver had to settle for a second-place finish, finishing .341 seconds behind his teammate and race winner Denny Hamlin.
“It was hard racing at the end,” Jones exclaimed to MRN Radio. “This package, the late restarts make for an exciting finish and today was no exception. I wish we could have gotten up there to challenge Denny (Hamlin). Martin (Truex) gave us a good push on the restart. The bottom doesn’t have what the top has on a restart. So we did all we could.”
“We overcame a lot in this Reser’s Camry. We were pretty far off at the start of the race and we got way better. Had a chance to win and had things worked out a little better, things would have been a bit different. Can’t ask for a lot more for doing burnouts, but we’re getting close every week. It’s going to turn our way one of these times.”
With the second-place finish, Jones earned his seventh top five of the season.
Despite finishing third after having a shot at the win and not leading any laps, Truex was fairly happy with the outcome.
“It was a good day overall for our Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Off Road Camry,” Truex told MRN Radio in his post-race interview. “We were trying to save fuel there on that long run. We ran second to the 20 (Jones) and thought we were in better shape than him on fuel, he started to save more, and I did as well.”
“I started thinking, man. I probably should try to pass him here and we got into lap traffic, then the 11 (Hamlin) got by me. Then I got by the 20 and it’s like the 11 had control of the race after that. When the caution came out, he got to lead the restart and I got on the bottom. You just can’t do anything on the front row on the bottom. We got in a sucker hole there and were lucky to come back third.”
Truex qualified his No. 19 machine eighth in Saturday’s qualifying session. And while he did not lead any laps, the New Jersey native finished fifth and fourth in both stages, respectively. Truex was only able to run as high as second in the race before earning his eighth top-five of the season.
The No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing team sits second in the playoff points standings with four wins.
1. Kyle Busch: Busch started second in the Foxwoods Resort Casino 301 and finished eighth, despite a brush with the wall in the final stage.
“I’ve had lots of experience with walls,” Busch said. “So have people who tried to interview me when I was a young punk.”
2. Joey Logano: Logano finished ninth at New Hampshire and leads the Monster Energy Cup points standings by three over Kyle Busch.
“I was just happy to get through the race without suffering from heat exhaustion,” Logano said. “Who’s not at risk of suffering from ‘heat’ exhaustion? NASCAR fans, that’s who. There is not ‘heat,’ also known as ‘rivalries,’ between drivers. And don’t tell me Clint Bowyer vs. Ryan Newman is a feud. It’s not. Newman has a notoriously hard head, and he was wearing a helmet, so he still doesn’t believe that Bowyer actually punched him.”
3. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex finished sixth in the Foxwoods Resorts Casino 301.
“It was the hottest race ever in New Hampshire,” Truex said. “And it sucked. Some of the younger drivers said it was ‘hot AF.’ I’m not exactly sure what that means, but I’m fairly sure it’s the exact opposite of ‘Cold AC.’”
4. Kevin Harvick: Harvick held off Denny Hamlin on the final turn to win at New Hampshire, his second consecutive win at the ‘Magic Mile’ and first victory since Texas in November.
“Finally!” Harvick said. “I’ve got a win. I feel like a huge weight has been lifted off me. This freedom must feel like what mini-Kevin Harvick feels like when he strips down to his boxers and a T-shirt.”
5. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin wrecked in Friday practice and almost took the victory at New Hampshire in a backup car, finishing second to Kevin Harvick.
“Wrecks in practice are a sure-fire way to ruin a weekend,” Hamlin said. “Just ask my crew.
“But what about that weather? It was hot. It hovered around 100 degrees, and inside the car, it was even worse. I think Fed Ex should take advantage of this in a promotional sense and offer a new delivery package called the hot box’ for discreet deliveries.”
6. Kurt Busch: Busch finished 18th at New Hampshire.
“The Kevin Harvick-Denny Hamlin duel at the end had a lot in common with me and my brother Kyle’s battle at Kentucky,” Busch said. “The biggest similarity is that in both cases, the drivers involved really do not like each other.”
7. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski started on the pole and finished 10th.
“It’s good that Stewart-Haas Racing finally has a win,” Keselowski said. “With one word, Kevin Harvick silenced his critics and gave a shout out to one of his sponsors. He said, ‘Bu-schhhhhhhhhhhhhh.’”
8. Chase Elliott: Elliott suffered from mechanical issues and finished 29th at New Hampshire.
“It was a tough day for Hendrick Motorsports,” Elliot said. “We didn’t even have a car finish in the top 10. Plus we went through way too many cars. But I trust this organization’s resiliency. So, trust me when I say we’ll be ‘back up‘ next week.”
9. Ryan Blaney: Blaney posted his sixth top five of the year with a fourth at New Hampshire.
“Some guy named Andy Suess made his Cup debut in the No. 51 car for Rick Ware Racing,” Larson said. “And no, he does not drive for ‘The Cat In The Hat’ Jack Roush.”
10. Aric Almirola: Almirola finished 11th at New Hampshire and is ninth in the points standings.
“What a drive by Kevin Harvick,” Almirola said. “He faced a huge amount of pressure from Denny Hamlin, yet Harvick remained calm and held him off. Considering the weather, Kevin picked the perfect day to have ‘ice water in his veins.’”
