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Wisconsin Native Paul Menard Wins in Nail-biting Road America Finish

By Chris Knight

ELKHART LAKE, Wis. – The decision to compete in Saturday afternoon’s NASCAR XFINITY Series sixth annual Road America 180 Fired Up by Johnsonville at Road America (Wis.) paid off in a huge way for Paul Menard who scored his third career XFINITY victory at his hometown track.

Menard, a native of Eau Claire, Wis. started eighth and saw a decision to stay out after pitting on Lap 24 work to his advantage as he edged out a relentless Ryan Blaney by 0.573 seconds at the 14-turn road course. After the contest, Menard said had the race extended a lap further, he would not have collected his first XFINITY win since Michigan International Speedway last June.

“I’ve been really fortunate to win at some of the coolest tracks, Indianapolis, Milwaukee, Road America is right there,” Menard said. “These guys called a great race. We didn’t have the fastest car. We had a really good short run car. We really burned off the rear tires as we ran, but the Richmond Water Heaters / Menards Chevrolet was fast and (crew chief Danny) Stockman made a hell of a call at the end.”

If wondering about running out of fuel wasn’t enough, Menard also had to fend off a hard-charging Blaney.

“I was definitely concerned,” added Menard on both circumstances. “I was saving as much as I could under caution, but then when we fired off I was just chattering the left rear tire really bad. It took a couple of laps for it to come in, then the (No.) 22 started burning his stuff up, but it just didn’t fire off very good in the end, but it came to us.”

After inclement weather forced the cancelation of Coors Light Pole qualifying, Ben Rhodes earned the top starting spot based upon turning the fastest lap at the 4.05-mile road course in the first XFINITY Series practice session Friday afternoon.

Rhodes, a NASCAR Next alum, would find himself under pressure from the drop of the green flag when JR Motorsports teammate Chase Elliott made the move for the lead in Turn 1. Quickly, though, the field would be under the first full-course caution of the day when Tomy Drissi found himself stuck in the gravel trap in Turn 5.

Racing resumed on Lap 4 with Elliott checking out from the field and before the first round of green-flag pit stops. The reigning champion stretched his lead to over 10 seconds when he relinquished the top spot on Lap 11 for a routine pit stop.

Championship contender Ty Dillon inherited the lead when Elliott pitted. Dillon, who finished 10th, stretched his fuel run an extra lap to earn a crucial bonus point towards the championship picture.

When pit stops cycled through, Elliott reclaimed the point on Lap 16 and built a 13.7-second lead over second-place Brian Scott at the halfway mark. On Lap 22, the second caution waved for fluid on the track, erasing Elliott’s substantial advantage.

Despite half of the field electing to come to pit road for service behind them, Elliott and his JRM team stood firm on their plan and stayed out. On the restart, Elliott withstood a challenge for Brian Scott and Ryan Blaney, but in Turn 14 and through the frontstretch, Scott mounted the pressure and made the move on Elliott to take the lead on Lap 27.

Unable to make it to the end on fuel, Scott pitted under green on Lap 29 handing the lead to defending race winner Brendan Gaughan. Three laps later, though, Gaughan pitted, handing the lead to hometown hero Paul Menard who pitted during the second caution with 13 laps remaining.

Planning to stay out till the end, Menard in saving mode purposely gave up the lead to Blake Koch who led with 10 laps remaining when pole-sitter Rhodes found himself stuck in the gravel trap in Turn 7 issuing the third full course caution. During the extended caution, Koch lost power putting Menard back at the point.

On the Lap 41 restart, Menard withstood challenges from Darrell Wallace Jr. and Blaney to seal the win in his 197th career start.

Next up for the NASCAR XFINITY Series is a trip to the track dubbed “Too Tough To Tame” at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway for the VFW Sport Clips Help A Hero 200 on Sept. 5 (3:30 p.m. ET on NBC).

NASCAR XFINITY Series Race – Road America 180 Fired Up by Johnsonville
Road America
Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin
Saturday, August 29, 2015

                1. (8) Paul Menard(i), Chevrolet, 45, $44401.

               2. (3) Ryan Blaney, Ford, 45, $44938.

               3. (5) Brian Scott, Chevrolet, 45, $35687.

               4. (2) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet, 45, $38976.

               5. (17) Darrell Wallace Jr. #, Ford, 45, $32908.

               6. (7) Boris Said, Toyota, 45, $26329.

               7. (4) Justin Marks, Chevrolet, 45, $26863.

               8. (12) Regan Smith, Chevrolet, 45, $23729.

               9. (6) Chris Buescher, Ford, 45, $23450.

               10. (13) Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, 45, $24122.

               11. (26) Michael Self, Chevrolet, 45, $23096.

               12. (9) Elliott Sadler, Ford, 45, $23019.

               13. (25) Dylan Lupton, Chevrolet, 45, $22919.

               14. (14) Kenny Habul, Toyota, 45, $22792.

               15. (15) Andy Lally, Chevrolet, 45, $23116.

               16. (16) Brendan Gaughan, Chevrolet, 45, $22640.

               17. (33) Kevin O’Connell, Chevrolet, 45, $16738.

               18. (23) Lawson Aschenbach, Chevrolet, 45, $22437.

               19. (24) Ryan Reed, Ford, 45, $22361.

               20. (27) David Starr, Toyota, 45, $22811.

               21. (22) Blake Koch, Toyota, 45, $22235.

               22. (20) Ryan Sieg, Chevrolet, 45, $22189.

               23. (28) Eric McClure, Toyota, 45, $22154.

               24. (10) Daniel Suarez #, Toyota, 45, $22093.

               25. (34) Tim Cowen, Ford, 45, $16172.

               26. (40) Stanton Barrett, Ford, 45, $15986.

               27. (32) Ross Chastain #, Chevrolet, 44, $21951.

               28. (11) Jeremy Clements, Chevrolet, 44, $21921.

               29. (35) Joey Gase, Chevrolet, 44, $21885.

               30. (36) Derrike Cope, Chevrolet, 43, $16140.

               31. (37) Roger Reuse, Chevrolet, 43, $15794.

               32. (1) Ben Rhodes, Chevrolet, 41, $21749.

               33. (18) Dylan Kwasniewski, Chevrolet, 41, $15718.

               34. (19) Dakoda Armstrong, Ford, 41, $21698.

               35. (21) JJ Yeley, Toyota, 35, $21661.

               36. (29) Tomy Drissi, Toyota, 35, $20158.

               37. (31) Cale Conley #, Toyota, Rear Gear, 22, $19158.

               38. (38) Derek White, Dodge, Transmission, 22, $12158.

               39. (39) Morgan Shepherd, Chevrolet, Brakes, 7, $11158.

               40. (30) Jeff Green, Toyota, Transmission, 2, $10158.

Average Speed of Race Winner: 77.874 mph.
Time of Race: 2 Hrs, 20 Mins, 21 Secs. Margin of Victory: 0.572 Seconds.
Caution Flags: 3 for 11 laps.
Lead Changes: 9 among 6 drivers.

Lap Leaders:    0; C. Elliott 1-12; T. Dillon 13; B. Gaughan 14-15; C. Elliott 16-26; B. Scott 27-29; B. Gaughan 30-31; P. Menard(i) 32-34; B. Koch 35-39; P. Menard(i) 40-45.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): C. Elliott 2 times for 23 laps; P. Menard(i) 2 times for 9 laps; B. Koch 1 time for 5 laps; B. Gaughan 2 times for 4 laps; B. Scott 1 time for 3 laps; T. Dillon 1 time for 1 lap.

Top 10 in Points: C. Buescher – 835; C. Elliott – 819; T. Dillon – 816; R. Smith – 785; E. Sadler – 750; D. Wallace Jr. # – 736; B. Scott – 723; D. Suarez # – 717; B. Gaughan – 705; R. Reed – 631.

August 29, 2015
NASCAR Racing Schedule for Road America and Canada

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series is off this weekend, but the XFINITY Series will compete at Road America while the Camping World Truck Series travels to Canadian Tire Motorsports Park. XFINITY Series events can be seen on NBCSN and NBC Sports Live Extra. All events for the Truck Series will be televised on FOX Sports 1 and FOX Sports 2. Please see the full schedule below.

All times Eastern.

Friday, Aug. 28:

On Track – Road America:

2:30-3:55 p.m.: XFINITY Series Practice – NBCSN/Live Extra (Results)
4 p.m.: NASCAR America Live – NBCSN
4:30-5:55 p.m.: XFINITY Series Final Practice – NBCSN/Live Extra (Results)
6 p.m.: NASCAR America Live NBCSN
7 p.m.: NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour – NBCSN

Saturday, Aug 29:

On Track – Road America:

12:15 p.m.: XFINITY Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying – NBCSN/Live Extra
2:30 p.m.: NASCAR XFINITY Series Countdown to Green – NBCSN
3 p.m.: XFINITY Series Road America 180 Fired Up by Johnsonville (45 laps, 182.16 miles) – NBCSN/Live Extra

On Track – Canadian Tire Motorsports Park:

9:30-10:25 a.m.: Camping World Truck Series Practice – FOX Sports 1
11:35 a.m.-12:55 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Final Practice – FOX Sports 1
5:45 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Keystone Light Pole Qualifying – FOX Sports 2

Sunday, Aug. 30:

On Track – Canadian Tire Motorsports Park:

1 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Setup – FOX Sports 1
1:30 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Chevrolet Silverado 250 (64 laps, 157.37 miles) – FOX Sports 1

August 28, 2015
Kyle Busch Grabs Overtime XFINITY Win at Bristol

By Reid Spencer
NASCAR Wire Service

BRISTOL, Tenn. – When Chris Buescher’s Ford faltered on a green-white-checkered restart on Friday night at Bristol Motor Speedway, Kyle Busch took full advantage, as is his custom.

In a Food City 300 that went to two laps of overtime at the .533-mile short track, Busch finished .427 seconds ahead of Kyle Larson, as Buescher faded to 11th after his car failed to pick up fuel off Turn 2 of the next-to-last lap.

The victory was Busch’s third of the season in the NASCAR XFINITY Series, his eighth at Bristol and the 73rd of his career, extending his own series record.

“This is home—this is where I’m supposed to be,” Busch said, standing outside the car in Victory Lane. “I wish I was here Wednesday night (after the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race), so we could continue the sweep lookout for (Saturday), but that was a second place. Oh, well.”

Polesitter Denny Hamlin ran third, followed by Ty Dillon and Daniel Suarez, who got a bonus for his top-five run. As the highest finishing eligible driver in the XFINITY Dash 4 Cash program, Suarez picked up an extra $100,000.

Pit strategy put Buescher at the front of the field under the fourth caution of the race, caused by Cale Conley’s spin in Turn 4. Staying out on older tires while most of the lead-lap cars came to pit road for fresh rubber and fuel, Buescher nevertheless pulled away from Busch during a succession of restarts, as Busch saved his equipment for what he thought would be the inevitable late-race caution.

“I let the 60 (Buescher) go,” Busch said. “He ran out there to about a straightaway on us, and I was just trying to save and do what I could to keep my tires underneath me. I knew we were going to get some cautions at the end to bunch us back up, and fortunately we did.

“I wasn’t sure they were going to make it on fuel (having pitted on lap 131 of 302), and obviously they cut it close—a little too close.”

Busch got the yellow he needed, just in time. Brad Teague’s wreck on the frontstretch with five laps left set up the green-white-checkered and gave Busch the chance he needed.

Buescher, who saw his series lead shrink to 19 points over Ty Dillon, knew he could have made it to the end on fuel, had the race not gone to overtime.

NASCAR XFINITY Series Race – Food City 300
Bristol Motor Speedway
Bristol, Tennessee
Friday, August 21, 2015

1. (2) Kyle Busch(i), Toyota, 302, $53821.
2. (7) Kyle Larson(i), Chevrolet, 302, $39921.
3. (1) Denny Hamlin(i), Toyota, 302, $40792.
4. (11) Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, 302, $34852.
5. (9) Daniel Suarez #, Toyota, 302, $34467.
6. (4) Brian Scott, Chevrolet, 302, $30854.
7. (10) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet, 302, $31485.
8. (3) Kevin Harvick(i), Chevrolet, 302, $24344.
9. (12) Regan Smith, Chevrolet, 302, $30097.
10. (15) Brendan Gaughan, Chevrolet, 302, $30769.
11. (5) Chris Buescher, Ford, 302, $31717.
12. (14) Darrell Wallace Jr. #, Ford, 302, $29516.
13. (13) Brandon Jones(i), Chevrolet, 302, $29416.
14. (27) Jeremy Clements, Chevrolet, 302, $29350.
15. (16) Landon Cassill, Chevrolet, 302, $29904.
16. (19) Ryan Sieg, Chevrolet, 302, $29269.
17. (21) Ross Chastain #, Chevrolet, 302, $29224.
18. (20) Cale Conley #, Toyota, 301, $29178.
19. (18) JJ Yeley, Toyota, 299, $29143.
20. (32) David Starr, Toyota, 298, $29603.
21. (29) Blake Koch, Toyota, 298, $29037.
22. (6) Ryan Blaney, Ford, 297, $28987.
23. (24) John Wes Townley(i), Chevrolet, 297, $28926.
24. (22) Dakoda Armstrong, Ford, 297, $28865.
25. (17) Ryan Reed, Ford, 295, $28955.
26. (40) Brad Teague, Toyota, 291, $28739.
27. (33) Joey Gase, Chevrolet, 289, $28678.
28. (37) Ryan Ellis(i), Chevrolet, 288, $28588.
29. (25) Hermie Sadler III, Toyota, 287, $28547.
30. (36) Derrike Cope, Chevrolet, 275, $22802.
31. (8) Elliott Sadler, Ford, Accident, 254, $28461.
32. (28) Dylan Kwasniewski, Chevrolet, Accident, 253, $28391.
33. (34) Eric McClure, Toyota, 252, $28366.
34. (23) Harrison Rhodes #, Chevrolet, Accident, 247, $28345.
35. (30) Mario Gosselin, Chevrolet, Handling, 180, $28318.
36. (38) Jordan Anderson(i), Dodge, 170, $20227.
37. (26) Benny Gordon, Toyota, Electrical, 65, $19227.
38. (39) Morgan Shepherd, Chevrolet, Brakes, 28, $18227.
39. (35) Carl Long, Dodge, Handling, 22, $17227.
40. (31) Jeff Green, Toyota, Vibration, 3, $16227.

Average Speed of Race Winner: 86.27 mph.
Time of Race: 01 Hrs, 51 Mins, 57 Secs. Margin of Victory: 0.426 Seconds.
Caution Flags: 8 for 52 laps.
Lead Changes: 10 among 4 drivers.

Lap Leaders: D. Hamlin(i) 1-2; K. Busch(i) 3-12; D. Hamlin(i) 13-26; K. Busch(i) 27-54; D. Hamlin(i) 55; K. Busch(i) 56-104; D. Hamlin(i) 105-124; K. Harvick(i) 125; D. Hamlin(i) 126-194; C. Buescher 195-300; K. Busch(i) 301-302.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): D. Hamlin(i) 5 times for 106 laps; C. Buescher 1 time for 106 laps; K. Busch(i) 4 times for 89 laps; K. Harvick(i) 1 time for 1 lap.

Top 10 in Points: C. Buescher – 800; T. Dillon – 781; C. Elliott – 777; R. Smith – 749; E. Sadler – 718; D. Suarez # – 697; D. Wallace Jr. # – 697; B. Scott – 681; B. Gaughan – 676; R. Reed – 606.

August 21, 2015
NASCAR Racing Schedule for Bristol Motor Speedway

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, XFINITY Series and Camping World Truck Series all head to Bristol Motor Speedway this week. Sprint Cup and XFINITY Series practices, qualifying sessions and races can be seen on NBCSN and NBC Sports Live Extra. Camping World Truck Series events will be televised on FOX Sports 1 and FOX Sports 2. Please see the full schedule below.

All times are Eastern.

Wednesday, Aug. 19:

On Track:

11 a.m.-12:25 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series final practice – FOX Sports 1
4:45 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Keystone Light Pole Qualifying – FOX Sports 2
5 p.m.: NASCAR America – NBCSN
6 p.m.: NASCAR Race Hub – FOX Sports 1
6:15 p.m.: Whelen Modified Tour Bush’s Beans 150 (150 laps, 79.95 miles)
8:30 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series UNOH 200 presented by ZLOOP (200 laps, 106.6 miles) – FOX Sports 1

Friday, Aug. 21:

On Track:

9-11:25 a.m.: XFINITY Series final practice – NBCSN/Live Extra
11:30 a.m.-12:55 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series practice – NBCSN/Live Extra
1:30-2:25 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series final practice, NBCSN/Live Extra
3:45 p.m.: XFINITY Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying – NBCSN/Live Extra
5 p.m.: NASCAR America Live – NBCSN
5:45 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying – NBCSN/Live Extra
7 p.m.: XFINITY Series Countdown to Green – NBCSN
7:30 p.m.: XFINITY Series Food City 300 (300 laps, 159.9 miles) – NBCSN/Live Extra

Press Conferences (Watch live at NASCAR.com)

10:15 a.m.: AJ Allmendinger
10:30 a.m.: Matt Kenseth
10:45 a.m.: Clint Bowyer
1 p.m.: Elliott Sadler
3:30 p.m.: Jeff Gordon
6:45 p.m.: Post-NSCS Qualifying Press Conference
9:45 p.m.: Post-NXS Race Press Conference

Saturday, Aug. 22:

On Track:

5 p.m.: NASCAR RaceDay: Bristol – FOX Sports 2
6 p.m.: NASCAR America Saturday – NBCSN
7 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series: Countdown to Green – NBCSN
7:30 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Irwin Tools Night Race (500 laps, 266.5 miles) – NBCSN/Live Extra
11 p.m.: NASCAR Post-Race Show – NBCSN
Midnight: NASCAR Victory Lane – FOX Sports 1

Press Conferences (Watch live at NASCAR.com)

10:45 p.m.: Post-NSCS Race Press Conferences

August 20, 2015
Regan Smith Pulls Last Lap Move For XFINITY Win At Mid-Ohio

By Chris Knight
NASCAR Wire Service

LEXINGTON, Ohio—What a difference a week makes.

After experiencing pure frustration last weekend at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International, Regan Smith answered his second road course race of the season with a bump-and-run on leader Alex Tagliani in the second-to-last corner on the last lap to score his first NASCAR XFINITY Series win of the season in Saturday’s Nationwide Children’s Hospital 200 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

The short-track-like move ended a 52-race winless streak for Smith driving the No. 7 Chevrolet for JR Motorsports.

“These guys work their butts off all week,” said Smith after earning his fifth career win. “This car was destroyed door tops down, they rebuilt it in one day. The guys back at the shop phenomenal job, my road guys have stuck behind me for a while. We’ve had a lot of opportunities to win. I hate to do it in the last corner, but it’s been too long, a long time, I wasn’t going to pass the opportunity up.

“I’ve been wrecked so many times on these road courses, I had to do what I had to do right there. I didn’t spin him, just got the spot. We’re going to celebrate hard tonight.”

Tagliani, who was searching for his first XFINITY Series victory in seven races, had to settle for a disappointing second after taking the lead from Smith with 15 laps remaining.

“If I knew that he was going to win like that probably instead of passing him fair and square early on in the race, I would have probably pushed him off a bit,” said Tagliani. “But, he knows I’m not going to be there next weekend to retaliate.”

In his first XFINITY Series race of the season, Tagliani scored his third career Coors Light Pole in the No. 22 Team Penske Ford and jumped to the early lead, separating himself by more than 1.2 seconds over defending race winner Chris Buescher until the first caution of the day on Lap 6 for a stalled car on the backstretch.

With pit strategy already on the minds of crew chiefs, many of the leaders elected to pit early, but Boris Said stayed out and inherited the lead for the restart. Said’s time at the front was short-lived, as he was immediately challenged on the restart by reigning XFINITY Series champion Chase Elliott, who took the lead in Turn 1.

Elliott led until Lap 12 when the second caution waved for Kenny Habul. Leaders Elliott and Said pitted, with Elliott Sadler assuming the top spot briefly before Buescher grabbed control from his Roush Fenway Racing teammate.

Following the third caution of the race, Tagliani swiped the lead from Buescher in Turn 3, only to have his momentum stalled by a caution for fluid on the race track.

Tagliani maintained the race lead through the halfway point.

Under a Lap 41 yellow, the majority of the field made their final scheduled pit stop, with Smith claiming the lead after pit stops and the racing resuming with 30 laps remaining.

Despite another yellow flag for fluid on the track, the leaders elected to stay out.

Racing resumed with 20 laps to go with Smith easily escaping from the furry of furious side-by-side action behind him. Tagliani, though, quickly emerged from the pack and set his sights on Smith, setting up to reassume command on Lap 61 and set the tone for the thrilling finish.

Buescher leads Ty Dillon by 24 points in the XFINITY Series standings.

NASCAR XFINITY Series Race – Nationwide Children’s Hospital 200 at Mid-Ohio
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course
Lexington, Ohio
Saturday, August 15, 2015

               1. (7) Regan Smith, Chevrolet, 75, $54536.

               2. (1) Alex Tagliani, Ford, 75, $53559.

               3. (3) Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, 75, $36111.

               4. (2) Chris Buescher, Ford, 75, $34901.

               5. (6) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet, 75, $30734.

               6. (10) Elliott Sadler, Ford, 75, $26756.

               7. (5) Brian Scott, Chevrolet, 75, $24890.

               8. (11) Darrell Wallace Jr. #, Ford, 75, $25157.

               9. (16) Dylan Lupton, Chevrolet, 75, $23878.

               10. (8) Ben Rhodes, Chevrolet, 75, $24550.

               11. (9) Daniel Suarez #, Toyota, 75, $23523.

               12. (12) Brendan Gaughan, Chevrolet, 75, $23448.

               13. (4) Boris Said, Toyota, 75, $23347.

               14. (21) Ryan Sieg, Chevrolet, 75, $23220.

               15. (13) Justin Marks, Chevrolet, 75, $23545.

               16. (26) JJ Yeley, Toyota, 75, $23068.

               17. (14) Jeremy Clements, Chevrolet, 75, $22967.

               18. (20) Landon Cassill, Chevrolet, 75, $23040.

               19. (32) Ross Chastain #, Chevrolet, 75, $22765.

               20. (24) Cale Conley #, Toyota, 75, $23213.

               21. (22) Andy Lally, Chevrolet, 75, $22638.

               22. (17) Ryan Reed, Ford, 75, $22592.

               23. (23) Dakoda Armstrong, Ford, 75, $22557.

               24. (30) Blake Koch, Toyota, 75, $22497.

               25. (36) Derrike Cope, Chevrolet, 75, $16575.

               26. (35) Joey Gase, Chevrolet, 75, $22389.

               27. (25) Michael Self, Chevrolet, 75, $16354.

               28. (15) Kenny Habul, Toyota, 75, $22324.

               29. (19) Brandon Jones(i), Chevrolet, 75, $22289.

               30. (34) Tim Cowen, Ford, 72, $16543.

               31. (28) David Starr, Toyota, 69, $22198.

               32. (27) Tomy Drissi, Toyota, Accident, 68, $22152.

               33. (37) Mike Harmon, Chevrolet, 68, $16121.

               34. (18) Dylan Kwasniewski, Chevrolet, 66, $16101.

               35. (31) Eric McClure, Toyota, 60, $22063.

               36. (29) Carlos Contreras, Chevrolet, Suspension, 50, $14562.

               37. (39) Morgan Shepherd, Chevrolet, Fuel Pump, 33, $13562.

               38. (40) John Jackson, Chevrolet, Brakes, 18, $12562.

               39. (38) Josh Reaume #, Dodge, Fuel Pump, 6, $11562.

               40. (33) Jeff Green, Toyota, Vibration, 3, $10562.

Average Speed of Race Winner: 67.493 mph.
Time of Race: 2 Hrs, 30 Mins, 33 Secs. Margin of Victory: 0.766 Seconds.
Caution Flags: 8 for 25 laps.Lead Changes: 8 among 6 drivers.

Lap Leaders:   A. Tagliani 1-7; B. Said 8-9; C. Elliott 10-13; E. Sadler 14-15; C. Buescher 16-25; A. Tagliani 26-42; R. Smith 43-60; A. Tagliani 61-74; R. Smith 75;.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): A. Tagliani 3 times for 38 laps; R. Smith 2 times for 19 laps; C. Buescher 1 time for 10 laps; C. Elliott 1 time for 4 laps; E. Sadler 1 time for 2 laps; B. Said 1 time for 2 laps.

Top 10 in Points: C. Buescher – 765; T. Dillon – 741; C. Elliott – 740; R. Smith – 714; E. Sadler – 705; D. Wallace Jr. # – 665; D. Suarez # – 658; B. Scott – 643; B. Gaughan – 642; R. Reed – 587.

August 16, 2015
NASCAR Racing Schedule for Michigan and Mid-Ohio

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and Camping World Truck Series will compete this week at Michigan International Speedway while the NASCAR XFINITY Series travels to the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. All Sprint Cup and XFINITY Series practices, qualifying sessions and races can be seen on NBC Sports Live Extra. The Camping World Truck Series events will be televised on FOX Sports 1. The full schedule is listed below.

All times are Eastern.

Friday, August 14:

On Track – Michigan:

11 a.m.-1:25 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Practice – NBCSN/Live Extra
1:30-2:25 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Practice – FOX Sports 1
3-4:25 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Final Practice (Will be shown on FOX Sports 1 at 8 p.m. ET)
5:05 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying – NBCSN/Live Extra

On Track – Mid-Ohio:

1:30-2:25 p.m.: XFINITY Series Practice – NBCSN/Live Extra
3-4:25 p.m.: XFINITY Series Final Practice – RSN/Live Extra

Press Conferences (Watch live at NASCAR.com)

9:45 a.m.: Greg Biffle
10 a.m.: Matt Kenseth
10:15 a.m.: Tyler Reddick
10:30 a.m.: Erik Jones
3:15 p.m.: Jeff Gordon
6 p.m. (approx.): Post-NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Qualifying

Saturday, August 15:

On Track – Michigan:

8:30-9:25 a.m.: Sprint Cup Series Practice – CNBC/Live Extra
9:40 a.m.: Camping World Truck Series Keystone Light Pole Qualifying – FOX Sports 1
11:30 a.m.-12:25 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Final Practice – CNBC/Live Extra
12:30 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Setup – FOX Sports 1
1 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Careers for Veterans 200 presented by Cooper Standard and Brad Keselowski’s Checkered Flag Foundation – (100 laps, 200 miles) – FOX Sports 1

On Track – Mid-Ohio:

11:15 a.m.: XFINITY Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying – Live Extra
3 p.m.: NASCAR XFINITY Series Countdown to Green – NBCSN
3:30 p.m.: XFINITY Series Nationwide Children’s Hospital 200 at Mid-Ohio (75 laps, 169.35 miles) – NBCSN/Live Extra

Press Conferences (Watch live at NASCAR.com)

2:30 p.m.: (approx.): Post-Camping World Truck Series Race

Sunday, August 16:

On Track – Michigan:

11:30 a.m.: NASCAR RaceDay: Michigan – FOX Sports 1
1:30 p.m.: NASCAR America Sunday – NBCSN
2 p.m.: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series: Countdown to Green – NBCSN
2:30 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Pure Michigan 400 (200 laps, 400 miles) – NBCSN/Live Extra
5:30 p.m.: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Post-Race Show – NBCSN
11 p.m.: NASCAR Victory Lap – NBCSN
Midnight: NASCAR Victory Lane – FOX Sports 1

Press Conferences (Watch live at NASCAR.com)

11 a.m.: MIS President Roger Curtis and Consumers Energy VP and Chief Customer Officer Garrick J. Rochow
11:30 a.m.: Michigan Lt. Gov. Brian Calley, Michigan Economic Development Corporation CEO Steve Arwood, Travel Michigan Vice President Dave Lorenz and grand marshal Michael Harris
5:15 p.m. (approx.): Post-Sprint Cup Series race

August 13, 2015
NASCAR Racing Schedule for Watkins Glen

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and XFINITY Series travel to Watkins Glen International this week while the Camping World Truck Series is off. All Sprint Cup and XFINITY Series practices, qualifying sessions and races can be seen on NBC Sports Live Extra. The full schedule is listed below.

All times are Eastern.

Friday, August 7:

On Track:

11:30 a.m.-12:50 p.m.: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Practice – NBCSN
1-2:25 p.m.: NASCAR XFINITY Series Practice – NBCSN
3:30-4:25 p.m.: NASCAR XFINITY Series Final Practice – NBCSN
4:40-5:55 p.m..: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Final Practice – NBCSN

Press Conferences (Watch live at NASCAR.com)

9:45 a.m.: AJ Allmendinger
10 a.m.: Chris Buescher
10:45 a.m.: Kyle Busch
11 a.m.: Regan Smith
11:15 a.m.: Eddie Cheever III
1:45 p.m.: Jeff Gordon

Saturday, August 8:

On Track:

11:15 a.m.: XFINITY Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying – NBCSN
1:15 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying – NBCSN
2:30 p.m.: XFINITY Series Countdown to Green – NBCSN
3 p.m.: XFINITY Series Zippo 200 (82 laps, 200.9 miles) – NBCSN
(Scheduled Green Flag – approx: 3:16 p.m.)

Press Conferences (Watch live at NASCAR.com)

2:15 p.m. (approx.): Post-NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Qualifying Press Conference
5:30 p.m. (approx.): Post-NASCAR XFINITY Series Race Press Conference

Sunday, August 9:

On Track:

1:30 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Countdown to Green – NBCSN
2 p.m.: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Cheez-It 355 (90 laps, 220.5 miles) – NBCSN
(Scheduled Green Flag – approx: 2:18 p.m.)
5 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Post-Race Show – NBCSN
11 p.m.: NASCAR Victory Lap – NBCSN

Press Conferences ((Watch live at NASCAR.com)

4:45 p.m. (approx.): Post-NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race Press Conference

August 6, 2015
NASCAR Racing Schedule for Pocono and Iowa

July 30, 2015
Austin Dillon Wins Subway Firecracker 250

July 4, 2015
By Jeff Olson

Austin Dillon led just nine laps Saturday night, including the one that mattered most.

Dillon, grandson of legendary team owner Richard Childress, outlasted Elliott Sadler and Chase Elliott during a green-white-checkered finish to claim the crash-filled Subway Firecracker 250, the NASCAR XFINITY Series race at Daytona International Speedway.

“This is Daytona, man,” Dillon said during the post-race celebration. “There are so many family memories here. … I’m just happy for my grandfather. He told me once when we were here in Victory Lane with Dale Earnhardt that you’ll have this opportunity one day. It means so much to be here.”

A multi-car crash on Lap 96 of the 100-lap race took out Brian Scott, who led 84 laps and was in front when the crash started. Scott moved to the outside line to block Elliott Sadler but was spun out, collecting several cars. Dillon slipped through the crash, then stayed ahead of Elliott after the final restart.

Sadler recovered from the crash and surged past Elliott as the field reached the checkered flag to finish second. Afterward, he blamed Scott for the crash.

“Either Brian’s spotter or Brian tried to make the move too late to block us,” Sadler said. “We were already up to his right rear door. It wrecked us, man. This is Daytona. It’s a shame. We had a car good enough to win.”

Scott admitted the move was aggressive and poorly timed, but said he thought Sader could have given him room.

“I told myself I was going to be aggressive, and I was going for the win,” Scott said. “I was trying to time that run. I knew the outside lane was coming. Obviously I mistimed it a little bit, but I still felt like I gave them room to split me and go high. Instead of going high on me, he turned me into the wall.”

Dillon scored his third XFINITY Series win of 2015 and fifth of his career, putting a smile on his grandfather’s face.

“It’s cool any time you win here at Daytona,” Childress said.

A 12-car pile-up with 10 laps to go collected the top two in the XFINITY points standings – Chris Buescher and Ty Dillon and set the stage for a restart with five laps remaining. Scott restarted ahead of Sadler and Austin Dillon.

Sadler fell behind in the outside line but regained momentum and appeared to be ready to pass Scott, who was leading the inside line. Scott moved up to get in front of Sadler, but didn’t have enough room and was turned into the wall.

The crash left only nine cars on the lead lap. Dillon restarted ahead of Dakoda Armstrong and Chase Elliott for the green-white-checkered finish, and Elliott quickly moved into second on the low line. He finished third, followed by Kasey Kahne, Benny Gordon and Armstrong.

NASCAR XFINITY Series Race – Subway Firecracker 250
Daytona International Speedway – Daytona Beach, Florida
Saturday, July 04, 2015

1. (7) Austin Dillon(i), Chevrolet, 104, $87386.
2. (10) Elliott Sadler, Ford, 104, $74133.
3. (11) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet, 104, $52880.
4. (21) Kasey Kahne(i), Chevrolet, 104, $35703.
5. (20) Benny Gordon, Chevrolet, 104, $31248.
6. (17) Dakoda Armstrong, Ford, 104, $34335.
7. (3) David Ragan(i), Toyota, 104, $27584.
8. (5) Erik Jones(i), Toyota, 104, $32135.
9. (35) Harrison Rhodes #, Chevrolet, 104, $32005.
10. (34) Ross Chastain #, Chevrolet, 103, $31274.
11. (18) Timmy Hill(i), Toyota, 103, $23769.
12. (13) Chris Buescher, Ford, 103, $29214.
13. (8) Ryan Reed, Ford, 103, $28684.
14. (4) Joey Logano(i), Ford, 103, $22154.
15. (1) Daniel Suarez #, Toyota, 103, $32427.
16. (40) Peyton Sellers #, Chevrolet, 102, $27674.
17. (15) Regan Smith, Chevrolet, 102, $27549.
18. (22) Blake Koch, Toyota, 102, $27423.
19. (23) John Wes Townley(i), Chevrolet, 101, $27296.
20. (28) JJ Yeley, Toyota, 101, $27670.
21. (30) Martin Roy, Chevrolet, 101, $27019.
22. (26) Bobby Gerhart, Chevrolet, 101, $20887.
23. (2) Brian Scott, Chevrolet, 101, $32137.
24. (39) Eric McClure, Toyota, 100, $26585.
25. (9) Brendan Gaughan, Chevrolet, 100, $26608.
26. (6) Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, 100, $26333.
27. (32) Ryan Sieg, Chevrolet, Accident, 97, $26181.
28. (36) Jeremy Clements, Chevrolet, 97, $26004.
29. (25) David Starr, Toyota, Accident, 96, $25879.
30. (38) Joey Gase, Chevrolet, Accident, 95, $26052.
31. (24) Landon Cassill, Chevrolet, 95, $25621.
32. (37) Cale Conley #, Toyota, 95, $25485.
33. (31) Mike Harmon, Dodge, 95, $25369.
34. (14) Darrell Wallace Jr. #, Ford, Accident, 90, $25258.
35. (19) Aric Almirola(i), Ford, Accident, 90, $19135.
36. (16) Brennan Poole, Chevrolet, Accident, 90, $23288.
37. (12) Scott Lagasse Jr., Chevrolet, Accident, 58, $22288.
38. (33) Derrike Cope, Chevrolet, Accident, 15, $21288.
39. (29) Morgan Shepherd, Chevrolet, Overheating, 10, $14288.
40. (27) Dexter Bean, Chevrolet, Vibration, 6, $13288.
Average Speed of Race Winner: 132.804 mph.
Time of Race: 01 Hrs, 57 Mins, 28 Secs. Margin of Victory: Caution.
Caution Flags: 7 for 24 laps.
Lead Changes: 9 among 5 drivers.

Lap Leaders: D. Suarez # 0; B. Scott 1-6; D. Suarez # 7-12; B. Scott 13-16; R. Chastain # 17; B. Scott 18-55; J. Logano(i) 56-59; A. Dillon(i) 60; B. Scott 61-96; A. Dillon(i) 97-104.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): B. Scott 4 times for 84 laps; A. Dillon(i) 2 times for 9 laps; D. Suarez # 1 time for 6 laps; J. Logano(i) 1 time for 4 laps; R. Chastain # 1 time for 1 lap.
Top 10 in Points: C. Buescher – 560; C. Elliott – 526; T. Dillon – 517; R. Smith – 493; E. Sadler – 489; D. Wallace Jr. # – 472; B. Scott – 453; R. Reed – 441; B. Gaughan – 438; D. Suarez # – 437.

July 5, 2015
NASCAR Racing Schedule for Michigan and Gateway Motorsports Park

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and XFINITY Series head to Michigan International Speedway this weekend while the Camping World Truck Series travels to Gateway Motorsports Park. Please check below for the full schedule.

All times Eastern.

Friday, June 12:

On Track:

11:30 a.m.-12:55 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series practice – FOX Sports 1
1-2 p.m.: XFINITY Series practice – FOX Sports 1
2:30-3:55 p.m.: XFINITY Series final practice – FOX Sports 1
4:15 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying – FOX Sports 2

Press Conferences (Watch live at NASCAR.com)

10:15 a.m.: Joey Logano
10:40 a.m.: Kyle Larson
1:45 p.m.: Jeff Gordon
2:15 p.m.: Clint Bowyer
2:30 p.m.: Martin Truex Jr. and Joe Garone
5:15 p.m.: Post NASCAR Sprint Cup Series qualifying (time approx.)

Saturday, June 13:

On Track:

9-9:55 a.m.: Sprint Cup Series practice – FOX Sports 1
10:15 a.m.: XFINITY Series qualifying – FOX Sports 1
10:30 a.m.-1 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series final practice
Noon-12:55 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series final practice – FOX Sports 1
1:30 p.m.: XFINITY Series Great Clips 250 Benefiting Paralyzed Veterans of America (125 laps, 250 miles) – FOX Sports 1
5:45 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series qualifying – FOX Sports 2
8:30 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series American Ethanol Presents the Drivin’ for Linemen 200 brought to you by Ameren (160 laps, 200 miles) – FOX Sports 1

Press Conferences (Watch live at NASCAR.com)

11:15 a.m.: Cole Whitt and Nate Burleson
3:15 p.m.: Post NASCAR XFINITY Series race (time approx.)

Sunday, June 14:

On Track:

1 p.m.: Sprint Cup Series Quicken Loans 400 (200 laps, 400 miles) – FOX Sports 1

Press Conferences (Watch live at NASCAR.com)

9:15 a.m.: Brad Keselowski and Dave Pericak
10 a.m.: Ryan Newman, Mark Dantonio and Bill Emerson
4:15 p.m.: Post NASCAR Sprint Cup race (time approx.)

June 11, 2015