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  • Keselowski Wins Sprint Cup Coors Light Pole Award at Richmond

    Keselowski Wins Sprint Cup Coors Light Pole Award at Richmond

  • Alex Tagliani Wins Truck Series Pole at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park

    Alex Tagliani Wins Truck Series Pole at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park

    Alex Tagliani won the Keystone Light Pole Award and set a new track qualifying record at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park with a lap of 80.558 seconds at 109.889 mph. As he leads the field to green in Sunday’s Chevrolet Silverado 250 race, he will also be making his debut in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.

    Tagliani competes in the Canadian Tire Series and has one previous start in the series at this track in 2008 where he finished in fifth place. He also competes in IndyCar.

    After qualifying he talked about his preparation for qualifying and racing this weekend.

    “We went out, the truck was fast from the get go,” he said. “We had just one little glitch we had to fix, we had some fuel pressure issues. Basically it took about 25 minutes to fix that and then we went and ran and made sure that everything was good. We parked it before the session was over, the guys were happy enough. We used the second practice getting ready for the race tomorrow.”

    Tagliani also spoke about being part of the Brad Keselowski Racing team saying, “I feel really honored to be here and drive his truck.”

    NASCAR Next driver Gray Gaulding will start beside him on the outside pole. Erik Jones will begin the race in the third position followed by German Quiroga Jr. and Cole Custer to round out the top five.

    Several drivers had difficulties keeping their trucks on the track including third place finisher Jones who went off track during qualifying. Joey Coulter, who drove his No. 21 into the tire barriers, qualified in the 15th position. Ryan Blaney, who will start 14th, got sideways and Matt Crafton had similar issues but will begin the race in eighth place.

    Series’ point leader Johnny Sauter will start the race from the 11th position.

    The Chevrolet Silverado 250 is scheduled for Sunday at 1:30 p.m. ET, with television coverage on FOX Sports 1.

    Complete Starting Lineup:

    POS. CAR DRIVER
    1 19 Alex Tagliani
    2 20 Gray Gaulding
    3 51 Erik Jones
    4 77 German Quiroga Jr
    5 0 Cole Custer
    6 53 Andrew Ranger
    7 54 Darrell Wallace Jr
    8 88 Matt Crafton
    9 17 Timothy Peters
    10 32 Cameron Hayley
    11 98 Johnny Sauter
    12 31 Ben Kennedy
    13 9 Brennan Newberry
    14 29 Ryan Blaney
    15 21 Joey Coulter
    16 8 John Hunter Nemechek
    17 13 Jeb Burton
    18 99 Bryan Silas
    19 2 Tyler Young
    20 35 Mason Mingus
    21 7 Ray Courtemanche Jr
    22 50 T.J. Bell
    23 63 Scott Stenzel
    24 8 B J McLeod
    25 36 Justin Jennings
    26 6 Norm Benning
    27 10 Jennifer Jo Cobb
    28 0 Caleb Roark
  • Freaky Fast, Again: Kevin Harvick Scores Oral-B USA 500 Pole at Atlanta

    Freaky Fast, Again: Kevin Harvick Scores Oral-B USA 500 Pole at Atlanta

    On the back bumper of Kevin Harvick’s No. 4 Jimmy Johns Chevrolet, it says ‘freaky fast’. Those words played true for the sixth time this year as Harvick scored his sixth pole of the season in qualifying for the Oral-B USA 500. Harvick would post a lap of 29.118 seconds for his 12th career pole, and his first at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

    “It’s good to have the boss back,” Harvick said, in referring to Tony Stewart’s return. “He told me to go with what I knew from practice and switched my line in one and two and was a lot better. Got to thank SHR for a good car today. Seems like things are back to normal with Tony back today so hopefully we can go out and get the W.”

    Brad Keselowski will start alongside Harvick on the front row for his 20th top-10 start of the season as the pair are both looking for their fourth wins of the season.

    “Just lacking a little bit,” Keselowski commented. “Really strong in race trim, thought we’d have a shot at qualifying. Another front row start – hopefully we can carry that into a front row finish, a first place finish, on Sunday night.”

    Rookie Kyle Larson would qualify third for his eighth top-10 start of the season as he looks to either win, or gain 20 points on Greg Biffle, to get into the Chase for the Championship.

    “I’d say our chances here are a little better than Richmond – more suits my driving style than Richmond,” Larson said. “Hoping to have a really good weekend here. Started off good so far in qualifying, third. Got to get a win or hope for bad luck for the 16 – but got to win.”

    Ryan Newman and Matt Kenseth would both round out the top-five, also looking for their first victories of the season.

    “Just hanging on to it,” Newman commented. “The Caterpillar Chevrolet was on the bubble on the first run so just had to have the confidence to step it up. To come from 24th to fourth was a good pick-up for us.”

    Martin Truex Jr. would qualify sixth, followed by Aric Almirola, Kyle Busch, Jeff Gordon and Kasey Kahne.

    “Much better for our Farmer’s Insurance Chevrolet,” Kahne said, comparing his car to how he was in practice. “The guys did a good job – was way off in practice in 36th and the guys made the right adjustments. We were real pleased with the progress there so hopefully tomorrow we’ll hit on some things and head in the right direction.”

    Carl Edwards will start 11th, followed by Tony Stewart as Stewart makes his return to the track for the first time since the incident with Kevin Ward Jr. earlier this month. Rookie Austin Dillon will start 13th, with Joey Logano in 14th as this marks the first qualifying session outside of a restrictor plate event that Logano has missed the final round. Jamie McMurray qualified 15th, followed by Jimmie Johnson, Denny Hamlin, Greg Biffle, Brian Vickers and Dale Earnhardt Jr. Michael McDowell would be the only driver to fail to qualify.

    Four drivers – Johnson, Earnhardt, Larson and Stewart – had issues getting through pre-qualifying session with relation to the rear camber of their cars.

  • Kevin Harvick Wins Sprint Cup Coors Light Pole Award at Bristol

    Kevin Harvick Wins Sprint Cup Coors Light Pole Award at Bristol

    Kevin Harvick captured his fifth pole of the season at Bristol Motor Speedway with a record speed of 131.362 mph, setting a new track record. It is his 11th career pole in the series.

    “My guys have done a great job bringing fast cars every week,” he said. “I knew we had a good car in practice and were able to get it pretty good in race trim.” He summed it up saying, “Any time you can beat the 24 (Jeff Gordon) right now, things are going okay.”

    Jeff Gordon was quickest in the first round and was looking for a third straight pole but he was unable to carry the top speed over to the final round and will begin on the outside pole in the IRWIN Tools Night Race.

    “I was really, really happy with the balance and how the car was getting through the corners,” Gordon explained. “I thought we did it, I really did. I thought we had enough. That was a good lap so it just tells you how good of a lap Kevin had.”

    Carl Edwards duplicated his run in the first round and will start in third place for the Saturday night race. Edwards won the Food City 500 this past spring at Bristol. Kyle Busch will start beside Edwards in the fourth position. Busch has five previous wins at the track, along with Gordon and his brother, Kurt. Joey Logano qualified fifth followed by Jimmie Johnson, who has one win at Bristol, in sixth place.

    Qualifying was intense as drivers tried to beat the rain which was threatening to interfere with qualifying. Kyle Larson, Aric Almirola, Casey Mears and Cole Whitt fell victim to the high speeds and made contact with the wall during qualifying. Larson was fastest in the first practice but did not advance to the final round of qualifying and will have to begin from 40th place.

    Ricky Stenhouse Jr. who was fastest in the final practice missed a little over half of the first round because his car was still in inspection when qualifying began. He did not make the cut-off for the final round and will start from the 21st position.

    Drivers who did not make it to the final round include notables Dale Earnhardt Jr. who will start 20th, Matt Kenseth (16), Clint Bowyer (14) and Denny Hamlin (13).

    Tune in to the Irwin Tools Night Race Saturday evening on ABC with television coverage beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET.

    Lineup for the IRWIN Tools Night Race
    Position Car No. Driver
    1 4 Kevin Harvick
    2 24 Jeff Gordon
    3 99 Carl Edwards
    4 18 Kyle Busch
    5 22 Joey Logano
    6 48 Jimmie Johnson
    7 41 Kurt Busch
    8 16 Greg Biffle
    9 2 Brad Keselowski
    10 9 Marcos Ambrose
    11 31 Ryan Newman
    12 5 Kasey Kahne
    13 11 Denny Hamlin
    14 15 Clint Bowyer
    15 55 Brian Vickers
    16 20 Matt Kenseth
    17 27 Paul Menard
    18 1 Jamie McMurray
    19 51 Justin Allgaier
    20 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr.
    21 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
    22 47 AJ Allmendinger
    23 78 Martin Truex Jr.
    24 10 Danica Patrick
    25 14 Jeff Burton
    26 3 Austin Dillon
    27 23 Alex Bowman
    28 95 Michael McDowell
    29 34 David Ragan
    30 98 Josh Wise
    31 66 Brett Moffitt
    32 38 David Gilliland
    33 83 Ryan Truex
    34 26 Cole Whitt
    35 37 Dave Blaney
    36 36 Reed Sorenson
    37 32 J.J. Yeley
    38 7 Michael Annett
    39 40 Landon Cassill
    40 42 Kyle Larson
    41 33 David Stremme
    42 43 Aric Almirola
    43 13 Casey Mears
  • Kyle Busch Wins 15th Career Pole at New Hampshire Motor Speedway

    Kyle Busch Wins 15th Career Pole at New Hampshire Motor Speedway

    Kyle Busch won the Coors Light Pole Award Friday afternoon at New Hampshire with a new track record qualifying speed of 138.130 mph. This is the 13th track qualifying record set this season. It was Busch’s second pole of the season, his second at the Loudon track and his 15th career Cup pole.

    There have been 12 different winners in the last 12 races at New Hampshire and if Busch’s fast lap is any indication, it could be 13 for 13. He had two second place finishes here in 2013.

    “This has been a good place for us here,” Kyle noted. “Last year we qualified on the pole in the same race and finished second and followed that up with another second  in the fall race here. So we’d love to be able to continue that on and see if we can’t make it one spot better here this weekend.”

    Jimmie Johnson, who has three previous wins at the track, will line up second.

    “I was very optimistic coming into qualifying today,” he said. “I thought I had enough to get it there. Then I saw Kyle’s lap. He definitely put one down.”

    Busch’s teammate, Denny Hamlin will start from the third position. Tony Stewart, who also has three wins at the track, and Jamie McMurray, who has one top-five in his last six starts, rounded out the top five starting positions.

    Notable drivers who did not make it into the second and final round of qualifying include Carl Edwards (14th), Matt Kenseth (15th), Kurt Busch (18th), Ryan Newman (24th) and Dale Earnhardt Jr. who will start 28th.

    Kyle Busch will lead the field to green Sunday for the Sprint Cup Series Camping World RV Sales 301. Race coverage will begin at 1 p.m. ET on TNT and the green flag is set to drop at 1:15 p.m. The race will be Turner Sports’ final NASCAR broadcast.

    Complete Starting Lineup for the Camping World RV Sales 301:

    1. Kyle Busch
    2. Jimmie Johnson
    3. Denny Hamlin
    4. Tony Stewart
    5. Jamie McMurray
    6. Joey Logano
    7. Brad Keselowski
    8. Clint Bowyer.
    9. Martin Truex Jr.
    10. Kasey Kahne
    11. Jeff Gordon
    12. Kevin Harvick
    13. Kyle Larson
    14. Carl Edwards
    15. Matt Kenseth
    16. Paul Menard
    17. Brian Vickers
    18. Kurt Busch
    19. Aric Almirola
    20. AJ Allmendinger
    21. Marcos Ambrose
    22. Ricky Stenhouse Jr
    23. Austin Dillon
    24. Ryan Newman
    25. Justin Allgaier
    26. David Ragan
    27. Greg Biffle
    28. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
    29. Danica Patrick
    30. Jeff Burton
    31. Casey Mears
    32. Josh Wise
    33. David Gilliland
    34. Landon Cassill
    35. Cole Whitt
    36. Alex Bowman
    37. Reed Sorenson
    38. Ryan Truex
    39. Michael Annett
    40. Eddie MacDonald
    41. Mike Bliss
    42. Timmy Hill
    43. Morgan Shepherd

  • Ryan Newman Snags Sylvania 300 Pole at New Hampshire Motor Speedway!

    Ryan Newman Snags Sylvania 300 Pole at New Hampshire Motor Speedway!

    Flat-track ace Ryan Newman stole the show in Cup qualifying with a blistering lap of 27.904 seconds….a new track record! Kasey Kahne will accompany Ryan on the front row with another pair of Chevy’s taking up row 2 with Jeff Gordon and Kurt Busch. Martin Truex Jr. was the highest qualifying non-chaser in 5th and Carl Edwards has the worst starting spot among chasers in 26th.

    Ryan Newman now has 51 NASCAR Sprint Cup poles; seven of which have come at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. He’s won here three times here and a fourth win is definitely a possibility Sunday (or Monday pending Mother Nature’s plans…). Ryan is well known for his ability to muscle a car around flat tracks like Loudon, Indianapolis, Martinsville and Phoenix. In fact, his last four Cup victories dating back to 2010 have all come at tracks with little-to-no banking.

    Chasers Starting Position

    Ryan Newman (1st)

    Kasey Kahne (2nd)

    Jeff Gordon (3rd)

    Kurt Busch (4th)

    Joey Logano (6th)

    Kevin Harvick (8th)

    Matt Kenseth (9th)

    Greg Biffle (10th)

    Jimmie Johnson (11th)

    Kyle Busch (12th)

    Clint Bowyer (16th)

    Dale Earnhardt Jr. (17th)

    Carl Edwards (26th)

    In qualifying, there was one major incident and that involved Josh Wise who was attempting to make his 4th career start at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. It appears he broke a right front shock coming out of turn four which sent him barreling into the outside wall. He emerged from the car alright but his Ford Fusion wasn’t so lucky; he’ll start last and in a back-up car.

    Brian Vickers wanted to focus on his efforts in the NASCAR Nationwide Series today so veteran racer Kenny Wallace got the opportunity to qualify the Aaron’s Dream Machine; he clocked in 29th but Brian will have to start at the rear of the field Sunday. He started 13th earlier this year when he won this race. Michael McDowell will be piloting the No.51 this weekend, Bobby Labonte is back in the No.47 and Kevin Swindell starts 33rd in his NSCS debut for Swan Racing. Scroll down to see the complete starting lineup for the 17th Annual Sylvania 300!

    1.) Ryan Newman

    2.) Kasey Kahne

    3.) Jeff Gordon

    4.) Kurt Busch

    5.) Martin Truex Jr.

    6.) Joey Logano

    7.) Paul Menard

    8.) Kevin Harvick

    9.) Matt Kenseth

    10.) Greg Biffle

    11.) Jimmie Johnson

    12.) Kyle Busch

    13.) Aric Almirola

    14.) Denny Hamlin

    15.) Juan Pablo Montoya

    16.) Clint Bowyer

    17.) Dale Earnhardt Jr.

    18.) Mark Martin

    19.) David Ragan

    20.) Brad Keselowski

    21.) Danica Patrick

    22.) Marcos Ambrose

    23.) Jamie McMurray

    24.) David Gilliland

    25.) Jeff Burton

    26.) Carl Edwards

    27.) Michael McDowell

    28.) Bobby Labonte

    29.) Kenny Wallace

    30.) Travis Kvapil

    31.) Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

    32.) Landon Cassill

    33.) Kevin Swindell

    34.) Casey Mears

    35.) David Reutimann

    36.) Joe Nemechek

    37.) JJ Yeley

    38.) Dave Blaney

    39.) Tony Rains

    40.) Scott Riggs

    41.) Johnny Sauter

    42.) Timmy Hill

    43.) Josh Wise

  • Marcos Ambrose Shatters Watkins Glen Track Record

    Marcos Ambrose Shatters Watkins Glen Track Record

    Marcos Ambrose has won the last two Sprint Cup races at Watkins Glen and he will start his run at a third consecutive victory from the pole with Michael Waltrip Racing’s Clint Bowyer 2nd. Marcos seems untouchable at this track and a pole to kick off his pursuit for his third win in as many years at this historic race track is very bad news for the competition. This was the second time NASCAR utilized group qualifying at the Sprint Cup level and it went very well only producing one incident which was Brian Keselowski’s spin early in the session.Jamie McMurray held the pole position for a bit before the final two groups took to the track. Clint Bowyer knocked him from the top spot but he was no match for the Aussie ace who took the pole with ease leaving the rest of the drivers in his group to battle for 2nd on back. Ambrose didn’t just post the fastest time though, he broke the track record that was set last year. This is the 12th track record to fall in 2013 which can be accredited to the introduction of these new Gen-6 cars.

    There was also a couple of surprises towards the front of the field in the form of AJ Allmendinger and Michael McDowell who qualified 4th and 12th in cars that are usually run 20th or worse. Max Papis is the interim driver of the No.14 while Tony Stewart recovers after breaking his leg in a Sprint Car crash and the weekend has been a struggle for him so far. Just like when Vickers/Martin substituted for Hamlin earlier this year, it takes a while to get used to the car and how everything works within the team.

    The Cheez-It 355 can be seen on ABC at 1pm est. Sunday. The full lineup can be seen below…

    1 9 Marcos Ambrose Stanley/CTC Jumpstart Ford 128.241 68.777
    2 15 Clint Bowyer PEAK/Duck Dynasty Toyota 127.958 68.929
    3 56 Martin Truex Jr. NAPA Auto Parts Toyota 127.462 69.197
    4 47 A.J. Allmendinger Scott Products Toyota 127.433 69.213
    5 18 Kyle Busch M&M’s Toyota 127.400 69.231
    6 1 Jamie McMurray McDonald’s/Monopoly Chevy 127.374 69.245
    7 27 Paul Menard Menards/Splash Chevy 127.146 69.369
    8 2 Brad Keselowski (PC1) Miller Lite Ford 127.141 69.372
    9 22 Joey Logano Shell Pennzoil Ford 127.111 69.388
    10 20 Matt Kenseth (PC4) Home Depot Husky Toyota 127.038 69.428
    11 42 Juan Pablo Montoya Target Chevy 126.932 69.486
    12 35 Michael McDowell Dockside Logistics Ford 126.823 69.546
    13 78 Kurt Busch (PC3) Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Chevy 126.813 69.551
    14 39 Ryan Newman Haas Automation 30th Anniversary Chevy 126.766 69.577
    15 55 Brian Vickers Toyota Camry 30th Anniversary Toyota 126.515 69.715
    16 99 Carl Edwards Kellogg’s/Cheez-It Ford 126.464 69.743
    17 16 Greg Biffle 3M/811 Ford 126.377 69.791
    18 48 Jimmie Johnson (PC2) Lowe’s Chevy 126.357 69.802
    19 5 Kasey Kahne Farmers Insurance Chevy 126.321 69.822
    20 11 Denny Hamlin FedEx Ground Toyota 126.209 69.884
    21 38 David Gilliland Long John Silver’s Ford 126.124 69.931
    22 31 Jeff Burton Caterpillar Chevy 126.086 69.952
    23 51 Owen Kelly Phoenix Construction Chevy 126.011 69.994
    24 33 Ron Fellows Canadian Tire Chevy 125.924 70.042
    25 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. National Guard Chevy 125.876 70.069
    26 29 Kevin Harvick Budweiser Chevy 125.711 70.161
    27 32 Boris Said U.S. Chrome Ford 125.707 70.163
    28 24 Jeff Gordon (PC5) Drive to End Hunger Chevy 125.591 70.228
    29 14 Max Papis (i) Rush Truck Centers/Mobil 1 Chevy 125.589 70.229
    30 13 Casey Mears GEICO Ford 124.890 70.622
    31 34 David Ragan Taco Bell Ford 124.848 70.646
    32 43 Aric Almirola Smithfield Ford 124.793 70.677
    33 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. # Best Buy Ford 124.576 70.800
    34 36 Victor Gonzalez Jr. Mobil 1/IMCA Chevy 123.878 71.199
    35 10 Danica Patrick # GoDaddy Chevy 123.750 71.273
    36 83 David Reutimann Burger King/Dr.Pepper Toyota 123.708 71.297
    37 19 Alex Kennedy Media Master Toyota 123.687 71.309
    38 93 Travis Kvapil Burger King/Dr.Pepper Toyota 123.637 71.338
    39 30 David Stremme Genny Light Toyota 123.157 71.616
    40 7 Dave Blaney Chevy 123.095 71.652
    41 40 Landon Cassill (i) Interstate Moving Services Chevy 122.004 72.293
    42 87 Tomy Drissi The Counselor Toyota 120.295 73.320
    43 52 Brian Keselowski Star Coach Race Tours Toyota 118.924 74.165