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  • NASCAR Racing Schedule for Martinsville

    NASCAR Racing Schedule for Martinsville

    The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series and the Camping World Truck Series travel to Martinsville Speedway this weekend. First up is the Alpha Energy Solutions 250 Truck race on Saturday at 3 p.m. ET on FOX. The Cup Series STP 500 will be televised on FS1 at 2 p.m. ET Sunday afternoon.

    Kyle Busch is the defending race winner and enters the race with the third-best driver rating (99.9), 11 top fives, 12 top 10s and one pole. However, the clear favorite at the 0.526-mile track is Jimmie Johnson. Although he has struggled this year, Martinsville could provide the impetus that will re-energize his season. Johnson has the series-best driver rating (117.7) with nine wins, 19 top fives, 24 top 10s and three poles.

    Please check below for the complete schedule of events. All times are Eastern.

    Friday, March 31:

    On Track:
    Noon-1 p.m.: Cup Series Practice – FS1
    1:10-2 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Practice – FS1
    3-3:55 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Final Practice – FS1
    4:35 p.m.: Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying – FS1 (Canceled due to rain)

    Garage Cam: (Watch live)
    11 a.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series
    2:30 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series

    Press Conferences: (Watch live)
    10 a.m.: AJ Allmendinger
    10:30 a.m.: Kyle Larson
    10:45 a.m.: Jimmie Johnson
    11 a.m.: Timothy Peters, Harrison Burton
    1:15 p.m.: Denny Hamlin
    2 p.m.: Joey Logano
    2:30 p.m.: Kyle Busch
    2:45 p.m.: Daniel Suarez

    Saturday, April 1:

    On Track:
    11-11:55 a.m.: Cup Series Practice – FS1
    12:05 a.m.: Camping World Truck Series Keystone Light Pole Qualifying – FS1
    1:30-2:20 p.m.: Cup Series Final Practice – FS1
    3 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Alpha Energy Solutions 250 – (Stage 1: 70 laps, Stage 2: 70 laps, Final Stage: 110 laps = 250 total laps, 131.5 miles) – FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

    Press Conferences: (Watch live)
    5:45 p.m.: Post-Truck Series Race (time approx.)

    Sunday, April 2:

    On Track:
    1:20:00 p.m.: MENCS Driver Introductions w/ NASCAR Special Awards
    2:00:00 p.m.: Presentation of Colors by: Local Law Enforcement and Public Safety Honor Guard
    2:00:20 p.m.: Invocation by: Martinsville Speedway Track Chaplin, Mike Hatfield
    2:01:00 p.m.: National Anthem by: Martinsville, Bassett and Magna Vista High School Marching Bands
    2:02:30 p.m.: Flyover: The Bandit Flight Team (Turn 4 to Turn 1)
    2:07:30 p.m.: “Drivers, Start Your Engines” by: From Hit FOX TV Show “Prison Break,” Rockmond Dunbar
    2:13 p.m.: Start of the Cup Series STP 500 (Stage 1: 130 laps, Stage 2: 130 laps, Final Stage: 240 laps = 500 total laps, 263 miles) – FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

    Press Conferences: (Watch live)
    10:45 a.m.: Rockmond Dunbar
    11 a.m.: Edsel Ford
    11:15 a.m.: STP availability with Richard Petty, Aric Almirola, Steve Letarte and Katina Walker, STP Director of Marketing
    5:30 p.m.: Post-Cup Series Race (time approx.)

    Follow @angiecampbell_ for the latest NASCAR news and feature stories.

    Complete NASCAR TV Schedule

    Odds to win NASCAR STP 500 by 
    Joey Logano +610
    Martin Truex Jr +630
    Kyle Busch +665
    Jimmie Johnson +750
    Brad Keselowski +755
    Denny Hamlin +855
    Kyle Larson +910
    Matt Kenseth +1010
    Kevin Harvick +1400
    Dale Earnhardt Jr +1520
    Chase Elliott +1730
    Clint Bowyer +2035
    Jamie McMurray +2555
    Ryan Newman +3075
    Kurt Busch +4000
    Kasey Kahne +4000
    AJ Allmendinger +4000
    Erik Jones +6000
    Austin Dillon +6000
    Ryan Blaney +6000
    Field (Any Other Driver) +3075

    Entry list for Alpha Energy Solutions 250

    STP 500 Entry List:

    [pdf-embedder url=”http://www.speedwaymedia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/STP-500-Entry-List-Martinsville-Speedway-April-2017-C1706_PREENTNUM.pdf” title=”STP 500 Entry List Martinsville Speedway April 2017 C1706_PREENTNUM”]

     

  • Simon Pagenaud would like another opportunity at Le Mans

    Simon Pagenaud would like another opportunity at Le Mans

    MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Winning a title in IndyCar hasn’t stopped Simon Pagenaud from wanting to return to Circuit de la Sarthe to finally get his first win in the worlds greatest endurance race.

    Speaking to the media yesterday at Martinsville Speedway, the driver of the No. 22 Team Penske Chevrolet in the Verizon IndyCar Series and 2016 IndyCar champion was asked if he had any desire to return to and compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans again one day.

    “Yes, definitely,” Pagenaud said. “It definitely haunts me every morning when I wake up. I finished second. Evidently, it was the closest margin in history. So I got unfinished business there for sure.”

    The French native was driving the No. 9 Team Peugeot Total 908 on the final stint when it finished second overall to the No. 2 Audi Sport R18 (driven by Andre Lotterer) in the 2011 24 Hours of Le Mans. He finished a mere 14 seconds, 13.854 to be exact, behind Lotterer in what was the fourth closest finish in the history of Le Mans.

    It was Audi’s eighth win in 12 years in the twice around the clock race through the French countryside. They would go on to win the next three years in their reign of dominance of the event. This was a point that Pagenaud brought up in his availability.

    “The difficulty is you’ve got to be in a proper factory program like I was with Peugeot or Audi, for example, or Porsche to have a chance to win,” he said. “It’s such a difficult race with so many different factors in play. You need to be really well prepared and to do that, you need to be in a factory team.”

    He also added that his attention at this time is on IndyCar and Team Penske.

    “So right now with my priority being on IndyCar with Team Penske, it’s out of the question for now,” he added. “But hopefully someday, there will be an opportunity and I’ll definitely come back.”

  • Johnson Anticipates Opportunity for Seventh Title

    Johnson Anticipates Opportunity for Seventh Title

    Jimmie Johnson captured his ninth win at Martinsville Speedway Sunday, securing his spot in the final Championship Round at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 20. It marks his 79th career victory, but more importantly, the opportunity to race for a seventh NASCAR Sprint Cup title.

    If successful, Johnson would join the elite company of Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt with a record seven titles. Petty earned his seventh title in 1979 while Earnhardt tied that record in 1994. After 22 years, no one has come close, until now.

    It hasn’t been easy. After beginning the season with two wins at Atlanta Motor Speedway and Auto Club Speedway, Johnson’s year seemed to unravel. During the next 17 races, he only had four top-five finishes culminating with a 40th place at Watkins Glen. But, with a seventh-place result at Bristol Motor Speedway in August, Johnson began to get his season back on track, scoring two more victories at Charlotte and Martinsville, advancing through the championship rounds.

    Johnson admitted that he has “been trying to ignore this conversation about seven (championships) but now I can’t! We’re locked in. I’m just honored to be in this position.”

    And although he says it’s “inevitable” that the prospect of a title will be on his mind, his focus will be on the next two races of the Round of 8.

    “Obviously we want to win more races. If we can have success at Texas, that will only put us in Miami with more confidence and more speed in our car. That’s a mile-and-a-half. It will be nice to go into Phoenix not having to worry about much – really the next two. It puts us in a good position.”

    His goal is to “try to put as much pressure as we can on ourselves because we know come Homestead that pressure is going to be pretty intense.”

    Team owner Rick Hendrick acknowledged that there are factors that are beyond their control but his confidence in Johnson is unshakable.

    “It’s so hard,” he said. “This deal is so hard, this new program. You see guys like Martin Truex that run so good, break an engine at Talladega. It’s a heartbreaker. When you get into the playoffs in baseball, the ball doesn’t go flat, you don’t get a bat that comes apart.

    “There’s a lot of things out of your control that you just can’t do anything about. But I think this is an excellent shot for us, for Jimmie, because I think he’s got that stride. He showed it today when he was on the outside of Denny (Hamlin). He just didn’t give it up.

    “He knows he’s got a tremendous feel. He did at Charlotte. If I’ve got to race for the win at a track like that, then I’d put my money on him. So I think all the components, engine shop, chassis shop, aero, everything is in a good place. Then with Jimmie, when all the chips are down, it’s for the seventh championship, I think he’s going to ratchet it up a notch.”

    It’s a view that is shared by Johnson’s mentor, Jeff Gordon.

    “When things are on the line and things matter most, Jimmie and that team know how to step it up to another level,” Gordon explained. “They showed that today. He’ll be showing that again in Homestead. I was back there in sixth or seventh place just watching him go after the No. 11 car (Denny Hamlin). That was just phenomenal driving and racing. Then he just drove away.

    “Well seven is a number to a lot of people, but to me, he is already one of the all-time great. That number might just solidify that in the history books and maybe for some others. Maybe it might be special to him personally.”

    Although Johnson has put himself in the best possible position, he has no intention of becoming complacent.

    “The work is far from over. There’s one race; that’s winner-take-all.”

     

  • Fans Struck by Car after Martinsville Race

    Fans Struck by Car after Martinsville Race

    MARTINSVILLE, Va. — A scary incident with injury took place following the Sprint Cup Series race at Martinsville.

    As first reported by Motorsport.com, multiple fans were injured after being struck by a black Chevrolet in the handicapped parking area beside the helipad located behind Turns 1 and 2 at Martinsville Speedway.

    Bystanders say the accident happened about 30 minutes following the conclusion of the race. The vehicle involved in the incident jumped the line of traffic and plowed through fans waiting for drivers to come to the helipad.

    “The parking lot was congested with vehicles and pedestrians,” Virginia State Police spokesperson Corrine Geller told Claire B. Lang on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio a few hours following the incident. “It’s near the helipad where drivers will come in and go out. A whole lot of folks were hanging around watching that take place. The vehicle (A black Chevrolet SSR Convertible) attempted to pass [a Jeep Patriot] in front of it.

    “The Chevrolet went forward. It actually struck the Jeep Patriot and then struck several pedestrians nearby.”

    A total of 22 pedestrians were struck by the vehicle. Thirteen were treated on site, nine were transported to a local hospital in Martinsville and two were taken down to Eden, North Carolina “for treatment of non-life threatening injuries.”

    “Fortunately, there were no fatalities and none of the injuries are life threatening,” Geller added. “So that’s definitely the positive out of all of this.”

    Martinsville Speedway released a statement following the race.

    “A vehicular incident occurred following Sunday’s NASCAR race in the Martinsville Speedway parking lot. Multiple individuals were struck by a vehicle and the driver has been taken into police custody. Several people were treated onsite by emergency workers in the infield care center while others have been transported to a nearby hospital. We’ll monitor the situation closely with local authorities and work with them to provide updates.”

  • Johnson Books Championship Ticket with Victory at Martinsville

    Johnson Books Championship Ticket with Victory at Martinsville

    MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Jimmie Johnson will race for a seventh championship in three weeks time after taking the lead with less than 100 laps remaining and scoring the victory at NASCAR’s last track from its charter season.

    Martin Truex Jr. led the field to the green flag at 1:18 p.m. Caution flew for the first time on lap 22 for Ricky Stenhouse Jr. wheel-hopping going into Turn 3, spinning and rear-ending the wall in Turn 3, ending his day.

    It went back to green on lap 28 and the caution flew again on lap 62 for David Ragan laying fluid on the track.

    The race settled into more of a follow the leader routine after the lap 68 restart, with the lead changing between Kyle Larson and Truex, and Kyle Busch and Truex (113 and 114). Debris in Turn 4 brought out the third caution on lap 132.

    Matt Kenseth and Truex swapped the lead back and forth on laps 152 and 153. Eventually, Kenseth took over the top spot on lap 183.

    Denny Hamlin and Johnson were battling for second during the run and it climaxed with Hamlin bumping Johnson out of the way and making contact with Brad Keselowski in the process.

    Debris on the backstretch, a torn banner according to NBC, brought out the fourth caution on lap 200.

    After restarting on lap 207, the race settled into its longest run of 151 laps. It was so long that the fifth caution, for Carl Edwards hitting the wall in Turn 3, came out during a cycle of green-flag stops (a rare occurrence at Martinsville) with 142 laps to go.

    Because it fell during a cycle of green-flag stops, it jumbled up the running order to the point that it caused a lengthy delay as race control sorted out the running order. The caution lasted a total of 29 laps.

    The race restarted, eventually, for the final time with 114 to go with Hamlin in the lead. Johnson got alongside him with 92 to go and finally took control of the lead with 91 to go. Keselowski worked his way around the Joe Gibbs Racing trio of Hamlin, Kenseth and Busch, but he ran out of time and Johnson drove on to score the victory.

    It’s his 79th career victory in 540 Sprint Cup Series starts, fourth of 2016 and ninth in 30 races at Martinsville Speedway.

    Keselowski settled for second in his No. 2 Team Penske Ford. Hamlin, leading 45 laps, overcame a speeding penalty to round out the podium in his No. 11 JGR Toyota.

    Kenseth led a race-high of 175 laps on his way to a fourth-place finish in his No. 20 JGR Toyota. Busch led three as he rounded out the top-five in his No. 18 JGR Toyota.

    Jeff Gordon finished sixth, Truex – leading 147 laps – finished seventh, Jamie McMurray finished eighth, Logano finished ninth and AJ Allmendinger rounded out the top-10.

    Ten cars finished the race on the lead lap and 38 were running at the finish.

    The race lasted three hours, 20 minutes and 55 seconds at an average speed of 78.540 mph. There were 15 lead changes among nine different drivers and five cautions for 54 laps.

    Johnson leaves Martinsville with a five-point lead over Hamlin.

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  • Sauter books ticket to Homestead with win at Martinsville

    Sauter books ticket to Homestead with win at Martinsville

    MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Johnny Sauter, elder statesman of the Truck Series who was the first to get his spot in the Chase with a win at Daytona, will get a chance to win his first series championship in three weeks after taking the checkered flag at Martinsville.

    Chase Elliott led the field to the green flag at 1:43 p.m. He led the first 10 laps before Cole Custer got under him in turn 2 and took the lead. Sauter took the lead for the first time on lap 28 after Custer got loose going into turn 1. The first caution flew on lap 50 for a two-truck wreck in turn 1 involving Josh Wise and Kyle Donahue.

    After returning to green with Elliott back in command, the race settled into a follow the leader routine. Although Custer and Sauter tried to get up to Elliott to make things interesting, he held the lead all the way to the final quarter of the race Spencer Gallagher brought out the second caution on lap 107 after slamming the wall in turn 2.

    The next two cautions flew on lap 149 when Tommy Joe Martins went for a spin in turn 2 and with 37 laps to go for a four-truck wreck in turn 2 involving Ben Kennedy, John Wes Townley, Matt Tifft and Ben Rhodes.

    In the final quarter, Daniel Hemric led six laps, handed the lead to John Hunter Nemechek for 18 and lost it to Sauter who held off Elliott in the closing laps to score the victory in the Texas Roadhouse 200.

    “Well, the race kind of started yesterday so to speak with practice and all that,” Sauter said going through his race in his post-race media availability. “To be honest with you, I felt like we had a really good Smoky Mountain Herbal Snuff Chevrolet yesterday in practice. Didn’t necessarily focus on single lap speed or having a fast truck on a short run. We focused really hard on the long run stuff. Just making sure that the typical thing you face here is turning in the center of the corner and keeping forward traction. Just proud of everybody at GMS (Racing) and GMS Fabrication. This is an all GMS truck. You know, to be able to come to a place like this, that’s been pretty kind to me over the years, to get a win here was extra special. Obviously, we all know what’s on the line here as far as a championship at the beginning of the year. That’s your ultimate goal is to at least have a chance at Homestead to race for a championship. All in all, a great day. I drove to the lead early, had some brake trouble there. I had to kind of conserve for 100 laps. Knew I had a little bit better handling truck than what I was showing, but I just had to take care of it a little bit. When that last caution came out, I think it was 40 laps to go, I was like ‘Pretty sure I got enough brakes to race to the end. So we’re going to use them as hard as I need it to.’ I thank Chase Elliott for racing clean there at the end. Thought we had a very methodical day. Took care of the truck. Ran into the wall a couple of times off the corner just cause I got loose. Hopefully, they ain’t too mad at me for tearing up the truck. But all in all, I’m proud of everyone’s effort at GMS Racing.”

    It’s his 12th career victory in 195 Camping World Truck Series starts, second of 2016 and third in 18 races at Martinsville Speedway.

    Elliott came home second after leading a race high of 109 laps, Nemecheck rounded out the podium, Christopher Bell finished fourth and Timothy Peters rounded out the top-five.

    Daniel Suarez finished sixth, Custer finished seventh, William Byron finished eighth, Hemric finished ninth and Austin Hill rounded out the top-10.

    Matt Crafton, dealing with brake issues all day, finished 17th and Kennedy rallied from his wreck to maintain a lead lap finish in 18th.

    Twenty-one cars finished the race on the lead lap and 29 were running at the finish.

    The race lasted one hour, 25 minutes and 29 seconds at an average speed of 73.839 mph. There were six lead changes among five different drivers and five cautions for 33 laps.

    Sauter leaves Martinsville with a seven-point lead over Bell.

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  • Larson fastest in final practice

    Larson fastest in final practice

    MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Kyle Larson topped the chart in final Sprint Cup Series practice at Martinsville Speedway.

    The driver of the No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 19.707 and a speed of 96.707 mph. Tony Stewart was second in his No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet with a time of 19.721 and a speed of 96.020 mph. Paul Menard was third in his No. 27 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet with a time of 19.770 and a speed of 95.782 mph. Kyle Busch rounded out the top-five in his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota with a time of 19.777 and a speed of 95.748 mph.

    Brad Keselowski was sixth in his No. 2 Team Penske Ford. Martin Truex Jr. was seventh in his No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota. Joey Logano was eighth in his No. 22 Penske Ford. Jamie McMurray was ninth in his No. 1 CGR Chevrolet. Kevin Harvick rounded out the top-10 in his No. 4 SHR Chevrolet.

    Kurt Busch was 12th, Matt Kenseth was 15th, Denny Hamlin was 16th, Jimmie Johnson was 16th and Carl Edwards was the lowest Chase driver in 27th.

    Larson posted the fastest 10 consecutive lap average at a speed of 95.462 mph. Kyle Busch was second at an average speed of 95.356 mph.

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  • Elliott gets the Truck pole at Martinsville

    Elliott gets the Truck pole at Martinsville

    MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Chase Elliott will lead the field to the green flag this afternoon after topping the chart in the final round of Truck Series qualifying at Martinsville.

    The driver of the No. 71 Contreras Motorsports Chevrolet scored the pole for the Texas Roadhouse 200 after posting a time of 19.673 and a speed of 96.254 mph.

    It’s his second career pole in 10 Camping World Truck Series starts, first of 2016 and first at Martinsville Speedway.

    Daniel Suarez will start second in his No. 51 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota after posting a time of 19.741 and a speed of 95.922 mph. Cole Custer will start third in his No. 00 JR Motorsports Chevrolet after posting a time of 19.745 and a speed of 95.903 mph. Tyler Reddick will start fourth in his No. 29 Brad Keselowski Motorsports Ford after posting a time of 19.749 and a speed of 95.883 mph. Johnny Sauter will round out the top-five in his No. 21 GMS Racing Chevrolet after posting a time of 19.755 and a speed of 95.854 mph.

    Christopher Bell will start sixth in his No. 4 KBM Toyota. William Byron will start seventh in his No. 9 KBM Toyota. Cameron Hayley will start eighth in his No. 13 ThorSport Racing Toyota. Matt Tifft will start ninth in his No. 11 Red Horse Racing Toyota. Kay Grala will round out the top-10 in his No. 24 GMS Chevrolet.

    Matt Crafton will start 11th and John Hunter Nemechek will round out the 12 drivers that made the final round out qualifying.

    Ben Kennedy will start 18th and Timothy Peters will be the lowest starting Chase driver in 19th.

    Brad Foy, Donnie Levister, Casey Smith and Kyle Soper failed to make the race.

    A total of 16 Chevrolet’s, 12 Toyota’s and four Ford’s will comprise the 32-truck field for this afternoon’s race.

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  • McMurray fastest in second practice

    McMurray fastest in second practice

    MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Jamie McMurray topped the chart in second Sprint Cup Series practice at Martinsville Speedway.

    The driver of the No. 1 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet was the fastest in the second practice session with a time of 19.566 and a speed of 96.780 mph. Joey Logano was second in his No. 22 Team Penske Ford with a time of 19.575 and a speed of 96.736 mph. David Ragan was third in his No. 23 BK Racing Toyota with a time of 19.588 and a speed of 96.671 mph. Martin Truex Jr. was fourth in his No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota with a time of 19.592 and a speed of 96.652 mph. AJ Allmendinger rounded out the top-five in his No. 47 JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet with a time of 19.598 and a speed of 95.622 mph.

    Matt Kenseth was sixth in his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. Carl Edwards was seventh in his No. 19 JGR Toyota. Ryan Newman was eighth in his No. 31 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet. Tony Stewart was ninth in his No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet. Jimmie Johnson rounded out the top-10 in his No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet.

    Denny Hamlin was 11th, Kurt Busch was 12th, Kevin Harvick was 13th and Kyle Busch was the lowest Chase driver in 16th.

    Truex posted the fastest 10 consecutive lap average at a speed of 96.198 mph.

    Final Sprint Cup Series practice starts at noon.

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  • Hamlin says his teammates were smart to run in the back at Talladega

    Hamlin says his teammates were smart to run in the back at Talladega

    MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Denny Hamlin responded to those who took issue with his teammate running in the back at Talladega the week by saying he “thought it was smart.”

    Speaking to the media prior to the first practice session at Martinsville Speedway yesterday, the driver of the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was asked what he thought of his teammates running in the back of the field during last week’s Hellmann’s 500 at Talladega Superspeedway.

    “I thought it was smart,” Hamlin said. “From my standpoint I knew we had an uphill battle because we weren’t going to have any teammates all day, I knew that we weren’t going to have any teammates all day because we all knew what they were going to do before the race started. Just everyone else saw it when it actually happened. There’s no way, they would be the dumbest group in history if they had run in the middle of the pack and got wrecked at some point when they didn’t have to be. It’s about winning championships, it’s not about winning Talladega by any means.”

    Teammates Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards and Matt Kenseth, who all entered Talladega well ahead of the danger of elimination, went the conservative route and ran at the tail end of the field the whole race to avoid getting collected in any major wrecks (The Big One) and advance on. Hamlin on the other hand, entering with a blown engine run at Charlotte and a mediocre run at Kansas, had to have a good run to advance into the Round of 8.

    The split strategy worked out for the best for the Huntersville, North Carolina based organization as all four drivers moved on into the Round of 8.

    Despite it working out and other drivers having done it to their advantage in the past, a number of fans took to Twitter and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio to express outrage, saying JGR “manipulated” the outcome of the race by not abiding by the 100 percent rule.

    Steve O’Donnell, NASCAR executive vice-president and chief racing development officer, said in his weekly appearance on “The Morning Drive” on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio that the strategy used by JGR didn’t violate the 100 percent rule.

    “I would say that they do not fall into that,” O’Donnell said. “The spirit of that (100 percent) rule is really to prevent somebody from intentionally allowing another teammate to do something that would not be really within the spirit of the rules of the race.

    “In this case, we look at the strategy decision that the team made, and they executed it. … In this case, that wouldn’t be something that we look at that violated that rule.”

    Hamlin also emphasized that the Gibbs organization had every right to do what they did by how they performed in the first two races in the Round of 12.

    “All those guys earned the right to do that by having a good first two races and I think next year with the races being switched around, you’ll see less of that because people won’t know where they stand,” he added. “I think it kind of fixes itself next year most likely, but there’s more chances of a big wreck there than any other race track so you have to play the odds there. There’s no way that those guys should have been up there helping me and then risk putting themselves in danger of making the Chase and instead of Gibbs having three cars in the Chase, they could have had two or maybe one if there had been helping me and we got in a wreck. Luckily it all worked out where we have all four and they played the strategy they had to play to get in and I did the strategy I had to do to get in. Nobody from any other team would have done anything different, that’s for sure and if they tell you different, that’s a lie.”