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Tag: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series

  • Elliott Fastest in First Practice at Phoenix

    Elliott Fastest in First Practice at Phoenix

    Chase Elliott topped the chart in the first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice at Phoenix International Raceway.

    The driver of the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet was the fastest with a time of 26.258 and a speed of 137.101 mph. Kyle Larson was second in his No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet with a time of 26.379 and a speed of 136.472 mph. Joey Logano was third in his No. 22 Team Penske Ford with a time of 26.385 and a speed of 136.441 mph. Martin Truex Jr. was fourth in his No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota with a time of 26.438 and a speed of 136.168 mph. Ryan Blaney rounded out the top-five in his No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford with a time of 26.440 and a speed of 136.157 mph.

    Jamie McMurray, who ran the 10th-fastest single lap, posted the fastest 10 consecutive lap average at a speed of 132.623 mph.

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  • Hot 20 – Las Vegas featured Martin, Joey, and Kyle…but Phoenix could be all Harvick

    Hot 20 – Las Vegas featured Martin, Joey, and Kyle…but Phoenix could be all Harvick

    Wins mean everything, but doing well in the stages and coming home close to the front seems pretty important also this season. Last week, Matt Kenseth finished ninth, yet lost ground by 30 points to race winner Martin Truex Jr. in Las Vegas alone.

    The maximum number of points one can get, what Truex received last week, is 60, and that includes a win and pass to the Chase. By claiming both stages and finishing second a driver would up their count by 55, and that would be enough to move any driver from nothing to something in a hurry. This is especially true when you remember that sometimes a good driver could end up with just one single point on the day, but enough about Kevin Harvick.

    Most of our leaders should enjoy their time in Phoenix if their histories can give us a clue. Do not expect much from Truex, Kasey Kahne, or Jamie McMurray. Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin, on the other hand, should move up and just maybe come next week Dale Earnhardt Jr. might be back on this list.

    A win would do it, and Junior did win at Phoenix in 2015. Joey Logano won there last fall. As for Harvick, he is the man. Eight victories, six of the past nine on this track, on one he has at least one victory in each of the past four seasons. I think we just found our favorite for Sunday.

    The points would be nice, but after giving it away in Atlanta, for Harvick, a win would mean everything.

    1. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 1 WIN – 132 PTS
    Stay relevant, stay close, pass Truex…damn, damn, damn.

    2. MARTIN TRUEX JR. – 1 WIN – 127 PTS
    If you were wondering about that voodoo doll in the form of the No. 2…now you know.

    3. KURT BUSCH – 1 WIN – 93 PTS
    No attempt to hit Joey, but managed to beat on the wall, and was left wanting to beat on his car.

    4. KYLE LARSON – 131 PTS
    Who does a guy have to fight in order to get some recognition by the mainstream?

    5. CHASE ELLIOTT – 129 PTS
    Fifth at Atlanta. Third at Las Vegas. The arithmetic sequence points to good things for Phoenix.

    6. JOEY LOGANO – 119 PTS
    “Give me a sign, hit me baby one more time.”

    7. RYAN BLANEY – 106 PTS
    It is early, but this car is again reminding us that this was the ride of Pearson and Bonnett.

    8. KEVIN HARVICK – 92 PTS
    There is video showing Harvick was indeed at Las Vegas…mostly playing the slots in the garage.

    9. KASEY KAHNE – 88 PTS
    Being surprisingly consistent, with three top dozens, is a real good thing for Kahne.

    10. JAMIE MCMURRAY – 86 PTS
    After the Daytona wreck, a pair of Top Tens gives Ganassi organization two high fliers.

    11. TREVOR BAYNE – 82 PTS
    After Edwards left, Roush needed a star in one of his seats. He just might have one.

    12. CLINT BOWYER – 73 PTS
    You will find Kurt, Kevin, and Clint on this chart. As for Danica, Ty Dillon is a better bet.

    13. MATT KENSETH – 71 PTS
    Finishes ninth and drops 30 points to Truex in Las Vegas. You just got to love the points system.

    14. ARIC ALMIROLA – 70 PTS
    Back to a single car operation after nearly 20 seasons with a duo. So far, so good…sort of.

    15. DENNY HAMLIN – 68 PTS
    A Top Ten at Las Vegas was a hell of a lot better result than his run at Atlanta.

    16. PAUL MENARD – 62 PTS
    Childress drivers have won five times at Phoenix. Neither of those boys drive for him today.

    17. RYAN NEWMAN – 59 PTS
    Swinging at Joey doesn’t work, berating him has limited effect, but as for a kiss…stay tuned.

    18. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 55 PTS
    Oh, there you are, Jimmie. 31 of those 55 points came to him last Sunday.

    19. KYLE BUSCH – 50 PTS
    “Oops, I did it again,”

    20. ERIK JONES – 49 PTS
    39th, 14th, 15th…it is a learning thing for the 20-year-old.

    20. MICHAEL MCDOWELL – 49 PTS
    Not exactly burning up the track, but he wasn’t even on this list last week.

  • NASCAR: No Penalties for Busch, Logano Post-Vegas

    NASCAR: No Penalties for Busch, Logano Post-Vegas

    By Staff report | NASCAR.com

    Kyle Busch, Joey Logano and their respective crews will not face punishment for their post-race actions following Sunday’s Kobalt 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

    Following contact on the final lap while both were running in the top five, Busch’s No. 18 Toyota spun across the start/finish line to a 22nd-place finish. Busch and Logano were involved in a heated confrontation post-race on pit road. Crew members from the No. 18 (Busch’s Joe Gibbs Racing team) and the No. 22 (Logano’s Team Penske team) quickly got involved before being separated by NASCAR officials.

    “After a full review of multiple videos and discussions with both competitors and their respective race teams, we felt Sunday’s post-race incident does not warrant any further action,” said Steve O’Donnell, NASCAR executive vice president and chief racing development officer. “NASCAR was built on the racing that took place on the final lap by two drivers battling for position. The emotions of our athletes run high, and Kyle Busch and Joey Logano are two of the most passionate and competitive drivers in the sport. Both competitors are very clear on our expectations going forward and we will be meeting with them in person prior to practice on Friday in Phoenix.”

    Logano told FS1’s “NASCAR Race Hub” on Tuesday that he and Busch have spoken since the incident.

    “We’ve spoken,” Logano said. “Obviously, we didn’t speak much there, so I got a chance to call him up earlier today to be able to talk to him a little bit and at least tell my side of the story. We’re going to have two sides to the story like there is all the time, but really the bottom line is we’re two passionate race car drivers. We’re two of the best in the sport that are going to go for wins that are aggressive and we collided.”

    TWO LUG NUT PENALTIES ASSESSED

    NASCAR assessed lug nut penalties to two Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series teams on Wednesday. Both the race-winning No. 78 Furniture Row Racing team (for driver Martin Truex Jr.) and the No. 13 Germain Racing team (for driver Ty Dillon) were penalized for lug nuts not properly installed following Sunday’s Kobalt 400. In accordance with the NASCAR Rule Book, the crew chiefs (No. 78: Cole Pearn, No. 13: Robert “Bootie” Barker) for the teams were each fined $10,000.

     

  • Rough Day for Stewart-Haas Racing in Vegas

    Rough Day for Stewart-Haas Racing in Vegas

    Stewart-Haas Racing cars were the class of the field the first two races of the season, with a win in the Daytona 500 by Kurt Busch and most laps led in both the 500 and the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway by Kevin Harvick. Unfortunately, a 10th-place finish by Clint Bowyer was the highlight of a lousy day at Las Vegas Motor Speedway from the four-car organization.

    But even Bowyer admitted that was a struggle.

    “To be truthful, we weren’t the best all weekend, but we just kept digging,” he said after the race. “(Mike) Bugga didn’t give up on the box and kept adjusting on it and got me pretty good, the best we’d been right there at the end. It’s a top-10 and gives us some momentum. It’s our third race together and we got a top-10, so we’ve got to keep digging.”

    Kurt Busch dealt with electrical issues that forced him to pit and change batteries with 66 laps to go. He finished in 30th place, four laps down.

    “Obviously it wasn’t the day we were hoping to have with our Monster Energy/Haas Automation Ford Fusion,” Busch said. “We didn’t have the long-run speed or the balance, and we had an electrical issue that forced us to change batteries on pit road. We kept battling, we didn’t give up. I hoped to have a better run here in front of the hometown fans.”

    The other two SHR cars didn’t make it to the finish.

    Exiting the tri-oval on lap 68, Kevin Harvick suffered a right-front tire blowout and slammed the wall. He said the tire started vibrating four or five laps prior and was he trying to nurse it to the end of the stage.

    He was critical of the response time by American Medical Response.

    “The worst part was the medical response. It took them forever to get to the car,” Harvick said. “I thought we made that better, but obviously we haven’t.”

    He finished 38th and lost the points lead.

    With 16 to go, Danica Patrick’s engine expired on the frontstretch, relegating her to a 36th-place finish.

    “We just got the car to a place where I think we could have got a little more racy with it,” Patrick said, “especially if we would have caught some breaks, but then it just flattened out. I just rode around the top in case I blew up, but having a teammate behind me was not ideal for the timing of it, but unfortunately it happened. We’ll just move on.”

  • Busch and Logano Collide and Fight in Vegas

    Busch and Logano Collide and Fight in Vegas

    Kyle Busch and Joey Logano made contact both on the track on the final lap and on pit road after the Kobalt 400 race concluded at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

    On the backstretch on the final lap, Busch veered to the bottom to avoid hitting Brad Keselowski, who was fading on the final two laps with a broken part on his car but made contact with the right-side of Logano’s car. In Turn 3, Logano got loose and bounced into Busch’s car, sending him spinning down onto pit road.

    After the race, Kyle Busch got out of his car and proceeded to Logano’s car parked down pit road with the other top-five cars and punched him.

    The fight lasted roughly 18 seconds before Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series officials broke it up and Busch was pulled out of the pile by NASCAR official Mike Lancaster (per Alex Hayden of MRN on Twitter). Logano was pulled out of the pile after just a few seconds by his PR rep Kyle Zimmerman.

    The only noticeable injury sustained was a cut on Busch’s forehead, above his right eye.

    “I got dumped,” Busch told Vince Welch of FOX Sports. “(Logano) Flat out drove straight into the corner and wrecked me”

    Logano’s take was different from Busch’s.

    “We were just racing hard there at the end,” Logano said. “I was underneath him on the backstretch and he tried to crash me into the corner getting underneath Brad there and at that point, I was just trying to get through the corner. I was sideways all the way through and get into him. Nothing intentional. I understand his frustration, he crashed. The same thing could have happened into 3 what he did to me.”

    “There wasn’t much talking, there was a lot of swinging. I don’t know. I was racing hard there at the end with our Pennzoil Ford. Kyle and I usually race really well together,” Logano continued. “We usually never have any issues, and he tried to pin me down into the corner underneath Brad and we about crashed on entry. And then I was still trying to gather it up by the center and I was gonna spin out, so I’m trying to chase it up and he was there. It obviously wasn’t anything intentional, but obviously, he thinks that, so, I don’t know, we’ll get by.”

    Steve O’Donnell, NASCAR Executive Vice President and Chief Racing Development Officer spoke about the altercation Monday morning during an appearance on the “Morning Drive” program on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

    He stated that the competition department was reviewing video of the post-race incident and the on-track contact that led up to it.

    “It’s certainly under review,” O’Donnell said. “We have to take everything, make sure we look at all the video, but just from our in assessment last night, as far as on-track I don’t think we saw anything that was intentional by any means. We have to have discussions with both drivers. I think our intention would be not to react unless we see something we haven’t seen yet.”

    “It’s an emotional sport,” he went on to say, “and I think it shows exactly how much every position on the track means.”

     

  • Truex Takes Lead in Closing Laps to Clean House in Sin City

    Truex Takes Lead in Closing Laps to Clean House in Sin City

    Martin Truex Jr. had the dominant car most of the day but had to beat Brad Keselowski when it mattered most in the closing laps of the Kobalt 400.

    Keselowski edged out Truex on the final restart and had the win in check, but Truex closed the gap, thanks to a broken part on Keselowski’s car, and passed him on the backstretch with two laps to go to score the victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

    Keselowski said his team will need to take the car apart to find out the cause of what happened.

    “At the end, we have to go to inspection and stuff, so we’re not allowed to look. I just know it was something major,” he said. “It wouldn’t turn and I lost brakes, so that’s a pretty good indicator, but that’s the way it goes. That’s racing and that’s why you watch until the end and you never know what’s gonna happen.

    “It’s frustrating, but you put yourself in position to win and good things will happen. That happened to us last week and didn’t happen this week, so you just pick up the pieces and move on. Luckily, they’re really big pieces. We’ve got a lot to be proud of.”

    Keselowski and Truex led a combined 239 of 267 laps of the first leg in the three-race west coast swing on the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule. Starting from the pole, Keselowski led most of the first stage and surrendered it under the second caution of the race when teammate Joey Logano opted not to pit.

    Truex passed Logano with ease on the ensuing restart and held it for most of the day, only losing it during green-flag pit cycles or when others went on different pit strategies from him.

    Keselowski passed Chase Elliott to take second with less than 40 to go, closed the gap on Truex and passed him in Turn 3 to take the lead with 23 to go. Danica Patrick’s engine expired on the frontstretch with 18 to go, setting up the nine-lap run to the finish.

    On the final lap, Kyle Busch veered hard to the bottom lane on the backstretch, making contact with Logano in the process. In Turn 4, Logano got loose, made contact with Busch and sent him spinning.

    Busch went to Logano’s car on pit road after the race and a fight ensued.

    “We were just racing hard there at the end,” Logano said after the fight. “I was underneath him on the backstretch and he tried to crash me into the corner getting underneath Brad there and at that point, I was just trying to get through the corner. I was sideways all the way through and get into him. Nothing intentional. I understand his frustration, he crashed. The same thing could have happened into 3 what he did to me.”

    Kyle Larson, Elliott, Logano and Keselowski round out the top-five.

    Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Jamie McMurray, Matt Kenseth and Clint Bowyer round out the top-10.

    The race lasted two hours, 56 minutes and 39 seconds at an average speed of 136.032 mph. There were 14 lead changes among six different drivers and six cautions for 34 laps.

    Keselowski leaves Las Vegas with a one-point lead over Larson.

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  • Truex Fastest in Final Practice at Las Vegas

    Truex Fastest in Final Practice at Las Vegas

    Martin Truex Jr. topped the chart in final Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

    The driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota was the fastest with a time of 28.630 and a speed of 188.613 mph. Chase Elliott was second in his No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet with a time of 28.636 and a speed of 188.574 mph. Dale Earnhardt Jr. was third in his No. 88 HMS Chevrolet with a time of 28.657 and a speed of 188.436 mph. Matt Kenseth was fourth in his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota with a time of 28.684 and a speed of 188.258 mph. Brad Keselowski rounded out the top-five in his No. 2 Team Penske Ford with a time of 28.702 and a speed of 188.140 mph.

    Ryan Blaney, who clocked in the eighth-fastest single lap, posted the fastest 10 consecutive lap average at a speed of 185.347 mph.

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  • Elliott Fastest at Las Vegas in Second Practice

    Elliott Fastest at Las Vegas in Second Practice

    Chase Elliott topped the chart in second Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

    The driver of the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet was the fastest with a time of 28.197 and a speed of 191.510 mph. Kyle Larson was second in his No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet with a time of 28.599 and a speed of 188.818 mph. Matt Kenseth was third in his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota with a time of 28.633 and a speed of 188.594 mph. Kyle Busch was fourth in his No. 18 JGR Toyota with a time of 28.645 and a speed of 188.515 mph. Kasey Kahne rounded out the top-five in his No. 5 HMS Chevrolet with a time of 28.713 and a speed of 188.068 mph.

    Elliott posted the fastest 10 consecutive lap average at a speed of 186.480 mph.

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  • Las Vegas Motor Speedway – Did You Know?

    Las Vegas Motor Speedway – Did You Know?

    Las Vegas Motor Speedway has been in the news this week after the announcement that the track will host two triple-header NASCAR events in 2018. But did you know that this year marks the 20th Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series event held at the venue?

    Mark Martin won the first race, the Las Vegas 400, in his No.6 Roush Fenway Racing Ford, on March 1, 1998. Eleven different drivers have won at the track including multiple race winners Jimmie Johnson who leads all drivers with four victories and Matt Kenseth with three. Brad Keselowski, Jeff Burton and Carl Edwards each have two checkered flags at the 1.5-mile speedway.

    It will probably come as no surprise that four-time winner Johnson has the series-best driver rating at Las Vegas at 113.4. But did you know that Las Vegas native Kyle Busch also has some impressive stats at the track?

    In 2008, Busch grabbed the pole to become the youngest pole winner at 22 years and 10 months. He followed that up in 2009 with another Coors Light Pole Award, the only driver to claim consecutive poles at Vegas. But Busch didn’t stop there. He drove to victory lane and became the first and only driver to win from the pole position. One win, five top fives, six top 10s and two poles give Busch the second-best driver rating, 103.4.

    You might think that starting on the front row gives drivers the best opportunity for victory but that isn’t necessarily true. Did you know that nine of the 19 races (47.4%) at LVMS were won from a top-10 starting position? But starting position isn’t everything. Kenseth won in 2004 after starting 25th, the deepest in the field of any Vegas winner.

    Brad Keselowski is the defending race winner and will enter this weekend’s competition with momentum after his victory at Atlanta Motor Speedway in his No. 2 Team Penske Ford. In eight starts at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, he has two victories (2014, 2016) with three top fives and 10 top 10s. He also has something else going for him. Did you know that Ford leads the car manufacturers with nine visits to Victory Lane at LVMS? They are followed by Chevrolet with seven wins, Toyota (two) and Dodge (one).

    Three drivers who have won at Las Vegas have gone on to win the Cup Series championship in the same year, Jeff Gordon (2001), Matt Kenseth (2003) and Jimmie Johnson (2006, 2007 and 2010). Will another driver add their name to this list? Tune into FOX Sunday, March 12 at 3:30 p.m. for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Kobalt 400 as the action continues.

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

  • Keselowski Takes the Pole at Las Vegas

    Keselowski Takes the Pole at Las Vegas

    Brad Keselowski will lead the field to the green flag on Sunday after earning pole position for the Kobalt 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

    The driver of the No. 2 Team Penske Ford scored the pole after posting a time of 27.881 and a speed of 193.680 mph. Martin Truex Jr. will start second in his No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota after posting a time of 27.913 and a speed of 193.458 mph. Ryan Blaney will start third in his No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford after posting a time of 27.920 and a speed of 193.410 mph. Matt Kenseth will start fourth in his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota after posting a time of 27.923 and a speed of 193.389 mph. Kyle Larson rounded out the top-five in his No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet after posting a time of 27.956 and a speed of 193.161 mph.

    Joey Logano, Kasey Kahne, Erik Jones, Kyle Busch and Jamie McMurray rounded out the top-10.

    Daniel Suarez and Chase Elliott rounded out the 12 drivers that made the final round of qualifying.

    With 39 entries, nobody failed to make the race.

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