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NASCAR Racing Schedule for Charlotte Motor Speedway

This weekend the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and the XFINITY Series will compete at Charlotte Motor Speedway while the Camping World Truck Series is off. All of the on-track action will be broadcast on NBC Sports Live Extra. Please see the full schedule below.

All times are Eastern.

Thursday, Oct. 8:

On Track:

1:30-2:55 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Practice – NBCSN/Live Extra
3-3:55 p.m.: XFINITY Series Practice – NBCSN/Live Extra
5:30-6:55 p.m.: XFINITY Series Final Practice – NBCSN/Live Extra
7:20 p.m: Sprint Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying, NBCSN/Live Extra
8:40 p.m.: Whelen Southern Modified Tour race (150 laps, 37.5 miles)

GarageCam: (Watch live)

1:00 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series
2:30 p.m.: XFINITY Series

Press Conferences (Watch live at NASCAR.com)

12:15 p.m.: Regan Smith
3 p.m.: Carl Edwards
4 p.m.: Jeff Gordon
8:20 p.m.: Post-Sprint Cup Series qualifying

Friday, Oct. 9:

On Track:

3:30-4:25 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Practice – NBCSN/Live Extra
4:45 p.m.: XFINITY Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying – NBCSN/Live Extra
6:30-7:20 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Final Practice – NBCSN/Live Extra
8 p.m.: XFINITY Series Drive for the Cure 300 Presented by Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina (200 laps, 300 miles) – NBCSN/Live Extra (Green Flag 8:18 p.m. approx.)

Press Conferences (Watch live at NASCAR.com)

10:15 p.m.: Post-XFINITY Series Race

Saturday, Oct. 10:

On Track:

7 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Bank of America 500 (334 laps, 501 miles) – NBC/Live Extra (Green Flag 7:21 p.m. approx.) – RACE POSTPONED TO SUNDAY DUE TO RAIN

Press Conferences (Watch live at NASCAR.com)

10:45 p.m.: Post-Sprint Cup Series Race

Sunday, Oct. 11:

Pre-Race Schedule:

11:40:00 a.m.: NSCS Drivers Introductions
12:30:00 p.m.: Start of the Bank of America 500 (334 Laps, 501 Miles)

On Track:

12:30 p.m.: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Bank of America 500 (334 Laps, 501 Miles) – NBC/Live Extra (Leaderboard)

TV Schedule- Additional NASCAR Coverage

Thursday, Oct. 8:

5 p.m.: NASCAR America Live – NBCSN

Friday, Oct. 9:

6 p.m.: NASCAR America Live – NBCSN
7:30 p.m.: XFINITY Series Countdown to Green – NBCSN

Saturday, Oct. 10:

4 p.m.: NASCAR RaceDay – FOX Sports 2
5 p.m.: NASCAR America Live – NBCSN
6 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Countdown to Green – NBCSN
11 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Post-Race – NBCSN – Postponed Due To Rain
11:30 p.m.: NASCAR Victory Lap (tape) – NBCSN – Postponed to Sunday Due To Rain
12:30 a.m.: NASCAR Victory Lane – FOX Sports 1 – Postponed Due To Rain

October 7, 2015
NASCAR Racing Schedule for Dover and Las Vegas – Updated

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and XFINITY Series will compete this weekend at Dover International Speedway while the Camping World Truck Series travels to Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Sprint Cup Series and XFINITY Series practices, qualifying sessions and races will be televised on NBC Sports Live Extra. Events for the Camping World Truck Series can be seen on FOX Sports 1 and FOX Sports 2.

All times are Eastern. Please note that all times are subject to change due to weather conditions.

Friday, Oct. 2:

On Track – Dover:

11 a.m.-12:20 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Practice – NBCSN/Live Extra (CANCELED DUE TO WEATHER)
1:30-3:25 p.m.: XFINITY Series Final Practice – NBCSN/Live Extra (CANCELED DUE TO WEATHER)
3:45 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying – NBCSN/Live Extra (CANCELED DUE TO WEATHER) (Lineup)

GarageCam: (Watch live)

10:30 a.m.: Sprint Cup Series (CANCELED DUE TO WEATHER)
1 p.m.: XFINITY Series (CANCELED DUE TO WEATHER)

Press Conferences – Dover: (Watch live at NASCAR.com)

9:45 a.m.: Joey Logano
10 a.m.: JRM/One Main Financial announcement
10:15 a.m.: Jimmie Johnson
10:30 a.m.: Kyle Busch
12 p.m.: Matt Kenseth
12:25 p.m.: Clint Bowyer
1:30 p.m.: Jeff Gordon

Saturday, Oct. 3:

On Track – Dover:

8:35-9:20 a.m.: XFINITY Series Final Practice – CNBC/Live Extra (CANCELED DUE TO WEATHER)
11:30-12:15 a.m.: Sprint Cup Series Practice – CNBC/Live Extra
12:15 p.m.: XFINITY Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying – NBCSN/Live Extra – CANCELED –(Lineup)
2-2:45 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Final Practice – NBCSN/Live Extra
3:30 p.m.: XFINITY Series Hisense 200 (200 laps, 200 miles) – NBCSN/Live Extra

Press Conferences – Dover: (Watch live at NASCAR.com)

5:15 p.m.: Post-XFINITY Series Race

On Track – Las Vegas:

Noon-2:30 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Final Practice – FS2
7:05 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Keystone Light Pole Qualifying – FS2
10 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Rhino Linings 350 (146 laps, 219 miles) – FS1

Sunday, Oct. 4:

On Track – Dover:

2:30 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series AAA 400 (400 laps, 400 miles) – NBCSN/Live Extra

Press Conferences – Dover: (Watch live at NASCAR.com)

5:45 p.m.: Post-Sprint Cup Series Race

October 1, 2015
Week Three of The Chase and Danger Approaches

Waiting until week three to comment on the Chase is probably unorthodox, but, as many readers know, hating the Chase is typical of old-timers like this writer. It’s like a team that was horrible all season and barely got in the playoffs still has a chance to win it all. It’s almost unfair. It’s obvious that the format is popular among those fans who are left (most of those who have followed the sport for more than 20 years are gone), and that is alright. So, we have to listen as television and radio guys want to talk non-stop on who is going to be the champion. Once this week a whole call-in show was dedicated to who the final four would be. What a crapshoot.

As it is in these kinds of formats, designed after stick and ball sports, it matters not how your whole season goes, but who gets hot at the end. Remember the wild card teams in baseball who won about 86 games and eliminated the team that won 100 for the season? That’s where we are in this year’s Chase. Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch are in trouble. Harvick finished in the Top Five at what seemed like every race and Busch’s season since May has been unbelievable. Yet, here they are in a situation where they almost have to win to move to the next round. Both won’t win. Add Dale Earnhardt Jr. to the list. One cannot imagine the wailing and gnashing of teeth if Junior doesn’t make it, but that’s the magic of the Chase, or so they say.

Harvick has had the worst luck. Obviously, his Stewart-Haas team has arguably been the best team all year. He’s only won twice, but he has been a threat in what seems like every race and finished second so many times. Now he faces elimination. A dustup with Jimmie Johnson at Chicago and running out of fuel at New Hampshire and now it’s do or die. Please remember that Dover is not one of Harvick’s best tracks.

Being appalled at television coverage is nothing new. While NBCSN had no trouble documenting the push from Harvick in the motor coach lot last week, they pretty much ignored that Greg Biffle finished fourth and was a threat to win the race. It was a big deal for Roush Fenway Racing, but Biffle is not in the Chase, so all the attention was elsewhere, which is my main criticism of the Chase format. While media concentrates on who’s in and who’s out, who’s in trouble or who’s not, we miss milestones that used to be a big deal. It’s not anymore. It’s all about the championship. I can remember a time when Pearson, Yarborough, and Petty won championships and the races still meant something. Those days are gone. Sadly.

This week, we also saw that a second driver decided to retire at a young age. First it was Jeff Gordon who announced late last year, and now Tony Stewart. Both are in their early 40’s, and it just doesn’t seem right. I first met Stewart at Rockingham in (I think) 1996 when Stewart and Matt Kenseth were racing for the win. Kenseth won the race but used the chrome horn to get by him. Tony was like one of my heroes, A.J. Foyt. He wasn’t a happy camper. He was gracious. I didn’t have any contact after that until the Sprint Media Tour in 2014 when I noticed the difficulty Stewart was having walking. I had broken my ankle at Bristol and in recovery myself. I had the opportunity to exchange notes with Smoke on broken bones. He was funny, sarcastic and just Tony. I will miss him.

Many have talked about the void that may have caused NASCAR to lose fans starting with the death of Dale Earnhardt. I’ve witnessed that over the last few years. Fans still come in the campgrounds (the most loyal fans) with their big black and white No. 3 flags but many more have 24 and 14 flags. This is another stumbling point for the sanctioning body. As many more icons leave the sport, what will be the effect? Earnhardt was bigger than life, but Gordon and Stewart were the younger generation’s big heroes. That generation has grown up, but many former Earnhardt fans moved to Stewart, Gordon, and Dale Junior. It’s another crisis that NASCAR has to deal with now. The sport is strong, but will the Chase, which probably will eliminate two strong contenders in the first round, and the retirements, have the effect that that horrible day at Daytona caused. We will see.

October 1, 2015
Finley Factor: The Smoke Show

When it comes to racing drivers who have won across vastly different series around the world, there can be hundreds of debates and viewpoints on who the greatest of all time is. Names like Mario Andretti, the Unsers, Aryton Senna and Nicki Lauda come to mind.

To me, though, there are two at the top of the list, ahead of all the others. These two drivers won in just about everything they raced in, and they could and would race in anything at any time.

One of them is A.J. Foyt. The other is Tony Stewart.

“This one’s for every one of those fans in the stands who pull for me every week and take all of the bull**** from everyone else,” Tony Stewart proclaimed in victory lane after winning the 2007 Allstate 400 at the Brickyard.

Stewart announced his retirement on September 30 from the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series following the 2016 season, adding that Clint Bowyer will replace him in the No. 14 Chevrolet. It is not the end of a long and storied career, however. Stewart made it extremely clear in his press conference that he isn’t retiring from racing. When asked if he would run in just about anything outside of Sprint Cup cars, the only race he gave a definite no to, is an Indianapolis 500 start.

After being asked if he had spoken to A.J. Foyt yet about his retirement from the Sprint Cup Series, Stewart said, “I haven’t yet. He’s probably going to yell at me like he normally does when I call him. I’m sure I’m going to get a bunch of grief, but I’m trying to be as nice today as I can. But I’m sure he’s going to give me a lot of grief over this.”

Stewart is the splitting image of Foyt, his boyhood hero and idol, even in retirement from the big leagues. Foyt continued on after driving by owning and operating a top race team, which he continues to do today. The three-time champion made certain to point out during his press conference that he would remain involved in the highest levels of racing via Stewart-Haas Racing.

“I made sure to send (Mike) Helton and (Steve) O’Donnell messages this week,” Stewart emphasized, “and say, listen, don’t get too excited about this because I’m taking a suit and helmet off, but I’m still going to be at the track harassing everybody, so nobody is getting a free pass now.”

Stewart is a driver’s driver. Keeping an extensive dirt racing schedule until 2013 and hoping to resume it in 2017, he was right at home in whatever car he drove. It could be slingin’ dirt at Eldora, hitting speeds well over the 200 mph range in an IndyCar, dominating in go-karts at the Daytona road course, going up on the high banks at the same track in a big NASCAR stock car, or just competing at your local track in a quarter midget. Stewart has done it all and won it all.

However, these last few years have easily been the toughest years of Stewart’s career. A leg injury in 2013 capped off what had been a mediocre season that saw him sitting out The Chase. The next year, 2014, was a disappointing season even before the now infamous Kevin Ward Jr. incident. So far, 2015 has far and away been the worst full-time season in Stewart’s entire Cup career.

Before Stewart’s press conference, I thought it would be one of the saddest moments of the year. Instead, however, I saw something else. Stewart, for the first time in what seems like forever, is back to being himself. Not the doom and gloom version, but the Stewart of old, happy and joking around.

“A lot of you probably were here yesterday or some of you might have been here for the press conference here in the same room yesterday for Gene’s Formula 1 announcement. He didn’t announce his second driver for the F1 team, and you’re looking at him,” Stewart said with a smile.

Stewart’s life in racing isn’t ending. You probably won’t see him racing on television much after 2016, but at your local dirt track? They say if you get really lucky, you may see Smoke rise again.

New Hampshire Preview, the Third and Final Race of the Challenger Round of the 2015 Chase for the Sprint Cup.

The Favorites

Jimmie Johnson is going to be very hard to stop. The June winner at Dover, Johnson, hasn’t finished outside of the top three since the 2013 June race here, when he jumped the last restart, got a black flag, and finished 17th. Outside of that finish, Johnson hasn’t ended the day outside of the top-10 since 2010.

Although Matt Kenseth only has two victories at Dover, this has always been a good track for the Wisconsin native. In 33 starts, Kenseth holds 15 top fives and 21 top 10s at the Monster Mile. A fun fact – this was the site of his very first start in 1998. The then 26-year-old XFINITY Series driver drove the No. 94 McDonalds Ford to an impressive sixth place finish in relief of team owner Bill Elliott, whose father passed away the day before the race.

The Sleepers

Kyle Busch enters this weekend a single point out of the final transfer spot of the Chase. A solid race for “Rowdy” should get him into the next round. This definitely isn’t his worst track, either. If you take out all five of his DNFs, none of which were really his fault, Kyle has finished outside of the top-10 only three times in his career at Dover.

Jeff Gordon is the defending race winner and hasn’t won since that race nearly a year ago. Iron Man seems to be finding his way back on track lately, however, a win-contending run ending in a disappointing 14th place finish at Chicagoland due to a poor restart, was sandwiched between sevenths at both Richmond and last week at New Hampshire.

The Wildcard

Kevin Harvick enters Dover needing a win to make it to the Contender Round of The Chase. A top-five finish could be enough, but he’d need a lot of help to get into the top 12 in points. Although Harvick has never won at Dover in the Cup Series, he has led laps in the last three races here, including 223 laps last fall before blowing a tire while leading and 93 laps in June before settling for a second place.

All stats for the Finley Factor are as per Racing Reference unless otherwise noted.

October 1, 2015
NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Loudon

Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

1. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth took advantage of Kevin Harvick’s fuel misfortune to take the Sylvania 300 at Loudon. The win kept Kenseth atop the points standings and guaranteed his spot in the next round of the Chase.

“Harvick clearly had the best car,” Kenseth said. “To lead 216 of 300 laps and not win? That has to be the ultimate feeling of coming up ‘empty.’”

2. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin backed up his Chicagoland win with a strong second-place finish at New Hampshire, following Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Matt Kenseth across the line.

“These Gibbs cars have speed,” Hamlin said, “and their fuel mileage is so good it borders on the mysterious. With apologies to Kevin Harvick, you could say they’re ‘freaky fast.’

3. Carl Edwards: Edwards started on the pole at Loudon and finished fifth as the Joe Gibbs Racing driver took three of the top five positions, including Matt Kenseth’s victory.

“There were no punches to the chest after this race,” Edwards said. “But if Kevin Harvick felt the need to punish someone, he would definitely kick himself.”

4. Joey Logano: Logano finished third in the Sylvania 300 and now sits third in the Sprint Cup points standings.

“I’m in great position to advance to the next round of the Chase,” Logano said. “There’s only one driver that needs to drive like a maniac at Dover, and that’s Kevin Harvick. But he put himself in this position. Of all people, Harvick should know how to ‘baby’ a gas pedal.”

5. Jimmie Johnson: Jimmie rallied from a flat tire, which left him a lap down, to finish a solid sixth at Loudon.

“I went to see Kevin Harvick’s gas tank after the race. Instead of emerging calmly from its hauler, it ‘ran out.’

“Jeff Gordon broke the NASCAR record for consecutive starts. That makes him the sport’s ‘Iron Man,’ but it sure as heck doesn’t make him the most hard-headed.”

6. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski was penalized for jumping a restart and dropped to 25th before rallying to finish 12th.

“Usually,” Keselowski said, “when somebody says ‘punch it,’ I duck instead of getting on the gas.

“Jumping a restart is something that Matt Kenseth can do and get away with. Apparently, Matt is sneaky. You saw it last year – he attacked me in between our team transporters before I even knew it. And even when Matt punches you, you don’t even know it.”

7. Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Earnhardt ran out of gas on the final lap and finished 25th at New Hampshire. He is 12th in the points standings, one point ahead of Kyle Busch.

“The race at Dover is an elimination race,” Earnhardt said. “And you can’t spell ‘elimination’ without ‘E Nation.’ Of course, the Chase isn’t a spelling bee. Hopefully, I can maintain my spot of 12th or improve on it. Otherwise, I’ll be like an Earnhardt fan in a spelling bee—I won’t make it out of the first round.”

8. Kyle Busch: Busch blew a tire on lap 159 and slammed the wall, leading to a 37th-place finish. He is 13th in the points standings, one point behind Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 12th place.

“I’ve got my work cut out for me,” Busch said. “I’ve been behind the Eight-Ball before, which is usually because there’s a state trooper behind me.”

9. Ryan Newman: Newman finished 10th at Loudon, posting his 14th top-10 of the year. Newman is sixth in the points standings, 25 behind Matt Kenseth.

“I’m the Chase driver no one’s talking about,” Newman said. “That’s because I drive for the team no one’s talking about. That would be Richard Childress Racing. Unless I advance to the next round, RCR will have no chance to win the Cup, so our four teams will figuratively pack it in for the season. That’s when ‘RCR’ becomes ‘RCR & R.’”

10. Kevin Harvick: Harvick started second in the Sylvania 300 and led 216 of 300 laps, but ran out of gas with three laps remaining, losing the lead and finishing 21st.

“Our calculations said we had plenty of gas to finish the race,” Harvick said. “Am I in serious danger of not advancing to the next round? Well, you do the math, because you’re probably better at it than we are.”

September 29, 2015
Fuel Shortage Puts Harvick in Dire Straits, Kenseth in Victory Lane

Reid Spencer

LOUDON, N.H. – Kevin Harvick clarified his championship status on Sunday—but not the way he had planned.

After dominating the Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway for most of the afternoon, Harvick ran out of fuel while leading on Lap 298 of 300, handing the top spot and the victory to Matt Kenseth, who joined teammate Denny Hamlin as an automatic qualifier for the Contender Round of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

Despite leading 216 laps on Sunday, Harvick, the defending series champion, heads to next Sunday’s Chase race at Dover almost certainly needing a victory at a track where he has never won in order to escape the Challenger Round of the Chase and keep his title hopes alive.

Kenseth, who came to pit road for fuel and tires on Lap 239, triumphed for the fifth time this season (tops in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series), for the second time at the Magic Mile and for the 36th time in his career. He finished 8.941 seconds ahead of Hamlin, who nursed his car to a runner-up finish despite a late-race issue with the right front wheel.

“It feels great to win here–a lot of great race fans here at New Hampshire,” Kenseth said. “We had a great car today – Kevin definitely had the field covered and (Kenseth’s crew chief) Jason (Ratcliff) did a great job on pit strategy there, and those new tires paid off better than we thought to get up through the field.

“And I was able to keep the pressure on enough and he came up a little short.”

The victory was the 13th of the season for Joe Gibbs Racing, which has won 10 of the last 13 Sprint Cup events.

Joey Logano ran third, followed by Greg Biffle, Carl Edwards, Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon and Martin Truex Jr. The only non-Chase driver of that group, Biffle posted his third top-five result of the season.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. had a consistent top-10 car all afternoon, until he, too, ran short of fuel with two laps left and finished 25th. Earnhardt goes to Dover with no margin for error. He’s 12th in the standings, the final position that will survive elimination next Sunday, and just one point ahead of both Kyle Busch and Paul Menard.

Busch blew a right front tire on Sunday, pounded the Turn 3 wall on Lap 159 and was credited with a 37th-place finish.

Harvick, who finished 21st and declined comment after the race, came to pit road for the last time on Lap 212 and couldn’t squeeze the last 88 laps at the 1.058-mile track out of his fuel cell. Restarting third on Lap 243 after the ninth and final caution (for Justin Allgaier’s wreck in Turn 3), Harvick passed Biffle for the lead on Lap 252.

Twenty laps later, Kenseth got past Hamlin for second and tried to pressure Harvick, who left Loudon in 15th place, 23 points behind Earnhardt in 12th.

“Jason kept saying he (Harvick) was low on fuel, but you never know unless they really run out,” Kenseth said. “I was trying to run hard, but I was trying to save a little bit. I got racing Denny pretty hard, and I wanted to save the tires a little bit, but I also know I needed to get by him to pressure the 4 (Harvick).

“That was as hard as I could run. I was planning on running up there and trying to pass him. I just couldn’t get there. Kind of resigned to finish second with about four or five (laps) to go there. I couldn’t get much closer, and he ran out with a couple to go.”

Second to Kenseth in the standings, six points out of the Chase lead, Hamlin also acknowledged JGR’s good fortune on Sunday.

“Really, I don’t feel like we were dominant today by any means,” Hamlin said. “Yeah, our cars finished 1-2, but I’m not sure that we had 1-2 cars most of the day.

“So I think we’ve been very fortunate with some strategies and things that we’ve played that’s worked out in our favor. You’ve got to just keep working. That’s the only way you can stay on top is to not rest.”

Notes: At 2:19 p.m. ET, Jeff Gordon took the green flag at New Hampshire and started his 789th consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race, breaking the Iron Man record he shared for a week with Ricky Rudd. … Modified star Ryan Preece finished 32nd in his Sprint Cup debut.

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race – Sylvania 300
New Hampshire Motor Speedway
Loudon, New Hampshire
Sunday, September 27, 2015

1. (13) Matt Kenseth, Toyota, 300, $257276.

               2. (7) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 300, $189525.

               3. (8) Joey Logano, Ford, 300, $173483.

               4. (25) Greg Biffle, Ford, 300, $157383.

               5. (1) Carl Edwards, Toyota, 300, $123850.

               6. (5) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 300, $147876.

               7. (10) Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet, 300, $142151.

               8. (21) Martin Truex Jr., Chevrolet, 300, $121210.

               9. (12) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, 300, $107365.

               10. (9) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 300, $125190.

               11. (27) Tony Stewart, Chevrolet, 300, $125129.

               12. (4) Brad Keselowski, Ford, 300, $135781.

               13. (14) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ford, 300, $97840.

               14. (23) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, 300, $118606.

               15. (20) Paul Menard, Chevrolet, 300, $95915.

               16. (33) Trevor Bayne, Ford, 300, $128365.

               17. (6) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, 300, $114623.

               18. (19) Casey Mears, Chevrolet, 300, $112553.

               19. (3) Kurt Busch, Chevrolet, 299, $102090.

               20. (29) Sam Hornish Jr., Ford, 299, $112735.

               21. (2) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet, 299, $143165.

               22. (16) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 299, $122226.

               23. (30) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 299, $115823.

               24. (28) Cole Whitt, Ford, 299, $98923.

               25. (11) Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet, 299, $100665.

               26. (26) Clint Bowyer, Toyota, 299, $118423.

               27. (31) Brett Moffitt #, Ford, 298, $85415.

               28. (34) David Gilliland, Ford, 297, $103273.

               29. (38) Michael Annett, Chevrolet, 297, $83340.

               30. (35) Matt DiBenedetto #, Toyota, 297, $93637.

               31. (40) Josh Wise, Toyota, 297, $79890.

               32. (37) Ryan Preece, Chevrolet, 296, $79615.

               33. (41) Jeb Burton #, Toyota, 295, $79390.

               34. (39) BJ McLeod(i), Chevrolet, 293, $79190.

               35. (42) Jeffrey Earnhardt(i), Ford, 292, $78990.

               36. (43) Timmy Hill(i), Ford, 284, $78760.

               37. (17) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 262, $123533.

               38. (32) Landon Cassill(i), Chevrolet, 242, $73727.

               39. (24) Justin Allgaier, Chevrolet, Accident, 236, $77655.

               40. (22) Danica Patrick, Chevrolet, Accident, 203, $73655.

               41. (18) David Ragan, Toyota, Accident, 203, $88869.

               42. (36) Alex Bowman, Chevrolet, Accident, 117, $57655.

               43. (15) Aric Almirola, Ford, Accident, 35, $91091.

Average Speed of Race Winner: 106.48 mph.
Time of Race: 02 Hrs, 58 Mins, 51 Secs. Margin of Victory: 8.941 Seconds.
Caution Flags: 9 for 41 laps.
Lead Changes: 16 among 7 drivers.

Lap Leaders:   C. Edwards 1-19; K. Harvick 20-37; B. Keselowski 38; C. Whitt 39; K. Harvick 40-120; B. Keselowski 121; K. Harvick 122-159; B. Keselowski 160; K. Harvick 161-192; B. Keselowski 193; M. Kenseth 194-210; K. Harvick 211; M. Kenseth 212-218; D. Hamlin 219-239; G. Biffle 240-251; K. Harvick 252-297; M. Kenseth 298-300.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): K. Harvick 6 times for 216 laps; M. Kenseth 3 times for 27 laps; D. Hamlin 1 time for 21 laps; C. Edwards 1 time for 19 laps; G. Biffle 1 time for 12 laps; B. Keselowski 4 times for 4 laps; C. Whitt 1 time for 1 lap.

Top 16 in Points: M. Kenseth – 2,099; D. Hamlin – 2,093; C. Edwards – 2,089; J. Logano – 2,089; J. Johnson – 2,083; R. Newman – 2,074; Kurt Busch – 2,073; B. Keselowski – 2,072; M. Truex Jr. – 2,071; J. Gordon – 2,068; J. Mcmurray – 2,058; D. Earnhardt Jr. – 2,057; Kyle Busch – 2,056; P. Menard – 2,056; K. Harvick – 2,034; C. Bowyer – 2,018.

September 27, 2015
Edwards Wins Coors Light Pole Award at Loudon

By Staff report | NASCAR.com

LOUDON, N.H. – Posting the fastest lap of Friday’s time trials late in the final round of knockout qualifying at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Carl Edwards knockedKevin Harvick off the pole for Sunday’s Sylvania 300, the second race in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup (2 p.m. ET, NBCSN, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Edwards covered the 1.058-mile distance in 27.604 seconds (137.980 mph) to earn his third Coors Light Pole Award of the season, his second at New Hampshire — completing a season sweep of the top starting spot at the Magic Mile — and the 16th of his career.

“To be honest, that third round surprised me, how fast we were,” said Edwards, who was 11th fastest in the second round. “I think it helped me almost to struggle through the second round, ’cause I thought, ‘Aw, heck with it,’ and I just kind of went for it in the third round.

“The car has a ton of speed. I hate to admit how poorly I drove it the first and second rounds, but I think it really says a lot about how fast the car is.”

Needing a victory or an extremely high finish to restore his hopes of repeating as NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion, Harvick (137.845 mph) posted a lap .027 seconds slower than that the pole winner to earn the second-place starting spot.

“I felt like I probably left those few hundredths of a second not being aggressive enough off the exit of Turn 2, and as good as the car was off of Turn 4,” Harvick said. “Small crumbs. It’s hard to balance that here, because if you push the car too much, you wind up giving up two or three tenths (of a second) instead of two or three hundredths.”

Harvick, however, declined to address his confrontation with Jimmie Johnson after last Sunday’s Chase opener at Chicagoland Speedway. Side-to-side contact with Johnson’s Chevrolet ultimately flattened the left rear tire of Harvick’s No. 4 Chevy, sending him spinning into the Turn 3 wall and relegating him to a 42nd-place finish.

That result left Harvick last in the 16-driver Chase standings and incensed at the six-time champion. When Johnson approached the reigning champ in the motor coach lot after the race, Harvick responded with a blow to Johnson’s chest, as one of Harvick’s handlers tried to keep the drivers apart.

Asked whether Johnson might have something to worry about in Sunday’s race, Harvick replied, “I don’t look back. I just do what we have to do to focus on what we need to do looking forward. I’m not going to use you guys (the press) to make threats. I can do that myself.”

Kurt Busch, Harvick’s Stewart-Haas Racing teammate, qualified third at 137.800 mph, followed by Brad Keselowski (137.671 mph) and Johnson (137.621 mph), as Chase drivers claimed the top five positions on the grid.

Non-Chaser Kyle Larson was sixth fastest, while Chase drivers Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano, Ryan Newman, Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr. qualified seventh through 11^th, respectively.

Other Chase competitors will start as follows: Matt Kenseth, 13th; Kyle Busch, 17th; Paul Menard, 20th; Martin Truex Jr., 21st; Jamie McMurray, 23rd and Clint Bowyer, 26th. Bowyer was the only Chase driver who failed to advance past the first round.

Travis Kvapil failed to make the 43-car field.

Click for complete starting lineup: Qualifying results

September 25, 2015
NASCAR Racing Schedule for New Hampshire and Kentucky

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and the Camping World Truck Series will race this weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway while the XFINITY Series travels to Kentucky Speedway. Sprint Cup Series and XFINITY Series practices, qualifying and races will be televised on NBC Sports Live Extra. Events for the Camping World Truck Series can be seen on FOX Sports 1. Please see the full schedule below.

All times are Eastern.

Friday, Sept. 25:

On Track – New Hampshire Motor Speedway:

Noon-1:25 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Practice – NBCSN/Live Extra
1:30-2:30 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Practice – FOX Sports 1
3-4:25 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Final Practice – FOX Sports 1
4:45 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying – NBCSN/Live Extra
GarageCam: (Watch live)

11:30 a.m.: Sprint Cup Series
1 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series

Press Conferences (Watch live at NASCAR.com)

10:45 a.m.: Joey Logano
11 a.m.: Cole Custer and John Hunter Nemechek
11:15 a.m.: Matt Kenseth
3 p.m.: Jeff Gordon
3:30 p.m.: Ryan Newman
5:45 p.m.: Post-Sprint Cup Series Qualifying

On Track – Kentucky Speedway:

3:30-4:25 p.m.: XFINITY Series Practice – NBCSN/Live Extra
6-7:25 p.m.: XFINITY Series Final Practice – NBCSN/Live Extra

Saturday, Sept. 26:

On Track – New Hampshire Motor Speedway:

9-9:55 a.m.: Sprint Cup Series Practice – CNBC/Live Extra
10:10 a.m.: Camping World Truck Series Keystone Light Pole Qualifying – FOX Sports 1
11:30 a.m.-12:20 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Final Practice- CNBC/Live Extra
1 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series UNOH 175 (175 laps, 185.15 miles) – FOX Sports 1

Press Conferences (Watch live at NASCAR.com)

3 p.m.: Post-Camping World Truck Series Race

On Track – Kentucky Speedway:

4:45 p.m.: XFINITY Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying – NBCSN/Live Extra
8 p.m.: XFINITY Series VisitMyrtleBeach.com 300 (200 laps, 300 miles) – NBCSN/Live Extra

Sunday, Sept. 27:

On Track – New Hampshire Motor Speedway:

2 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Sylvania 300 (300 laps, 317.4 miles) – NBCSN/Live Extra

Press Conferences (Watch live at NASCAR.com)

5:15 p.m.: Post-Sprint Cup Series Race

TV Schedule- Additional NASCAR Coverage

Friday, Sept. 25:

6 a.m., NASCAR America (re-air) – NBCSN
7 a.m., NASCAR America (re-air) – NBCSN
2:30 p.m., 1979 Daytona 500 (re-air) – FOX Sports 1

Saturday, Sept. 26:

12:30 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Setup – FOX Sports 1
6 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying (re-air) – NBCSN
7:30 p.m.: XFINITY Series Countdown to Green – NBCSN

Sunday, Sept. 27:

11:30 a.m.: NASCAR Race Day – FOX Sports 1
1 p.m.: Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge – Circuit of the Americas (tape) – FOX Sports 1
1 p.m.: NASCAR America Sunday – NBCSN
1:30 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series: Countdown to Green – NBCSN
5:30 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Post-Race Show – NBCSN
6 p.m.: NASCAR Victory Lap – NBCSN
11:30 p.m.: NASCAR Victory Lap (re-air) – NBCSN
12:30 a.m.: NASCAR Victory Lane – FOX Sports 1

September 24, 2015
NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Chicagoland

Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

1. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin roared back from last place to win the Chase opener at Chicagoland. Hamlin automatically advances to the second round of the Chase, which begins at Dover on October 4.

“I’m going to happily limp into the second round of the Chase,” Hamlin said. “

“What does his punch/shove tell us about Kevin Harvick? Well, for one thing, it tells us he’s a right-handed cry baby.”

2. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth posted a fifth at Chicagoland, recording his 11th top five of the year.

“I’m amazed by what went on between Kevin Harvick and Jimmie Johnson,” Kenseth said. “Amazed only because of the following reason: between Kevin and DeLana Harvick, it’s Kevin that got his panties in a wad.”

3. Carl Edwards: Edwards finished second in the MyAfibRisk.Com 400 at Chicagoland.

“Denny Hamlin has punched his ticket to the next round,” Edwards said, “and he didn’t even need a fist. Kevin Harvick seems to have an anger problem. He, as well as his fist, is a ‘ball’ of fury.”

4. Kevin Harvick: Harvick and Jimmie Johnson made contact on a restart, leading to a tire rub on Harvick’s No. 4 Jimmy Johns Chevy. The rub led to a blown tire, which left Harvick with a 42nd-place finish.

“Jimmie and I had words,” Harvick said. “Actually, Jimmie had words; I had a fist.”

5. Kurt Busch: Busch was leading with 10 laps to go when a caution flew for debris. On the restart, Busch lost the lead and finished third.

“This all seems very fishy to me,” Busch said. “In the last two years, Harvick has been the one to instigate much of the Chase controversy. Is he on NBC’s payroll? If so, he’d be the only one earning his money.”

6. Joey Logano: Logano finished sixth at Chicagoland and played a role in the first feud of the Chase. Jimmie Johnson and Kevin Harvick made contact on a restart. Harvick blamed Johnson while Johnson said Logano pushed him into Harvick.

“Don’t ask me to choose sides,” Logano said. “If you do, I’ll just cite gearbox issues and remain ‘neutral.’”

7. Kyle Busch: Busch finished ninth at Chicagoland, a solid start for the No. 18 car as the Chase heads to New Hampshire, where Busch won in July.

“I won Saturday’s XFINITY Series race,” Busch said, “and was presented the winner’s trophy by the rapper Ludacris. Why is there a rapper at a NASCAR race? Well, there’s no rhyme or reason.”

8. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson finished 11th at Chicagoland after controversially tangling with Kevin Harvick midway through the race.

“I went to Harvick to ask what the deal was,” Johnson said. “I went ‘knock, knock, knockin’ on Kevin’s door.’ He was pretty ornery. Much like during the race, I must have rubbed him the wrong way.

“Harvick shoved me once. And I can only guess that he shoved me one time for each Cup championship he’s won.”

9. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski took eighth in the MyAfibRisk.Com 400 at Chicagoland.

“The Chase For The Cup is only one race old,” Keselowski said, “and already there’s drama. That’s surprising. What’s even more surprising is I’m not in the middle of it.”

10. Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Earnhardt finished fifth at Chicagoland, posting his 12th top-five result of the year.

“Who does Kevin Harvick think he is?” Earnhardt said. “If he thinks he’s NASCAR’s big shot, shouldn’t he beat his own chest, and not Jimmie Johnson’s?”

September 22, 2015
Ryan Preece Set for Cup Debut at New Hampshire Motor Speedway

HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. (SEPT. 21, 2015) – Northeast standout Ryan Preece will make his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series debut this week at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Preece will drive the No. 98 Chevrolet with support from Mohawk Northeast, East West Marine, NAPA Auto Parts: Canton Auto Supply, Mizzy Construction, Logan Steel and Dunleavy Truck and Trailer Repair.

Preece’s car was designed to honor his grandfather, legendary car owner Bob Judkins, who sported the familiar red and white 2x Modified. “It’s very special to have a car that looks like my grandfather’s car,” Preece said. “I was lucky enough to drive for him a few times and win with him.”

Preece, who won the championship in NASCAR’s Whelen Modified Tour in 2013, is the current points leader of the series. He has scored four wins this season and has accumulated six top-fives and 12 top-10 finishes in 12 races.

“We’re looking forward to watching Ryan make his Cup debut this weekend,” said Tommy Baldwin. “I’m proud that our team can support his effort to further his stock car career.”

“I’m extremely lucky to have the support of Tommy Baldwin, I’m thankful to him for giving me this opportunity,” Preece said. “We have very similar personalities – we are both from the North, have a strong passion for Modified Racing and we both have a strong history in the Modifieds.

“I hope I can make my family, friends, and most of all, Tommy proud when we race at NHMS. We have our goals, and I hope we reach them. Thanks to everyone who has stepped up to make this possible, and I look forward to getting to race this Sunday.”

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September 21, 2015