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Tag: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series

  • Charlotte All-Star Race – Did You Know?

    Charlotte All-Star Race – Did You Know?

    NASCAR travels to Charlotte Motor Speedway this weekend for the Monster Energy All-Star race Saturday evening.

    The All-Star race lineup will feature 20 of NASCAR’S best. Those eligible for the event are drivers who won a points race in 2016 or 2017, past all-star race winners and series champions who compete full-time.

    There are currently 16 drivers locked into the race. They include Chris Buescher, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson, Kasey Kahne, Matt Kenseth, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, Jamie McMurray, Ryan Newman, Martin Truex Jr. and Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

    Three drivers will earn a spot by competing in the Monster Energy Open which is comprised of three stages. The winner of each stage will move on to the All-Star race. The final 20th spot will be determined by the fan vote.

    Joey Logano is the defending All-Star race winner and has the sixth-best driver rating (85.3) with an average finish of 7.3. Last year’s win was his first victory in this event where he also has three top fives and five top 10s. Logano is one of 22 different drivers who has won an All-Star race. But did you know that only two drivers, Davey Allison (1991, 1992) and Jimmie Johnson (2012, 2013) have won consecutive All-Star races?

    Kyle Busch heads to the All-Star race in Charlotte with the series-best driver rating of 101.9 with three top fives and six top 10s. He leads all active drivers with three poles (2008, 2011, 2012) and has the best average starting position of 5.818 but is still looking for his first All-Star win.

    There have been 32 All-Star races but did you know that only 31 have been held at Charlotte Motor Speedway? In 1986 it was held at Atlanta Motor Speedway and was won by Bill Elliott.

    Elliott leads the series in All-Star poles with four (1987, 1997, 1998 and 2000) and he is one of only four drivers who has won consecutive poles. Davey Allison won back-to-back poles in 1991 and 1992, Kyle Busch won the 2011 and 2012 poles and Carl Edwards was the most recent, capturing the pole in both 2013 and 2014.

    The first All-Star race was held in 1985 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. But did you know that it was won by Hall of Famer, Darrell Waltrip? He went on to win the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship the same year. Waltrip, however, was not the only one to win the All-Star race and the championship in the same year. Dale Earnhardt (1987, 1990, 1993), Rusty Wallace (1989), Jeff Gordon (1995, 1997, 2001) and Jimmie Johnson (2006, 2013) followed in his footsteps.

    Although the All-Star race is a relatively short, exhibition race, winning it has proven to be a unique indicator of which drivers have mastered the 1.5-mile track. Did you know that seven times, seven different drivers, have gone on to win the Coca-Cola 600 the following weekend? Those drivers include Darrell Waltrip (1985), Davey Allison (1991), Dale Earnhardt (1993), Jeff Gordon (1997), Jimmie Johnson (2003), Kasey Kahne (2008) and Kurt Busch (2010).

    One of the most memorable All-Star races occurred in 1992 when Davey Allison and Kyle Petty were contending for the win along with Dale Earnhardt who was in the lead. During the closing laps, Petty made contact with Earnhardt, who spun, setting up a battle between Allison and Petty. Allison won the race but the two drivers collided as they crossed the finish line. Allison was knocked unconscious and airlifted to the local hospital but, thankfully, was not seriously injured.

    But did you know that Davey Allison is also one of only six drivers with multiple wins in this event? Allison (1991, 1992) Terry Labonte (1988, 1999) and Mark Martin (1998, 2005) have two victories each. Dale Earnhardt (1987, 1990 and 1993) and Jeff Gordon (1995, 1997 and 2001) have three wins while Jimmie Johnson leads the series with four All-Star wins (2003, 2006, 2012, 2013).

    Be sure to tune in at 8 p.m. Saturday, May 20, for the 33rd running of the Monster Energy All-Star race to find out which driver will win bragging rights and the $1 million prize.

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

  • NASCAR Racing Schedule and Format for Charlotte All-Star Weekend

    NASCAR Racing Schedule and Format for Charlotte All-Star Weekend

    NASCAR heads to Charlotte Motor Speedway this week for the Camping World Truck Series North Carolina Education Lottery 200 Friday night and the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series All-Star race Saturday evening. Both events will be televised on FS1.

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

    Thursday, May 18:

    On Track:
    5-5:55 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Practice
    7-7:55 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Final Practice

    Friday, May 19:

    On Track:
    1-2:10 p.m.: Cup Series Practice (Monster Energy All-Star Race) – FS1
    2:10-2:25 p.m.: Cup Series Pit Road Speed Practice (Monster Energy All-Star Race) – FS1
    3-4:25 p.m.: Cup Series Practice (Monster Energy Open) – FS1
    4:45 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Keystone Light Pole Qualifying – FS1
    6:05 p.m.: Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying Round 1 (All-Star Race) – FS1
    7:30 p.m. (approx): Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying Round 2 (All-Star Race) – FS1
    8:30 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series North Carolina Education Lottery 200 (134 laps, 201 miles) – FS1

    Saturday, May 20:

    On Track:
    4:35 p.m.: Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying (Open; Multi-Vehicle, Two Rounds) – FS1
    6 p.m.: Cup Series Monster Energy Open (20 laps, 20 laps, 10 laps) – FS1
    8 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race (20 laps, 20 laps, 20 laps, 10 laps) – FS1 (time approx.)

    The All-Star Drivers:

    The All-Star race will be made up of 20 drivers. There are currently 16 drivers who are locked into the race. They include Chris Buescher, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson, Kasey Kahne, Matt Kenseth, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, Jamie McMurray, Ryan Newman, Martin Truex Jr. and Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

    Three drivers will earn a spot by competing in the Monster Energy Open which is comprised of three stages. The winner of each stage will move on to the All-Star race. The final 20th spot will be determined by the fan vote.

    Format:

    The All-Star race will feature four stages (20 laps, 20 laps, 20 laps, 10 laps) for a total of 70 laps. The final stage of 10 laps will feature 10 drivers.

    The winner of each of the first three stages will earn a spot in the final stage, as long as they are running on the lead lap after the third stage.

    The cars with the best average finish in the first three stages will make up the remaining seven spots for the 10-car final stage.

    The 10 cars will be lined up by the average finish of the first three stages and will be given the option to pit. Exit off pit road will determine the starting order for the final stage.

    The winner will receive $1,000,000.

    Strategy:

    Each team will have one set of softer tires which will provide better grip and speed. The teams can use these tires at their discretion any time during the 70 lap event. But, if a team chooses to use the softer tires to begin the final stage, they will have to start behind the teams who are on regular tires.

    Qualifying Notes:

    Qualifying for the All-Star Race will include the “no speed limit” four-tire pit stop. Each team will have three timed laps and must include a mandatory four-tire pit stop with no enforced pit-road speed limits. The five quickest teams will advance to the final round of qualifying which will determine starting positions one through five. The team that completes the fastest stop will also earn the Pit Crew Competition Award.

    Complete NASCAR TV Schedule

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

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Kansas

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Kansas

    Martin Truex Jr. made the pass on Ryan Blaney to win Saturday nights GoBowling 400 at Kansas Speedway. Truex Jr. led a race-high 104 laps in route to his second victory this season and his first at Kansas.

    “It’s always good to get a nice beer shower, 5-Hour Energy and whatever else they’re throwing on us here. Pretty awesome. Awesome day. Awesome weekend. This team rocks, man, they’re so good. We just stuck with it all night. We had an awesome race car. There’s times there we looked like we weren’t going to have a shot at it. We just kept fighting and made it happen.”

    Surprising

    A crash involving Joey Logano, Danica Patrick and Aric Almirola in lap 201 brought out the red flag. The crash resulted in Almirola being airlifted to the hospital.

    A lot of us took a hard hit. Something broke on my car, I don’t know what it was. I noticed it as I was trying to go in. I tried to back it off but you’re going 215 (mph) and it’s hard to check up. The car just took a bit step sideways into the corner and I hooked Danica (Patrick). I haven’t seen a replay yet, I don’t know what happened. You can see the right-front popped (right there) and it popped. I just hope everyone is okay. I hope Aric is alright. That’s the last thing you want to see, a big hit like that for anyone. It’s unfortunate for everyone,” Logano said.

    A Richard Petty Motorsports press release was sent out on Sunday saying, “Almirola suffered a compression fracture to his T5 Vertebra after a multi-car accident at Kansas Speedway Saturday night. Almirola is mobile and will follow-up with his doctors in Charlotte.”

    Not Surprising

    Blaney won his first career pole position at Kansas on Friday and won Stage 2. Blaney finished fourth and captured the team’s second top-five finish and its fifth top-10 result of the season.

    “The last three races have been really, really bad, and it’s just an extra kind of slap to the face that we’ve had really fast cars in all those races we had troubles in, and we shouldn’t have finished 35th. We should have had top 10s in all of them. So it was nice to show our muscle this weekend and prove that, like I said, this is where the 21 team deserves to be, so it’s just nice to get back on track.”

    Surprising

    Kyle Larson finished in sixth-place finish in his No. 42 Target Chevrolet SS. But Larson continues to maintain the series point lead by 44.

    “The early parts of the race I thought we were okay, not great, but I thought we were like a fourth or fifth place car and I got into the wall on one of those later restarts after that big wreck. I just got really tight and it took off and hit the wall. Then my car was pretty tight afterwards, so I’m sure some aerodynamic issues there, but still recovered for a decent finish there.”

    Not Surprising

    Trevor Bayne finished 10th and captured his second top-10 finish and his eighth top-15 finish of the season.

    “That was a hard-fought 10th-place finish. It’s funny how expectations change. A year ago I would have been pumped for a 10th and now it is what we should be doing. We are getting better. Our potential is better. If we can finish 10th on a weekend like this, when we get the cars where we need them we can do business. I appreciate the hard work and execution by my team tonight.”

    Surprising

    Ricky Stenhouse Jr. went a lap down early due to a loose wheel. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. battled back and finished in 11th place.

    “We had a strong GoBowling Ford all weekend which shows the gains of the Roush Fenway Racing organization. We know what we need to work on for future intermediate tracks. It’s great to be locked into the All-Star race so I’m looking forward to going after that 1 million.”

    Not Surprising

    Brad Keselowski and the No. 2 Elite Support Ford Fusion team fought back from two laps down to finish in second place. Keselowski now has seven top-5 and nine top-10s finishes this season.

    “We had a really good Elite Support Ford Fusion all day and just never had a chance to show it. Every time we started to pass cars and cycle up to the front, we had some kind of issue, which was a real bummer to not be able to showcase the strength that we had.”

    The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series heads to Charlotte Motor Speedway on Saturday May 20 at 8 p.m. EST on FS1 for the Monster Energy Open and All Star Race.

  • Blaney Falls Short of Maiden Victory with Fourth at Kansas

    Blaney Falls Short of Maiden Victory with Fourth at Kansas

    Ryan Blaney is still searching for his first victory in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series after another dominant performance ends with just a top-five finish in the Go Bowling 400 at Kansas Speedway.

    The weekend for Blaney started with taking pole position on Friday, the first of his career and first for Wood Brothers Racing since Ricky Rudd at Talladega Superspeedway in April of 2004.

    He led the first 10 laps before Martin Truex Jr. powered by his outside exiting Turn 2 on lap 11.

    Blaney was near the front the entire race with a 2.1 average running position, the best of anyone. He never ran lower than fifth at any point in the race.

    It should come as no surprise then that he finished third in the first stage and won the second stage.

    He and Truex traded battled for the lead in the final stage, with Truex taking it with 87 laps to go and Blaney with 46 to go.

    But the winning move belonged to Truex, who made it exiting Turn 2 with 24 to go and held of Blaney on subsequent restarts to win the race.

    Blaney restarted second in the outside lane on the final restart with two laps to go. But while the outside was the lane of choice early in the race when the Sun was still out, it proved inferior under the cover of darkness.

    He was unable to hold the advance of Kevin Harvick and Brad Keselowski and settled for a fourth-place finish.

    “Yeah, it happens I guess. We weren’t very good on the long run,” he said on pit road after the race. “I felt that we had a great short run car tonight and I thought that was going to play right into our hands at the end. The 78 got us on that restart somehow. I don’t know. I was super loose there on the last restarts and the 78 got me spinning my tires a little bit. It kind of stinks. I think that it says a lot about this team to go out and lead some laps and go have a shot and win races.”

    Blaney leaves Kansas 11th in points, 184 behind points leader Kyle Larson.

  • Keselowski Ends Up and Down Kansas Race with Runner-Up Finish

    Keselowski Ends Up and Down Kansas Race with Runner-Up Finish

    Brad Keselowski’s adventurous day up and down the running order ended with a second-place finish in the Go Bowling 400 at Kansas Speedway.

    Starting the day 17th, Keselowski demonstrated the strength of his car early, going from 14th to eighth in one lap on the lap 55 restart and worked his way into a fifth-place finish at the end of the first stage.

    He dropped back through the field after electing to pit under the fifth caution of the race on lap 97, but drove from 24th to fifth in just 10 laps on the ensuing restart.

    On lap 120, however, he made an unscheduled stop for a loose left-rear wheel. Adding insult to injury, he was handed a pass through penalty for driving through too many pit boxes. He rejoined the race in 35th, two laps down.

    He elected to take a wave around under the following two cautions to put himself back on the lead lap. He slowly worked his way back into the top-10.

    Keselowski was fourth on the final restart. He was still fourth coming to the white flag. But going into Turn 1, he drove to the outside of Ryan Blaney and Kevin Harvick and drove on to finish second.

    “Well, so much happened, I’m not sure I even know,” Keselowski said of the final restart in his post-race media availability. “But we were really good all day and just never had a chance to show it. Every time we started to pass cars and cycle up to the front, we had some kind of issue, which was a real bummer to not be able to showcase the strength that we had. Towards the end we were able to get some runs and make the most of it, and I think we went from probably 20th with 100 to go to second, which was a pretty big climb in the sport. That’s something to be proud of, but I kind of feel like I would have liked to have seen if it would have just played out normal, and I think we might have had a shot at him (Martin Truex Jr.).”

    Keselowski leaves Kansas third in points, 67 behind points leader Kyle Larson.

  • Almirola Released from Hospital after Violent Wreck

    Almirola Released from Hospital after Violent Wreck

    Aric Almirola has been released from the University of Kansas Medical Center after suffering a compression fracture to his T5 Vertebra in a vicious three-car wreck late in the Go Bowling 400 at Kansas Speedway.

    Richard Petty Motorsports issued the following statement this morning.

    “Aric Almirola, driver of the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford, has been released from a local Kansas hospital and will fly back to his home in Mooresville, N.C. today.

    Almirola suffered a compression fracture to his T5 Vertebra after a multi-car accident at Kansas Speedway Saturday night. Almirola is mobile and will follow-up with his doctors in Charlotte.

    Richard Petty Motorsports will provide further updates when available.”

    The wreck started with 68 laps to go when Joey Logano was going to the outside of Danica Patrick for position. Going into Turn 1, Logano suffered a right-front tire blowout, causing his car to veer down and hook the right-rear corner of Patrick’s car. This sent her car head-on into the outside wall.

    Logano’s car spun backwards up into the wall just a few feet ahead of Patrick’s. They made contact a second time a few seconds later.

    Almirola was running seven car lengths back of the wreck, at the time Logano first hit the wall, and running near the top groove when his car got loose, clipped the left-rear corner of Patrick’s car and slammed head-on into the left-front of Logano’s car.

    Almirola’s car continued down the track before coming to a halt against the outside wall on the exit of Turn 2 with the window net down, while the destroyed cars of Logano and Patrick stopped on the apron in Turn 2. Patrick quickly exited from her car, which NASCAR says to do if it’s on fire, while Logano sat in his until instructed to exit by the safety team.

    While Almirola put the window net down, signaling the safety team that he’s okay, the safety team elected to extract him from the car rather than have him exit under his own power. After cutting open the driver cockpit, Almirola was placed onto a stretcher, loaded into an awaiting ambulance and taken to the University of Kansas Medical Center.

    Logano and Patrick were taken to and released from the infield care center.

    Logano, with unease in his vocal patterns, told Jamie Little of FOX Sports that he was “okay” and he was “saying a lot of prayers for Aric (Almirola) right now.”

    “A lot of us took a hard hit,” he said. “Something broke on my car, I don’t know what it was. I noticed it as I was trying to go in. I tried to back it off but you’re going 215 (mph) and it’s hard to check up. The car just took a bit step sideways into the corner and I hooked Danica (Patrick). I haven’t seen a replay yet, I don’t know what happened. You can see the right-front popped (right there) and it popped. I just hope everyone is okay. I hope Aric is alright. That’s the last thing you want to see, a big hit like that for anyone. It’s unfortunate for everyone. Let’s hope that Aric is alright.”

    Asked if there was any indication leading to what happened, he said it was “out of nowhere. Just out of nowhere. Everything was fine and then it just took a hard right. Everyone pray for Aric right now.”

    He also added that he told Patrick that “something broke” in the ambulance ride to the care center.

    “We were back in the ambulance together and I just told here something broke,” Logano added. “There’s nothing I could have done. I don’t know what happened. Like I said, something broke and tore up a bunch of really good cars.”

    Not long after, Patrick spoke to the media.

    “We were having a really good race and having fun out there and had a lot of speed. I kinda felt like Wonder Woman for a little while. All I know is that I all of a sudden crashed,” she said of what happened.” I definitely had a feeling it was the 22 and I am sure that the doctors in the medical center checking my neurological abilities are glad to know I was right that it was Joey. When he said he had a failure I can’t say it made me feel that much better in the moment. I am just frustrated for the lack of breaks I get. It seems like every time things are going better and something happens I get crashed or am in a crash. Especially a place like this, a brake rotor, when we are using 200-300 pounds of pressure seems odd. Unfortunately there were two of us that got collected and while I am okay, one of these times one if these really big accidents someone is not going to be okay. Aric (Almirola) is not okay and his car looked the best of everybody. You never know when it is going to be the wrong hit. I have a team that works hard and put another car on the track and I hope we are saving up for a really good run of good luck.”

    She was also asked about the ambulance conversation Logano mentioned.

    “I think I said everything I needed to say before I got in. I said something else in there and I just – really if he had a failure there is really nothing you can do about that,” Patrick added. “That is unfortunate and me and Aric are unfortunate recipients of that problem. It isn’t that I haven’t had issues with Joey in the past so to think it was something else was imaginable.”

  • Richard Petty Motorsports Statement on Aric Almirola

    Richard Petty Motorsports Statement on Aric Almirola

    KANSAS CITY, Kan. – (May 14, 2017) – Aric Almirola, driver of the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford, was involved in a multi-car accident on Lap 199 during Saturday night’s race.

    Almirola was alert after the accident as safety professionals removed him from the car. He was transported by helicopter to a local medical facility for evaluation. He is in stable condition and will be held overnight for further observation.

    Richard Petty Motorsports will provide further updates when appropriate.

    A performance and marketing driven company, Richard Petty Motorsports, co-owned by NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty and successful business entrepreneur Andrew Murstein, is one of the most recognized brands in all of motorsports. With a history of over 200 wins and business partnerships with national and global leaders, today the race operation fields one team in competition in the NASCAR premier series with driver Aric Almirola. Almirola will return to the iconic No. 43 Ford with partners Smithfield Foods, STP, United States Air Force and Fresh From Florida. The team is headquartered in Mooresville, N.C.

  • Truex Wins Caution-Fest Kansas Cup Race

    Truex Wins Caution-Fest Kansas Cup Race

    A pass for the lead with just over 20 laps remaining in the Go Bowling 400 at Kansas Speedway proved crucial to Martin Truex Jr. on his drive to winning in his team’s backyard.

    Truex passed Ryan Blaney exiting Turn 2 to take the lead with 24 laps to go and held off Blaney on three restarts to win for the ninth time in his career and seventh time since 2015.

    “It feels great,” Truex said. “It’s definitely been a thorn in our side. That’s for sure. You know for years and years even, before I was with this (Furniture Row) team, for whatever reason we always ran good here and never could close the deal.

    “Proud to get these guys back in victory lane. This is our home race track — the guys from Colorado. Appreciate all the fans. We got a lot of fans from Colorado here today. I met a bunch of them before the race and hopefully they’re all psyched.”

    Brad Keselowski finished second and Kevin Harvick rounded out the podium.

    Blaney and Kyle Busch rounded out the top-five.

    Kyle Larson, Daniel Suarez, Jamie McMurray, Clint Bowyer and Trevor Bayne rounded out the top-10.

    Blaney led the field to the green flag at 7:53 p.m. Truex shot past Blaney’s outside exiting Turn 2 to take the lead on the 11th lap. Landon Cassill brought out the first caution on lap 29 when a flat right-front tire led to slamming the wall in Turn 1. He slammed the wall a second time on lap 50.

    On pit road, Chase Elliott was exiting pit road when he made contact with Michael McDowell, who was coming into his pit box.

    Kevin Harvick took the lead opting not to pit under the second caution, but spun the tires on the lap 62 restart and lost the lead to Kyle Busch, who drove on to win the first stage.

    Truex led the field to the restart on lap 88 and held it, through teammate Erik Jones spinning in Turn 2 on lap 97, through lap 100, then lost it to Busch.

    Blaney took back the lead on lap 143 and won the second stage.

    He and Truex battled back and forth for the lead in the final stage.

    Kurt Busch and Jimmie Johnson made contact on the restart with five laps to go, sending Johnson spinning through the grass in Turn 1 and setting up the final two-lap run to the finish.

    Ty Dillon brought out a caution on lap 62 for a solo spin in Turn 2. Erik Jones spun out the first of three times on lap 97 in Turn 2. LaJoie slammed the wall in Turn 3 after suffering cuts in both right-side tires. Gray Gaulding slammed the wall in Turn 4 and shredded his right-rear tire in Turn 2 on lap 146. Paul Menard and AJ Allmendinger crashed together in Turn 1 with 74 laps to go. Jones got loose in speedy dry in Turn 2 and spun out with 52 to go. LaJoie slammed the wall in Turn 1 with 24 to go. Jones got turned by Ty Dillon and spun through the infield grass with nine to go.

    With 68 to go, a violent three-car wreck in Turn 1 involving Joey Logano, Danica Patrick and Aric Almirola sent Almirola to the University of Kansas Medical Center. As of the publishing of this piece, no further update was available on his condition.

    The race lasted three hours, 24 minutes and 16 seconds at an average speed of 117.640 mph. There were 21 lead changes among nine different drivers and 15 cautions for 61 laps.

    Larson leaves with a 44-point lead over Truex.

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  • Ryan Blaney Captures First Career Coors Light Pole at Kansas

    Ryan Blaney Captures First Career Coors Light Pole at Kansas

    Ryan Blaney scored his first career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Coors Light Pole Award Friday at Kansas Speedway.

    Blaney raced to the top of the qualifying leaderboard with a lap of 189.600 mph in his No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford to earn his first pole in 64 Cup starts. It was the 117th pole for Wood Brothers Racing and their first since April 2004 when Ricky Rudd led the field to green in the Aaron’s 499 race at Talladega Superspeedway.

    “We’ve been really close a few times this year and it’s nice to finally get it done,” said Blaney. “I know it’s only qualifying but it feels really cool to get the first pole because qualifying hasn’t really been my best thing. That says a lot about this whole team. I can’t tell you how proud I am of this 21 team.”

    Blaney gave credit to his team and Ford for their improved performance this season.

    “It’s just hard work in the off-season,” he explained. “Ford made a big dedication to our team, really all the Ford teams and they stepped it up. I think you can see it this year, not only in qualifying but racing as well. It’s nice to be part of a team that’s so hard-working and dedicated.”

    Joey Logano will start the Go Bowling 400 on the outside pole in his No. 22 Team Penske Ford after delivering the second-fastest qualifying lap of 189.540 mph.

    Logano was disappointed but said, “Congratulations to Blaney. That is cool. Your first pole is a big deal. It is a big deal for him. I just hate being second. I have to be honest.”

    Furniture Row Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. qualified third in his No. 78 Toyota with a speed of 189.201 mph, followed by Ricky Stenhouse Jr.’s  No. 17 Roush Fenway Racing Ford in fourth. Kyle Busch, the defending race winner, rounded out the top five in his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.

    Eleven drivers missed the opening qualifying session after problems during the pre-qualifying inspection, including Clint Bowyer, Landon Cassill, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Timmy Hill, Erik Jones, Jimmie Johnson, Kasey Kahne, Corey LaJoie, Carl Long, David Ragan and Reed Sorenson.

    Michael McDowell had engine trouble and also missed qualifying.

    The Cup Series Go Bowling 400 is set for Saturday evening at 7:30 p.m. and will be televised on FS1.

    Starting Lineup for the Go Bowling 400:

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  • Kyle Busch Fastest in Final Cup Practice at Kansas

    Kyle Busch Fastest in Final Cup Practice at Kansas

    Kyle Busch topped the chart in final Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice at Kansas Speedway.

    The driver of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was the fastest with a time of 28.279 and a speed of 187.963 mph. Kyle Larson was second in his No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet with a time of 28.749 and a speed of 187.833 mph. Martin Truex Jr. was third in his No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota with a time of 28.830 and a speed of 187.305 mph.

    Ryan Blaney was fourth in his No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford with a time of 28.849 and a speed of 187.182 mph. Brad Keselowski rounded out the top-five in his No. 2 Team Penske Ford with a time of 28.857 and a speed of 187.130 mph.

    Jimmie Johnson, who clocked in the seventh fastest single lap, posted the fastest 10 consecutive lap average at a speed of 181.513 mph.

    Five minutes into the session, Larson hit the outside wall in Turn 1. The damage to the right-rear corner panel forced the team to roll out their backup car.

    “I’ve been extremely loose all day,” Larson said. “I think a lot of people have. I don’t know why we are all fighting loose, but we made some big adjustments between the two practices there and I was still really loose. I felt like my (Turns) 1 and 2 was better this practice than the one before. (Turns) 3 and 4 is where I really thought I was going to crash if I was to crash today. Back there when I wrecked, I just tried to open my entry up a little bit so it would maybe help my corner out and I just got really loose before I ever even really got to the corner. I had to chase it up and smacked the wall pretty hard. So, backup car, but our backup car should be pretty good.”

    Related: Truex Fastest at Kansas in First Cup Practice

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