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Tag: NASCAR Xfinity Series

  • Conor Daly to pilot Roush XFINITY car at Road America

    Conor Daly to pilot Roush XFINITY car at Road America

    INDIANAPOLIS — Depart from your seat in front of the podium in the deadline room at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, take a right turn past the wall with four clocks and blue sound-proofing fabric, exit through the first door down the hall, go down four flights of stairs until you reach the ground, go straight for about 50 feet, and around the corner are two cars covered with tarps. Wait a few minutes and both Verizon IndyCar Series driver Conor Daly and NASCAR XFINITY Grand National Series driver Ryan Reed will uncover the cars to reveal a Lilly Diabetes-sponsored No. 17 Dale Coyne Racing Honda and a Lilly-Diabetes-sponsored Roush Fenway Racing Ford Mustang that Daly will drive at Road America.

    Okay it didn’t play out like a scavenger hunt, but Daly did announce that he would pilot the No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing Ford in the NASCAR XFINITY Grand National Series Johnsonville 180 at Road America, as a teammate to Reed, currently driving the No. 16 Ford, fielded by Roush.

    “Yeah, it’s obviously really cool to be a part of this team, first of all, with us in the Indy 500 this year. We got to work together in 2016, which I thought was a really cool first step into a relationship, and it was a late deal. We got it done after qualifying, but now we’ve got this whole month of May to work with it and kind of just grow together as a team, and then obviously I’m going to go into the NASCAR realm of life, so I’m excited for that,” Daly said.

    “Obviously Ryan (Reed) and the Roush Fenway guys have done an incredible job in the five-year program that they’ve had, winning races, being competitive all the time, so it’s cool to be able to take that first step into that side of the racing world but also with a very strong organization. I’m obviously super excited not only to be here at Indy again and to continue to just strengthen our program for this month of May, but also to have something else to do in the next couple months. So that’ll be really exciting, and I just can’t wait. It’s an incredible opportunity, and I’m just obviously really thankful for it because this has been an interesting last few months, and to have now this opportunity come about, I think it’s going to be really exciting to kind of grow with the NASCAR fan base and maybe combine them a little bit, IndyCar/NASCAR world. We’re all racing cars, so I think everybody loves that in general, so I’m excited to go check it out.”

    Why did Daly choose to run Road America?

    “Well, I think we sort of just looked at all the road course races, and obviously we had to work with Roush and what worked best for them,” he said. “Road America certainly fit me. I mean, I won there in Skip Barber, won there in Pro Mazda, had a great race going there in 2016 in the IndyCar before we had a suspension failure, and I love that place. It’s an incredible track, incredible environment. The Midwest is so — they love racing, so it worked well for everyone, I think, and that’s how it all came about.”

    While Daly’s day job is racing for Dale Coyne Racing in the Verizon IndyCar Series, rumors of him running an XFINITY Grand National Series race had circulated for months, with him possibly racing for Roush or JR Motorsports. And what made him want to do it?

    “I mean, I’m a racing driver, and growing up, when you look back at sort of what I did from like, I guess, 2012 to 2015, I almost drove every single car you could drive except for a NASCAR, and I drove sports cars, I drove tin tops, I drove all kinds of different things, and as a driver, I think you’re always driven to want more and want to try more, and I think if you ask a lot of us here in this paddock in IndyCar, there’s a lot of guys who want to get out there at Road America, mid-Ohio, Watkins Glen, stuff like that, because it is a very entertaining product,” he said. “They’re really good drivers, the series is really competitive, and it just looks like a really good racing environment, like a good, proper race. We have an incredible product in the IndyCar Series, obviously, but so do they, certainly, on the road course side. So I was just excited to have that opportunity. I mean, road courses are my cup of tea, and that’s what I’d love to at least check out first before anything else.”

    Before that, however, he’ll pilot the No. 17 Dale Coyne Racing Honda, carrying Lilly Diabetes as primary sponsor, for the 102nd running of the Indianapolis 500, which will be his first start in the 2018 IndyCar Series season.

  • ‘Dash 4 Cash’ Events Are Helping XFINITY Series Regulars to Shine

    ‘Dash 4 Cash’ Events Are Helping XFINITY Series Regulars to Shine

    Of all the arguments made in favor of the XFINITY Series being a members-only division or at least diminishing the participation of Cup drivers, this stretch of Dash 4 Cash events (Bristol, Richmond, Talladega, Dover) has shown some of the best racing of the 2018 XFINITY season, all of which have been run by series regulars.

    Diehard fans and racers who have felt that NASCAR was letting the series waste away through Cup participation have been vindicated considering the racing product has been excellent during this all-too-brief stretch.

    Granted, Cup participation in 2018 is supposed to have diminished among drivers, and for the most part, it has. But this season, in the first six events prior to the Dash 4 Cash, only one regular has won – Tyler Reddick at Daytona. Since then, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Larson, Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, and Ryan Blaney have all dominated the 2018 season.

    This was a trend that was bucked seven races in when Ryan Preece scored his second career win for Joe Gibbs Racing. That was followed by Christopher Bell scoring his second career win at Richmond, then Spencer Gallagher scored his first-career win at Talladega. Although Preece is running a limited XFINITY campaign he’s still counted for XFINITY points. Otherwise, out of nine events in 2018 three full-time series regulars have won.

    It’s been said before and it will be said again, this isn’t good for business. What is good, though, is seeing the XFINITY Series provide new faces and new, fresh winners, which is exactly what’s going on.

    Granted, that’s bound to change. In the continuing quest for the “Owner’s Championship,” a paper championship with no real prestige, Cup drivers will be in future events this season in Cup-backed rides. There are still stand-alone events to look forward to at Iowa, Mid-Ohio, and Road America before the playoffs begin on September 21 at Richmond, where Cup regulars will be absent from competition for the rest of the season.

    The Dash 4 Cash events have helped bring the true stars such as guys like Reddick, Preece, Bell, and Gallagher to light, and Dover could only add to that list. The XFINITY Series has had to deal with an identity problem where opportunities were stolen from up-and-coming drivers who saw their opportunities come and go due to Cup interference. To see more emphasis placed on their role in the sport – they’re NASCAR drivers too, just so that’s clear – is great for the sport, but it shouldn’t be as limited as this.

    IndyCar doesn’t have this sort of identity issue with Indy Lights. Formula One doesn’t have an issue with this in their feeder series. NHRA doesn’t. IMSA doesn’t. Why does NASCAR? Why should they? That’s not to say that Nascar should ban Cup drivers and affiliations. Instead, continue to diminish their competition roles, and focus on the growth of a division that was originally created to be more than a feeder division. NASCAR is more than just the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, so let’s treat it as such.

     

  • Sadler rallies from penalty to claim Dash 4 Cash at Talladega

    Sadler rallies from penalty to claim Dash 4 Cash at Talladega

    TALLADEGA, Ala. — If you went by Elliott Sadler’s post-race photo op after he collected $100,000 in the NASCAR XFINITY Grand National Series Dash 4 Cash, you’d think it was just a run of the mill afternoon. What the race results don’t tell you, however, was that he rallied from a speeding penalty that put him a lap down to finish fifth.

    “That’s an up and down day, for sure,” Sadler said. “We came from the back to fourth in five laps. We won the second stage. Then when the No. 42 (John Hunter Nemechek) wrecked when we went to pit under green, I sped up to avoid him clipping us. Obviously it costed us and we lost a lap from the penalty. My team never gave up and we came back to get another top-five finish and win the Xfinity Dash 4 Cash for a second week in a row. We have the OneMain Financial 200 next weekend and we’ll do all we can to win the $100,000 prize there too.”

    For most of the Sparks Energy 300 at Talladega Superspeedway, it was a run of the mill event for Sadler. He started the day second and rode there for most of the first stage. Coming to the line to start the final lap of the stage, Sadler broke out of line to make his move on race leader Daniel Hemric, but nobody went with him and he finished the stage in eighth.

    Elliott Sadler leads Ryan Reed and Spencer Gallagher, coming to the conclusion of the second stage of the NASCAR XFINITY Grand National Series Sparks Energy 300 at Talladega Superspeedway. Photo: Stephanie McLaughlin/SpeedwayMedia.com

    After a five-car wreck on the backstretch brought out the caution on Lap 31, he opted not to pit and assumed the race lead, which he held for the remainder of the second stage. He exited the pits second, but took it back on the restart on Lap 57.

    As Sadler slowed down on the apron to enter pit road, John Hunter Nemechek out-braked and shot right past him, running over an area covered in water and spinning out. Sadler sped up to avoid hitting Nemechek and slowed down as he traveled down pit road, as NASCAR rules state you’re required to do if you must use pit road to avoid an accident. But because he pitted for service, which NASCAR has stated that you can’t do if forced to use pit road to avoid an accident, NASCAR posted him for speeding.

    TALLADEGA, Ala. – APRIL 28: Elliott Sadler, driver of the #1 OneMain Financial Chevrolet, celebrates winning the Dash 4 Cash after the NASCAR Xfinity Series Sparks Energy 300 at Talladega Superspeedway on April 28, 2018 in Talladega, Alabama. Photo: Josh Hedges/Getty Images

    Sadler fell to 34th in the running order, and worked his way to 20th when Hemric’s shredded tire and wall hit in the tri-oval brought out the caution with seven laps to go. He took the wave-around to get back on the lead lap, and car after car running out of fuel bumped him up to 14th on the final restart. It allowed him to bump-draft with teammate Justin Allgaier up to a fifth-place finish, past Christopher Bell to claim the Dash 4 Cash at Talladega.

    “Coming down to the end, I knew the 22 (Austin Cindric) was gonna restart second, and the 20 (Bell) was behind him. So I knew I was racing both of those guys, but the 22 had damage. So I’m thinking in my head ‘I either need to get to the third lane or the first lane, as quick as I can, not in the same lane that they’re in.’ Then the 22 ran out of gas. Then I knew it was just the 20. And I was trying to get the third lane going, because I thought the 20 was in the middle. Then Justin (Allgaier) made a great move to the middle. Then the 20 moved to the top, and kind of opened up the middle. So I went with Justin. So I was just racing the 20 there at the end. So when we got by them, I just stayed behind Justin and kept bumping him, bumping him, going ‘Man, wherever we finish, we finish, but I don’t need to fan out here and create a distraction and then the 20 come back and beat us, because I knew we couldn’t win the race at that point, off of (Turn) 4. So you’re very aware, I am at least, of who I’m racing and where they’re at, especially at Talladega.”

    Sadler leaves Talladega with a 40-point lead over teammate Tyler Reddick.

  • Gallagher steals victory on final lap at Talladega

    Gallagher steals victory on final lap at Talladega

    TALLADEGA, Ala. — Spencer Gallagher wasn’t one of the primary contenders all day. He didn’t win a stage, nor did he lead more than one lap. But that one lap was the one that mattered, when all was said and done.

    “This is a day that I’ll remember for the rest of my life. Today was the culmination of what we at GMS Racing have worked for for years. We brought an incredible race car to the track. These guys put it together amazingly well, between GMS Racing and GMS Fab. We had very good speed all day here, and anybody who knows what they’re talking about will tell you that’s going to be a big deciding factor coming down to the end at a place like this. We had a good starting spot (on the restart). I think everybody kind of got pre-occupied with trying to side-draft each other up high, going into (Turn) 3 there. And if y’all are going to leave half a race track, I’m going to take it. Thank you very much! So then when we got side-by-side, I just knew I had to get clear of Tyler (Reddick) going into Turn 1. That was going to decide the race. I was able to stay close to him, getting in. Give him a good side-draft, breakaway from him, get a little momentum, get myself clear. From there, it’s block until you either get wrecked or see the checkers. And fortunately, we found the latter option.”

    As the field was coming to take the green flag in overtime, race leader Austin Cindric, who had inherited the lead a lap prior when Justin Allgaier’s car sputtered in Turn 1 with a lack of fuel, sputtered in the tri-oval with a lack of fuel. Tyler Reddick, who would’ve restarted on the bottom of Cindric, led the field to the green.

    Gallagher got to his inside coming down the backstretch, side-drafted him to get alongside and pass Reddick to score his first career NASCAR XFINITY Grand National Series victory.

    Brandon Jones, Allgaier, Noah Gragson and Elliott Sadler rounded out the Top-five.

    Ryan Sieg, John Hunter Nemechek, Reddick, Cole Custer and Garrett Smithley.

    RACE SUMMARY

    Daniel Hemric led the field to the green at 3:27 p.m. He led the stage from start to finish. Sadler broke out of line coming to the final lap of the first stage, but few others did, allowing Hemric to win the stage with ease.

    Back to green on Lap 31, it didn’t stay as such the whole second stage. Caution flew two laps later for a two-car wreck on the backstretch.

    Restarting on Lap 42, Ryan Reed drove past Hemric on the outside, down the backstretch to take the lead. Elliott Sadler left Hemric out to dry exiting Turn 4 to take second. And on the next lap, he took the race lead and won the second stage.

    The race restarted on Lap 57. Sadler and most of the lead cars pitted with 38 laps to go. John Hunter Nemechek tried to out-brake him onto pit road, but spun out after running over water and wound up in the grass. He got the car going and the race stayed green. Sadler sped up to avoid hitting Nemechek, and was forced to serve a pass through penalty for speeding.

    Justin Allgaier, who didn’t pit during this cycle, assumed the race lead. As Reddick in ninth, the first car in the running order who pitted under the final cycle, ran nearly a lap behind, Allgaier stayed in the line of a group of lapped cars. Hemric hit the wall in the tri-oval with seven to go, setting up the run to the finish.

    NUTS & BOLTS

    The race lasted two hours, 17 minutes and 44 seconds, at an average speed of 133.258 mph. There were 12 lead changes among 11 different drivers, and five cautions for 29 laps.

    Sadler leaves Talladega with a 40-point lead over Reddick.

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  • Jones Loses on Money Stop Gamble at Bristol

    Jones Loses on Money Stop Gamble at Bristol

    *THIS STORY HAS BEEN UPDATED TO NOTE THAT BRANDON JONES WON’T BE ELIGIBLE FOR THE DASH 4 CASH NEXT WEEK AT RICHMOND RACEWAY, DUE TO NASCAR’S ANNOUNCEMENT THAT DANIEL HEMRIC’S POST-RACE INSPECTION FAILURE DIDN’T RISE TO THE LEVEL WORTHY OF A PENALTY.

    BRISTOL, Tenn. — Brandon Jones maintained a smile as he spoke to Regan Smith of FOX Sports 1, but the disappointment of such a strong run resulting in a sixth-place finish seeped through as the interview progressed.

    “That caution on right there on that long run just killed me and I just put my head down when I saw it ‘cause I knew we were so much better than the 18 (Ryan Preece) up off the corner, but all in all such a phenomenal day for Toyota, for Menards and for everybody at (Joe Gibbs Racing) JGR right now. Also, Turtle Wax is on board with us this weekend as well. Can’t say enough about the guys that support us the most and we are just so close right now. It breaks my heart just to see that, but we had a gamble right there at the end. We had to take the two tires to try to see what we could do. Just too much wheel-spinning on the restart to make anything of it.”

    During a nearly 100-lap stretch of green flag racing, from Lap 184 to 27 laps to go (Lap 273), Jones had the Fitzgerald Glider Kits 300 in check. While Ryan Preece got within a car length of him around 40 to go, he couldn’t work his way around Jones.

    But when Shane Lee hit the wall in Turn 2, everybody ducked onto pit road for fresh tires. Jones opted for strategy and took only left-side tires, while Preece took four.

    The end result was rather predictable. When Preece’s tires came up to temperature, he passed Jones going into Turn 1 with 12 laps to go and scored the victory. Jones, meanwhile, sank through the field. But the short amount of laps combined with the field clicking them off in 15-second intervals prevented him from falling further than sixth.

    “Well, you have to gamble when you’re leading like that,” Jones said. “Sometimes you have to play a mind game with some of the other guys that are behind you. Our game just didn’t work out too well for us. It was just way too loose on the restart there to make anything of it, but enjoyed racing (Ryan) Preece there at the end. That was pretty cool. I did everything but try to wreck him, so I think that I raced pretty good as a teammate there with him. I just wish that caution wouldn’t have come out. I kind of put my head down when I saw it and was just like man, if this thing would’ve kept going, we’re in the catbird seat really really good. I can’t say enough about the day though. All weekend we were top three in practice throughout the whole day yesterday. Qualified really really well and was getting ready to possibly go to Victory Lane.”

    While Jones didn’t earn any stage points, his Top-10 finish moved him up to ninth in points. He also admitted that leading the most laps (106) was a confidence-boost.

    “Texas was big for me even though we kind of crashed out early there, we still were really really fast there. I think that’s kind of what led to this,” Jones said. “Myself and Chris (Gabehart, crew chief) have had a lot of conversation of you know, don’t think about it, just do it. That’s kind of the momentum I’m on right now. I’m going to stick to that and it’s going to work out for us eventually.”

    The day ended on a bright note for Jones. An hour after the XFINITY Grand National Series race concluded, NASCAR announced that Daniel Hemric failed post-race inspection. As a result, Jones was Dash 4 Cash eligible next weekend at Richmond Raceway. But less than 24 hours later, NASCAR announced that Hemric’s penalty, one side of the rear wheel-toe alignment was off, didn’t rise to the level of a penalty. Because in the XFINITY Grand National Series, both sides of the rear wheel-toe must be off to constitute a violation. As a result, Hemric was put back into the Dash 4 Cash hunt at Richmond.

  • Preece cashes in at Thunder Valley

    Preece cashes in at Thunder Valley

    *THIS STORY HAS BEEN UPDATED TO INCLUDE NASCAR’S ANNOUNCEMENT THAT DANIEL HEMRIC’S POST-RACE INSPECTION FAILURE WON’T RESULT IN A PENALTY.

    BRISTOL, Tenn. — The first thing Ryan Preece did after he climbed out of his car in victory lane was grab the oversized novelty check he received for winning the first race of this year’s XFINITY Series Dash 4 Cash, which he promptly tossed to his crew standing behind his car.

    “First off, this Rheem Toyota TRD Camry JGR car was awesome,” Preece said. “These guys right here, they work hard and they don’t get on TV and I want you all to focus in on them and this guy (Eric Phillips, crew chief) – I have to thank everybody last year for helping me make this all possible. Without last year, I wouldn’t be sitting here right now, I wouldn’t be sitting here in Bristol victory lane in an Xfinity Series car with Joe Gibbs Racing. To win here, it’s unreal. I guess I didn’t make Joey Logano look like a fool today.

    “Words can’t even describe. My mom’s super happy, my dad’s super happy – I’m 27 years old and I’m not getting any younger. I’m looking for opportunities. We did it last year at Iowa and now we did it here at Bristol. I hope I don’t get labeled as a short track racer, I want to win on mile-and-a-halves soon. Nothing beats winning. That’s what I told somebody earlier today. They asked me what was the most exciting thing and I said winning – I hate losing more than winning. Today we did it.”

    Preece made the winning move driving underneath Brandon Jones going into Turn 1 to take the lead with 12 laps to go, and set sail to his second career victory in 43-career XFINITY Grand National Series starts.

    Justin Allgaier, Daniel Hemric, Elliott Sadler and Spencer Gallagher rounded out the Top-five.

    Jones, Tyler Reddick, Cole Custer, Ross Chastain and Ryan Truex rounded out the Top-10.

    “That caution on right there on that long run just killed me and I just put my head down when I saw it ‘cause I knew we were so much better than the 18 (Ryan Preece) up off the corner, but all in all such a phenomenal day for Toyota, for Menards and for everybody at (Joe Gibbs Racing) JGR right now. Also, Turtle Wax is on board with us this weekend as well. Can’t say enough about the guys that support us the most and we are just so close right now. It breaks my heart just to see that, but we had a gamble right there at the end,” Jones said of the final caution. “We had to take the two tires to try to see what we could do. Just too much wheel-spinning on the restart to make anything of it.”

    RACE SUMMARY

    Custer led the field to the green flag at 1:15 p.m. Exiting Turn 2, however, Allgaier powered by him with ease to lead the first lap. Coming to the line to start the fifth lap, Christopher Bell shot up the track, a result of a right-front tire failure, and slammed the outside wall. As the field slowed to avoid hitting him, cars slammed into the back of others and the resulting accordion effect swallowed up nine cars.

    Back to green on Lap 18, the field settled into a conveyor-belt run to the competition caution at Lap 45. Hemric exited the pits as the race leader, while Justin Allgaier exited third.

    A lap after the restart on Lap 55, Bell powered by Hemric on the outside heading into Turn 1 to take the lead and drove on to win the first stage.

    Preece exited the pits first and led the field back to green on Lap 99, as well as after he restart on Lap 109 (for a multi-car wreck on the backstretch). On the latter restart, however, Hemric shot past him on the bottom to retake the lead. Preece worked to the inside of Hemric on Lap 163, however, and won the second stage.

    Chase Briscoe took the lead after he elected not to pit, along with Jones and Reddick, but had the lead usurped by Jones, who fended off challenges from Preece as the laps clicked away, with less than 60 to go. It was rendered a moot point by Shane Lee, who brought out the caution with 27 to go and set up the run to the finish.

    CAUTION SUMMARY

    There were four multi-car incidents. The first on Lap 4 (nine cars), Lap 58 (four cars), Lap 100 (seven cars) and Lap 140 (three cars), also brought out red flag for seven minutes and one second.

    Four cautions flew for single or two-car incidents.

    Three flew for scheduled reasons (competition/stage conclusion).

    OTHER NEWS ITEMS

    Hemric’s car failed post-race inspection, because one side of the rear wheel-toe alignment was off. However, the failure didn’t rise to the level of a penalty, because both sides of the rear wheel-toe must be off in the XFINITY Grand National Series. So not only won’t he be penalized, but he’ll be eligible for the Dash 4 Cash at Richmond Raceway.

    NUTS & BOLTS

    The race lasted two hours, 21 minutes and 57 seconds, at an average speed of 67.857 mph. There were 13 lead changes among eight different drivers, and 12 cautions for 93 laps.

    Sadler leaves with a six-point lead over Hemric.

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  • Kyle Larson Dominates to Win Boyd Gaming 300

    Kyle Larson Dominates to Win Boyd Gaming 300

    Kyle Larson paced the field for 142 laps to earn his first career NASCAR Xfinity Series win at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in the Boyd Gaming 300.

    The final restart resembled closely that of the first start, as Larson pulled away from pole-sitter Christopher Bell after a late race caution for the final seven laps with a margin of victory of 0.881 seconds. The victory was Larson’s first of the season, ninth of his career and first at the speedway.

    “It was an awesome day,” Larson mentioned during his Victory Lane interview. “This car was so fast. It was really fast last year, but you really never know, and this was my first time racing with this new (composite) body, and it performed well.”

    The driver of the No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet overcame a pit road issue that dropped him to eighth for a restart on Lap 139, but it didn’t take long to find his way to the front, pushing the issue three-wide to fight his way through the field quickly.

    “Normally my guys are some of the best on pit road,” Larson said. “They said the left-rear (tire) just wouldn’t come out (of the wheel well). I had been fighting a tight issue all day and then finally we got our car to turn better.

    “It allowed me to get to the lead fairly easily, and then I was saving fuel in case the race stayed green.”

    Larson and Bell have found themselves in this position before. They frequently battle each other on dirt tracks. During the off-season, Bell was the driver in Victory Lane in last November’s Turkey Night Classic and January’s Chili Bowl, one of the biggest midget races of the season. Bell was excited to see the friendly face extend their close competition into the stock car series.

    “That was really cool, and there will be a lot more of that,” Bell hinted, who beat Larson earlier in the event at the end of Stage 1. “We were close, running second to Kyle – if I’m going to run second to anyone, I guess I would rather it be him.

    “Special day, we were able to win a stage and get a Playoff point. We need to keep racking those up and get some race wins here.”

    As Bell mentioned, he did win a playoff point and becomes only the second Xfinity driver to earn any playoff points. As for Larson, his feelings about the competition with Bell were mutual.

    “It’s always fun to get to race Bell,” Larson said. “He seems to beat me all the time in the dirt stuff, and he edged me out there in qualifying. That first stage kind of felt like we were dirt-track racing there, swapping lanes and stuff. I was trying to take the air off him, and he got by, and yeah, it was fun.”

    As for the rest of the field, JR Motorsports had a strong showing with three of their four drivers finishing in the top eight with Justin Allgaier (third), Elliott Sadler (fifth) and Daytona 500 winner, Tyler Reddick (eighth). Kyle Busch, yesterday’s Camping World Truck Series winner, struggled all day with an ill-handling race car and faced a pit road penalty on his final stop when his gasman grabbed a tire. This year, the new rule states that they are only allowed to ‘kick’ a tire and fuel the car, and no other service is allowed to be done on the car or in the pit box. His No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota finished in a disappointing 14th position.

    Ryan Blaney, who will start on the pole for tomorrow’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race, led 33 laps and finished in fourth. Cole Custer, who makes his Monster Energy Cup series debut tomorrow, finished in the ninth position. Daniel Hemric, Brandon Jones, and Spencer Gallagher also finished the weekend with top-10 results.

    Tyler Reddick and Elliott Sadler are tied at the top of the Xfinity Series points after three races. The Xfinity series will continue their west coast swing at ISM Raceway in Phoenix, Arizona next weekend on March 10. Tickets are still available for purchase on the track’s website at http://www.ismraceway.com/Buy-Tickets/NASCAR-Ticket-Prices.aspx.

  • John Hunter Nemechek Places 4th in Xfinity Series Debut

    John Hunter Nemechek Places 4th in Xfinity Series Debut

    After a flat tire during Stage 1, John Hunter Nemechek battled back to finish fourth in his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Saturday’s Rinnai 250.

    Chip Ganassi Racing announced back in December that Nemechek would make his debut in the stock car series. His performance, however, made it seem as if he was a veteran in the series. His first qualifying attempt for a Xfinity race placed him in the third overall position to start Saturday’s race with a speed of 180.769, one of only six drivers to break the 180 mph barrier.

    As for the race, the first 35 laps were eventful for Nemechek to say the least. On Lap 10, Kevin Harvick, Elliott Sadler and John Hunter Nemechek bumped through Turns 3 and 4. The unfortunate victim was Cole Custer, who would crash into the wall with heavy damage and end his day early. On Lap 33, Nemechek would blow a right front tire. Miraculously, he saved the car from crashing, which allowed his team to change tires and get him back to racing action. Even though he fell a lap down early in the event, he would battle back to put himself in the Lucky Dog position and place himself back on the lead lap. His and the team’s hard work paid off as they finished in the fourth position, claiming the highest finish of any Chevrolet in the field.

    Nemechek shared his perspective of his weekend during a post-race interview.

    “I’m happy with the outcome that we had, finishing fourth there. My goal was to come here and run all the laps, learning as much as I could and hopefully bring home a top-five run. After we unloaded yesterday [Friday], my first ever lap in an Xfinity car was lap one of practice. I have definitely learned a lot from both practice sessions, qualifying and the race.

    “We blew a right front at the end of the first stage. It seemed like tire wear was really big today, and we were victim to circumstances. Luckily, we were able to get the Lucky Dog, get back on the lead lap and rebound from the back to come back to the front. At that last pit stop, we were able to get by Elliott [Sadler] to bring it home fourth.

    “I’m looking forward to getting in more races as the year goes on.”

    When asked about his performance during the final run of the race, Nemechek credited his spotter for his guidance and his crew chief for their relationship.

    “Listening to Mike Shiplett and Derek Kneeland. Derek up on the spotter’s stand just telling me to be patient. I feel like myself and Mike Shiplett have created a good communicational bond so far this year, being able to make adjustments on the race car and trying to fix what we need to fix to make it faster at the end.”

    Nemechek does come from a racing family. His father, Joe who is nicknamed “Front Row Joe,” made a solid career in the Monster Energy Cup Series with four wins and 10 poles across 23 years. He also gathered over a dozen victories in the Xfinity series. His uncle, John Nemechek, was also a NASCAR competitor, primarily in what is now the Camping World Truck Series. He competed in 43 events over three years until 1997 when he suffered a fatal crash at Homestead-Miami Speedway during a Truck race.

    John Hunter shared his excitement on his official Twitter account shortly after the race.

    Nemechek will pilot the No. 42 Chevrolet in multiple Xfinity Series races throughout the year, sharing the ride with Kyle Larson.

    “I feel like going over to Chip Ganassi Racing, an established team who have won races, has helped as well,” declared Nemechek. “I feel like going over there, being able to talk with the guys and create relationships definitely helps. Any lap that you’re on the track, you’re gaining experience, and experience is key. Nothing can outweigh that.”

    Chase Briscoe also made his debut in the Xfinity Series, finishing in the 15th position.

    The NASCAR Xfinity Series will race next at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 3 for the Boyd Gaming 300. You can order race tickets on the speedway’s website at http://www.lvms.com/tickets/pennzoil_400/.

  • Five Drivers to be Excited for in the 2018 XFINITY Series

    Five Drivers to be Excited for in the 2018 XFINITY Series

    With the 2018 NASCAR XFINITY Series right around the corner, several changes in the driver roster have been made, many of which bring the promise of success for several drivers. The season promises to be one for the series regulars as the talent that these five drivers bring will be sure to bring much-needed change to the division.

    Christopher Bell – Joe Gibbs Racing

    One year after scoring the 2017 Camping World Truck Series title for Kyle Busch Motorsports as well as his first XFINITY Series win at Kansas, the 23-year-old Oklahoman is shaping up to be the next big thing in the XFINITY Series. Bell has got the world on a string; backing from Toyota Racing Development and Joe Gibbs Racing, the best equipment in his hands, and all the talent afforded to young racers.

    He’s garnered a lot of success over his young racing career, scoring trophies on dirt and asphalt, and he will earn more wins in ’18. His path mirrors that of his predecessor, 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Rookie of the Year Erik Jones, so it’s a safe bet that like his predecessor, Bell is only getting started.

    Elliott Sadler – JR Motorsports

    To put it out there, Sadler is angry. He is sick and tired of being a bridesmaid. After rejoining the XFINITY ranks in 2011, he’s achieved a great deal of success, but he’s managed to lose the championship in more ways than Dale Sr. lost the Daytona 500.

    His incident with Ryan Preece at Homestead could mark a change in the veteran; one that’s more determined and aggressive than ever before. It’s no question Sadler can take his JRM Chevy to the front. But can he keep it there long enough to finally seal the deal and score his first-ever NASCAR championship? It’ll be fun to watch.

    Jeremy Clements – Jeremy Clements Racing

    Winning at Road America in 2017 was the shot in the arm this program needed. Sure, they were among the first eliminated in the Playoffs, but they scored a career-best 12th-place in the points, which isn’t bad for any stretch for an underdog owner/driver combination.

    Considering that JCR is still among the underfunded teams in the garage, Clements can’t afford to be as aggressive as other drivers. He didn’t match his average finish from 2016 (20th to 2017’s 22.1) or his 2016 top-10 total (three to 2017’s two), but look for this program to continue its growth on the track and put itself in position for a banner season.

    John Hunter Nemechek – Chip Ganassi Racing

    Finally. That’s what the rest of the NASCAR garage was thinking when CGR announced that they had signed Nemechek to a partial schedule in the flagship No. 42 Chevrolet. Considering his performance in his father’s truck since 2013, it’s a wonder why he wasn’t signed sooner. Nemechek put the NEMCO truck into Victory Lane five times, finishing a career-high eighth in points in 2016 and 2017.

    Nemechek isn’t a particularly aggressive driver and manages to take care of his equipment better than most, which has led to his quiet consistency on track. Considering that NEMCO isn’t the cream of the crop in terms of equipment, the fact that Nemechek won and was a contender on a regular basis should bode well for his time with CGR.

    Tyler Reddick – JR Motorsports

    Reddick will be taking over the No. 9, piloted to the 2017 series championship by William Byron, who will be a Cup Series rookie in 2018. Reddick’s first venture into the XFINITY Series did prove fruitful in 2017, where he scored two poles, six top-10s, four top-fives, and a win at Kentucky.

    Reddick is strong and has won on various disciplines of tracks such as superspeedways, one-mile speedways, and mile-and-a-half tracks. He’s also fared well on road courses and short tracks, having finished sixth at Mosport in 2016 and scoring multiple top-fives and top-10s on short tracks in his truck and XFINITY career.

    Several other storylines will develop as the season progresses toward Homestead-Miami, with many surprises and busts bound to happen. But with all that aside, these are the five drivers to watch in the 2018 NASCAR XFINITY Series.

  • Byron Out-Races Sadler in Waning Laps to Win XFINITY Title at Homestead

    Byron Out-Races Sadler in Waning Laps to Win XFINITY Title at Homestead

    Exactly one year ago, William Byron stood in victory lane at Homestead-Miami Speedway, having won the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season-finale the week after his title hopes went up in smoke with his engine. Today, a week after he punched his ticket with a victory in the Arizona desert, he dueled it out with JR Motorsports teammate Elliott Sadler in the final laps of the 2017 NASCAR XFINITY Series season to claim the championship in his name.

    Both drivers hit pit road to make their final stop of the Ford EcoBoost 300 on Lap 145, and Sadler exited in front of Byron. Byron caught and passed him going into Turn 1 on Lap 149 to take over the championship lead.

    With 38 laps to go, when Sadler got loose in Turn 3 and sent Byron towards the wall. Whether he made contact with it can’t be determined. Eventually, Sadler passed him going into Turn 1 to take the lead in the championship fight.

    Byron caught back up to Sadler with 24 to go, thanks to lap traffic, but couldn’t make the pass, thanks to making contact with the wall in Turn 4 with 22 to go.

    “He was really good on the long run,” Byron said of his battle with Sadler. “We weren’t as good on the long run, but we had massive short-run speed.”

    He finally caught and passed Sadler in Turn 3 with nine to go, after Sadler failed to complete a pass on Ryan Preece.

    In an act of desperation, Sadler turned Preece in Turn 4 with five to go. But the race remained green and Byron drove on to a third-place finish, clinching the 2017 XFINITY Series championship.

    “Just thankful for God giving me this opportunity and everyone around me to get me to this point. This is incredible and very thankful for everyone that’s supported me along the way.

    “I went to Martinsville (Speedway) when I was seven years old, watching the 48 car (Jimmie Johnson) win the race, and dreamed about running for Mr. (Rick) Hendrick and I got that opportunity with Dale (Earnhardt) Jr. when I was 16 years old, and it just took off from there. Can’t not believe all the people around me that’ve helped made this happen, and thankful for this team. That’s what made it happen.”

    After the race, Sadler quickly got out of his car to confront Preece and two XFINITY Series officials had to restrain him from doing anything other than yell.

    “Well he cost us a championship, but he’s not even racing anybody,” Sadler said. If he wasn’t slowing us down, the 9 (Byron) never would have gotten to us. If you’re going to race people like that in this sport, you’re not going to make it very far. You gotta have respect. It’s definitely a shame to be that close and not pull it off. I just appreciate my race team. I let them down tonight. I should’ve took care of business when I got to Ryan.

    “It was definitely a letdown to lose one like this.”

    Preece responded to Elliott’s “he’s not racing anybody” claim with the fact that he was “hired to race this race for the owner championship.”

    “We weren’t anywhere near the 22 (Sam Hornish Jr.), but we were racing the 9 (Byron),” Preece said. “It’s pretty much what I said. If it was the 7 (Justin Allgaier) and the 1 (Elliott Sadler) or anyone else that wasn’t in for that owner championship, probably, I definitely would have just laid right over. I’ve been an Elliott Sadler fan growing up, so if I wanted somebody to win that owner championship, or driver championship, it would have been him. Just, I can’t not listen to my owner. I can’t not listen to my, the guy who’s paying you in the end, so it’s just a tough deal. It’s crappy in the end – but I hate controversy.”

    As for the “move” he made on Sadler…

    “With what move? I was ahead of him,” he said. “If anything – if there was no contact, I was going to let him go that corner. I pulled down in the middle, not running the top because I was letting him go. I mean, I don’t know. The only thing I could’ve done different was realistically gave up second in the owner championship and finished third. You know, hindsight 20/20, we ended up there because of what happened, but I also – as soon as the 9 got me, I was going to let him go. I don’t know much more that I could really do, other than, than lay over on Joe (Gibbs) and Steve (deSouza, EVP of XFINITY and Development for Joe Gibbs Racing). If they came over the radio and said ‘hey, give up second in the owner championship and let these guys race,’ I would’ve done it. I’m just – team orders. I’m not afraid to lay over if it means – but just doing what I’m told.”

    And as for what Preece could’ve done different…

    “To be honest with you, if there’s a person you don’t want to cost a championship to it’s Elliott Sadler,” he added. “You know, I’m just trying to do team orders here. I was racing for an owner championship. Yeah, we weren’t racing for the win right there, but we were still racing the 9. I got to thank Joe Gibbs for giving me this opportunity, Safelite Auto Glass, Toyota, everybody involved there. It felt – just, you know it’s not where I want to be right there, but obviously I hate it, but can’t take it back.”