Trouble in The King's Court: Smithfield Moves to SHR, Amrirola to Drive?

Smithfield Foods is leaving the No. 43 for Stewart-Haas Racing (Google Images)

After what has already been a trying season for Richard Petty Motorsports, rumors have now begun to circulate following a report from Motorsport.com that Smithfield Foods would be looking to move its sponsorship away from the No. 43 car in 2018.

That rumor became official on September 12, when Smithfield announced it would shift its sponsorship to Stewart-Haas Racing in 2018.

“We are excited to announce today that Smithfield Foods will join Stewart-Haas Racing as a primary team sponsor beginning in 2018,” the company posted on their Facebook page. “The decision to leave Richard Petty Motorsports and join Stewart-Haas Racing was difficult but we feel this move will improve our competitiveness on the track and strengthen our position as a leading consumer packaged goods company.

“Further details of our agreement with Stewart-Haas Racing will be provided at a later date.”

The meat processing company has been a major sponsor on RPM's famous No. 43 since entering the sport in 2012.

“We’re very proud to have Smithfield Foods join the Stewart-Haas Racing family,” said Brett Frood, president, SHR. “Smithfield has activated heavily and successfully within the sport, and we’re honored to be a part of the brand’s forward initiatives and strategy. Although we’re not ready to announce the full details of the program, we look forward to this new endeavor while remaining focused on the upcoming playoffs and putting forth the best effort possible to win more races and contend for another championship.”

Will Aric ALmirola wind up at Stewart-Haas Racing
with Smithfield in 2018? (Google Images)

Motorsport.com had reported before the regular-season finale at Richmond that Smithfield had a handshake deal with Petty and team officials to return to RPM in 2018. However, the article reported that the team was looking to sign Darrell "Bubba" Wallace as a replacement for Aric Almiola, the current wheelman of the No. 43 Ford.

Smithfield has done a great job of using both Almirola and Petty in their radio, television, and in-store campaigns, and has built a pretty solid brand around the 2014 Daytona winner. But when Almirola suffered a back injury as a result of a vicious wreck in Kansas this season, Wallace stepped in to fill the seat while Amirola recuperated. His best finish was an 11th-place in his final race at Kansas, leading many to speculate he could land in a second car at RPM if a sponsor could be found.

When funding didn't materialize, Motorsport.com reported that the team began to push for Wallace to replace Almirola in their Smithfield-branded Fusion next season. This caused Smithfield to balk and talks began to deteriorate.

All that remains is to find out which car Smithfield will land on and who will drive it. Current SHR drivers Clint Bowyer, Kurt Busch, and Danica Patrick both need sponsorship for next season. But the team could also go after Kasey Kahne or Matt Kenseth (who has reportedly met with team co-owner Gene Haas).

But the most likely scenario is that the team pursues Almirola. Smithfield clearly feels that they have a lot invested in the driver if they were unwilling to put Wallace in their car at RPM. Unless they felt it would bring an uptick in performance, why would they move to another team only to start over with a new driver?

Look for Aric Almirola to follow Smithfield to SHR, continuing to be "fueled by bacon" in 2018.

UPDATE: Richard Petty Motorsports has announced that Aric Almitrola will not return to the No. 43 car in 2018.

Danica Patrick has just announced on her Facebook page that she will not be returning to the No. 10 Ford at Stewart-Haas Racing in 2018:

“It has been my honor to drive for Tony Stewart, Gene Haas and everyone at Stewart-Haas Racing for the past six seasons. Together we earned a Daytona 500 pole, seven top-10 finishes and we also had some exciting racing along the way. My time driving for them, however, has come to an end due to a new sponsorship arrangement in 2018. Sponsorship plays a vital role in our sport, and I have been very fortunate over the course of my career, but this year threw us for a curve. Our amazing partners, such as Aspen Dental and Code 3, stepped up in a big way on short notice this year and I am incredibly grateful.

“I wish SHR the best of luck with their new sponsorship and driver. Thanks for the memories. Right now, my focus is on the remainder of the 2017 season and finishing the year strong. I have the utmost faith in myself and those around me, and feel confident about my future.”

Alex Bowman Will Take Over for Dale Jr. in 2018: "I Just Want to Go Win"

Alex Bowman (left) will get his big break and succeed Dale Jr. (right)
as driver of the No. 88 Chevy in 2018 (Google Images)

Alex Bowman had made a career out of running sporadically in all three of NASCAR's top touring divisions, and when he did have a chance to run a full schedule of races it was for a team that could barely contend for a top-20 finish, let alone a win.

Then Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Hendrick Motorsports came calling.

After being tabbed to run nine Xfinity Series races for JR Motorsports last year, Bowman was selected to fill in for Junior while he recovered from a concussion. He split his time in the No. 88 car with four-time champion Jeff Gordon, who was called out of retirement to pinch hit for his former teammate.

In eight starts in the No. 88 Chevy, Gordon tallied two top-ten finishes and led seven laps.

In ten starts in the No. 88 Chevy, Bowman tallied three top-tens, led 51 laps, won his first career Cup Series pole in the fall race at Phoenix, and had it not been for a late race spin in front of him, he came within laps of winning that very same race.

After a NASCAR career where not much has been set in stone, Bowman finally got a chance to live up to his nickname, "The Showman."

That's why when Dale Jr announced his retirement earlier this season, he pushed hard for Bowman to fill his seat. IT's also why many fans wanted to see the Tuscon, Arizona native finally get a break in a full-time, competitive ride.

Bowman has been working as the simulator and test driver for Hendrick Motorsports, turning down full-time opportunities lower tier rides because he wanted to stay at the front of the line if a ride at HMS became available.

Now his hard work, patience, and belief in himself have paid off in a big way, as he will be the driver who succeeds Dale Jr. in the No. 88 car next season.

"Ever since I was a kid, racing is all I've wanted to do," Bowman said in a press release. "I've had so many people believe in me along the way. My family has sacrificed a lot and always been behind me.

"I would never have this chance without the support of Dale and everyone involved with the No. 88 team. To be part of Hendrick Motorsports and for Mr. Hendrick to have this confidence in me, it's just amazing."

After seeing his performance last season, along with his commitment to his career, Earnhardt Jr. quickly became one of Bowman's biggest and most vocal supporters.

"I believe in his talent on the race track but his commitment off the race track to further his career, to me, over the last several years has been real impressive," the 14-time Most Popular Driver said of his successor.

"There are a lot of guys that have the talent and need that one critical break and if they still committed and keep pushing and are willing to make the sacrifices, eventually that opportunity will come along.

"Alex is the perfect example of that. He gets this opportunity because of his commitment to his own career and his gamble on himself that he made a long, long time ago."

Junior's HMS teammates also vouched for Bowman. Gordon believes that Bowman is "a great choice."

"I think he’s a great choice," Gordon said.

"He did such an amazing job behind the wheel. I know what that car was like. I drove it last year (for eight races). We started improving our performance when I was in the car, but then Alex went to Phoenix and sat on the pole and had an excellent chance at winning that race. He’s just a great driver, and I think it’s going to be fun to watch."

Seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson also backed Bowman.

"How he came in and stepped in seamlessly, he was really impressive for me," Johnson said.

"He handled the pressure. Won a pole. Was up there duking it out for some race wins. He had a heated moment or two with some of the veterans and wasn't rattled. He did an amazing job. We all watched him evolve. I think he would be a great fit for that car from a wide variety of angles."

Clearly, Bowman impressed the right people to have a trio of drivers with 11 championships and seven Daytona 500 wins between them standing in his corner.

Team owner Rick Hendrick also spoke highly of his new wheelman.

"Alex impressed the heck out of us last year with his talent, poise, and professionalism," Hendrick said. "He stepped up in a very demanding situation and showed that he can run with the best and compete for wins.

"His ability to stay focused through it all, and the way he's handled himself since then, has shown a lot of character. (Crew chief) Greg (Ives) and the team loved working with Alex, and that dynamic will get even better with more time together."

Following Kasey Kahne's win in the Brickyard 400, Hendrick told reporters that while he couldn't make any guarantees, he had Bowman in mind from the very beginning.

"Of course, I didn’t want to see Dale tell me that he was going to retire, but we had Alex in the back of our mind for whatever opportunity we had."

"It wasn’t much of a decision at all. Alex was the guy."

Rumors persisted for weeks that 2003 Cup Series champion Matt Kenseth would get the ride over Bowman because of some potential sponsor hangups with the relatively unproven driver. But in the end, Nationwide will continue as sponsor of the No. 88 for 21 races, while Axalta Coating Systems added two races to their deal and will back the car in 15 events in 2018.

"The No. 88 team is such a great group of people," Bowman said. "I know we can pick up where we left off last year, and I truly believe we can win races and contend for a championship.

"I'm excited to build on the relationship with Nationwide and all of our partners. It means the world that they have faith in me, and I'm thankful to have them on my side. Now I just want to go win."

JGR Sent a Bad Message with Furniture Row Racing Sanctions

Joe Gibbs Racing suspended two members of Martin Truex Jr's pit crew after
getting involved in an argument at Indy (Google Images) 

We've all seen the video from this past weekend's Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway of Truex and Kyle Busch wrecking on a restart with 50 laps to go. Both driver's raced into turn one, Busch pinned Truex down, Truex wiggled and slid up into Busch and both drivers nailed the outside wall. Their days were over and, while both drivers were unhappy, they seemed to be able to move on after the fact.

However, Truex's tire changers and Busch's crew chief Adam Stevens got into a heated argument on pit road. Front-tire changer Chris Taylor and rear-changer Lee Cunningham were the two Truex crewmen involved in the shouting match.

One of the tire changers can be seen in this video clapping sarcastically as Stevens walks past their pit box. The No. 18 crew chief steps over and the two exchange words. The second Truex tire changer steps in and attempts to escort Stevens from their pit box, telling his "I don't care who you are! Get out of my box!" several times. No punches were thrown, no shoving was done, this was simply a case of a few passionate crewmen voicing their displeasure with each other over a racing incident. The No. 78 team has every right to not want a rival crew chief in their pit box

But while this should have been the end of this minor flare up, it wasn't. Both Cunningham and Taylor received three-week suspensions for their role in the argument. However, it NASCAR that handed down the sanctions this time. It also wasn't Furniture Row Racing. Both men were benched by Joe Gibbs Racing.

This news left a bad taste in the mouths of many NASCAR fans, and more still feel this is a very bad look for the sport as a whole. Apparently, the terms of the technical alliance between FRR and JGR also stipulate that JGR provides FRR with a pit crew. This means that even though they pit a car for another team, Truex Jr's pit crew consists of Joe Gibbs Racing personnel. This makes them JGR employees, which makes it Coach Gibbs' choice to reprimand them if need be. That's all fine and good.

But that doesn't mean it was needed in this instance. JGR officials should have simply "swallowed the whistle" on what should've been a non-issue.

Ever since entering their technical partnership prior to last year, Joe Gibbs Racing and Furniture Row Racing have been next to unstoppable. Truex won four times last year, while JGR's quartet of drivers won 12 races between them. That's almost half of the races run last season.

This year, however, Truex has already won three races, 14 stages, 29 playoff points, and is well on his way to the regular season points championship and the 15 playoff point bonus that comes with it. Hamlin's win at NHMS two weeks ago is JGR's lone win this season. They have been close many times with Busch, but they have not been able to get any of their other drivers in the win column.

Busch is riding a 365+ day winless streak and on the cusp of potentially missing the playoffs. Throw in the fact that Stevens was not penalized for his role in the argument, and many fans have perceived this to be a very politically-charged statement by JGR.

Furniture Row has outrun JGR all season long, which can't make the folks at JGR all that happy. So, as many fans said on social media yesterday, if you can't beat 'em, suspend 'em, right? It would appear that JGR is reminding FRR that they are nothing more than a satellite team of the JGR mothership and that JGR is the reason for all of their success. Not because of Martin Truex Jr's driving talent. Not because of Cole Pearn's race-winning calls. Not because of the boys and girls that work tirelessly at the FRR shop in Denver. It is only because of the parts and pieces supplied by Joe Gibbs Racing.

While it might not have been intended this way, this clearly looks like a power grab by JGR to reassert their dominance in the Toyota camp and slow down their stiffest competition. Especially since Stevens was not reprimanded.

JGR does some things differently than most teams and one of those things is treating their crew chiefs as executives in the organizational structure. If they are going to be treated as middle-management, are JGR's crew chiefs not expected to rise about petty squabbling? Rather than defend themselves and their team, were Taylor and Cunningham just supposed to say, 'Sorry Mr. Stevens, it won't happen again?' They might be JGR employees during the week, but on Sunday's they pit a car for a rival team. Come race day, they are competitors with the four JGR cars.

Many fans and media members also brought up the fact that Busch was not reprimanded by JGR officials this year at Las Vegas for walking halfway down pit road to punch Joey Logano after the race was over. Busch getting off scot-free for assaulting another driver while two crewmen get a three-week suspension for calmly escorting a crew chief from your pit box is a pretty glaring double-standard.

So where do we go from here?

Barney Visser, owner of Truex's No.78, issued the obligatory press release saying that they supported the actions taken by JGR. But it's hard to imagine this sitting too well with him and the folks at FRR.

Is Truex supposed to not race the JGR cars as hard as the 36 others on the track? If he winds up racing one of them for the championship, is he supposed to roll over when the race winds down?

Optics are everything, especially in NASCAR racing. Whether it was meant as a shot across the bow of Furniture Row Racing or not, that's what these suspensions appear to be. Technical alliances can clearly be difficult to understand, especially now that the line between teams is that much blurrier, but they have become a necessary part of the game for smaller teams to stay competitive.

It will be very interesting to see how this story plays itself out and if there will be any further repercussions from it.

Bubba Wallace to Make Cup Series Debut at Pocono in Iconic No. 43

Xfinity Series driver Bubba Wallace will make his Cup Series debut this
weekend at Pocono Raceway (Google Images)

While  Aric Almirola continues to recuperate from the compression fracture he suffered as a result of a vicious wreck at Kansas three weeks ago, the team at Richard Petty Motorsports has been finalizing plans for a full-time substitute.

NASCAR veteran and 2011 Southern 500 winner Regan Smith drove in place of Almirola during the Monster Energy All-Star race, Coca-Cola 600, and this past weekend's AAA 400 Drive for Autism at Dover.

But in an effort to shake things up, RPM, Roush Fenway Racing, and Ford Racing have teamed up to put Darrell "Bubba" Wallace Jr in the famous No. 43 car ahead of this weekend's Axalta presents the Pocono 400 at Pocono Raceway.

The 23-year old Mobile, Alabama native will be the first African-American driver to start a Monster Energy Cup Series race since Bill Lester made two starts in the series for Bill Davis Racing in 2006.

"Driving the famed 43 car is an unbelievable opportunity for any race car driver," said Wallace. "With all that Richard Petty has contributed to the sport, I'm honored to start my first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series event with this team. I'm incredibly grateful that Ford, Richard Petty Motorsports, and Smithfield have the confidence in me to help fill the seat until Aric fully recovers, which is the most important piece of this.

"Moving up to the Monster Energy Series is a tremendous challenge, but I am ready to represent this organization, help the 43 team get the best results possible and prove that I belong at this level."

Despite not getting a break at NASCAR's top level until this weekend, Wallace has already had success in the sport's two lower tier divisions. In two full-time seasons driving for Kyle Busch Motorsports in the Camping World Truck Series, he totaled 5 wins, 14 top fives, 26 top tens, and three pole awards. Wallace moved up to the Xfinity Series in 2015 and since then he has six top fives, 34 top tens, and two more poles to his resume. Wallace is also a graduate of the inaugural NASCAR Next program.

Six of those Xfinity Series top tens have come in the first 11 races of this season.

"We're excited to have Bubba in the #43 car and to give him his first Monster Energy Series start," said Brian Moffitt, CEO Richard Petty Motorsports. "He has shown success in NASCAR's national series and we look forward to him continuing to display his abilities in our car. We're fortunate to have someone with Bubba's potential in the Ford Performance family who can step in for us until Aric is healed."

Ford Performance seemed to be a key player in making this move happen. RPM has had a technical partnership with the Roush Fenway team since 2010 and the sport has seen an influx of young drivers over the last several years.

Erik Jones and Daniel Suarez have made it through the Toyota pipeline, while Matt Tifft and Christopher Bell are doing well for the manufacturer in the Xfinity Series and Truck Series respectively. Chevrolet stablemates Richard Childress Racing and  Hendrick Motorsports have young guns Austin Dillon and Chase Elliott driving for their respective MENCS teams, while RCR has Daniel Hemric and Brandon Jones and HMS has  Alex Bowman and William Byron driving in Xfinity and waiting to be called up. But save for Ryan Blaney, the Ford camp has not had many stand-out drivers aside from Wallace and his RFR teammate Ryan Reed.

"We are excited for Bubba to get this opportunity to drive the iconic No. 43 Fusion for Richard Petty Motorsports," said Dave Pericak, global director, Ford Performance. "We couldn't be happier with the progress of Aric Almirola's recovery and can't wait to get him back. In the meantime, this is a great opportunity for Bubba to show what he can do at the top level of the sport, and we are committed to helping RPM win races. We are proud of the collaboration between RPM, Roush Fenway, and Ford to make this driver transition happen, and it's a great example of the One Ford mentality we have in order to make the overall Ford NASCAR program better."

Roush has scaled back this season from three full-time Cup Series cars to two with Ricky Stenhouse Jr and Trevor Bayne and RPM shuttered it's No. 44 team following Brian Scott's retirement at the end of the 2016 campaign. So that doesn't leave a whole lot of room at the inn for Wallace and Reed, especially since securing the necessary funding to start a new full-time team has proven difficult for both organizations.

So while the circumstances are less than ideal given that Almirola is nursing a broken back, this is an excellent opportunity for Wallace to prove what he can do in NASCAR's version of the big leagues.

Martin Truex Jr Hits the Jackpot, Sweeps Las Vegas Before Fight Breaks Out

Martin Truex Jr celebrates in victory lane at Las Vegas Motor Speedway
(Google Images)

Martin Truex Jr won four races last year. He also came close to winning a lot more races in 2016 too. The No. 78 Furniture Row Racing team lost races because of ill-timed caution flags, late-race accidents, and a bolt on a wheel spacer balancing perfectly on a hub to create a vibration late in the spring Kansas race. They just couldn't seem to shake the little black rain cloud that seemed to make the trip with them every week from Denver, Colorado.

After topping two practice sessions and qualifying in second place, it seemed that Truex's No. 78 Camry would be one of the cars to beat again heading into the Kobalt 400. But polesitter Brad Keselowski jumped out to an early lead and dominated the first 80 laps of the race. By lap 53, the Penske Racing driver had over a two second lead over Truex.

Keselowski's Ford might've been the class of the field early on, but Kevin Harvick's bad luck from Atlanta seemed to follow him to Sin City. The 2014 champion blew a tire and hit the wall at the start/finish line. After being released from the infield care center, Harvick, who had last weekend;s race at Atlanta in hand until a late-race speeding penalty cost him the victory, told reporters that the car "started vibrating about four or five laps before it blew out, and I was just trying to ride it to the end of the stage... the worst part was the medical response; it took forever for them to get to the car. I thought we made that better, but obviously, we haven't... it either just cut a tire, or came apart and melted the bead."

Truex came in for four tires during the caution for the Harvick incident, which enabled him to get out to a two-second lead and win Stage One. Kyle Larson, Jamie McMurray, Keselowski, and Chase Elliott rounded out the top five at the end of the stage.

Following Derrike Cope's slip up in turn three on lap 152, Truex and the rest of the frontrunners made their way to pit road before the end of the second segment. The New Jersey native beat Keselowski off pit road again, using this momentum to go on to win the second stage. Keselowski and Larson would wind up looking at Truex's rear bumper again coming to the green checkered flag.

Martin Truex Jr. celebrates his first win of 2017
(Google Images)

For Truex, his team, and anyone who is a fan of Furniture Row Racing, they knew this is where something usually happens to derail their dominance. A loose lug nut, a slow pit stop, losing their clutch like the week in Atlanta. They had already captured 20 championship points and two playoff points for their pair of stage victories, so another shoe had to drop at some point.

Well, that shoe dropped late in the final stage. As Truex was being stalked by Keselowski's No. 2 Ford, he needed to make a track bar adjustment to improve his car's handling. But when he reached for the dial to make the change, nothing happened. Something had happened to disconnect the track bar from the mechanism that allows Truex to adjust it from the cockpit.

As Keselowski passed Truex with 24 laps to go, he began to stretch his lead. All Truex said over the radio was "Oh track bar, where art thou?!"

Then Danica Patrick, who had been nursing a sick Ford around the racetrack for much of the second half of the day,  lost an engine with 17 laps to go. This totally changed the complexion of the race and indicated that the little black rain cloud that normally follows the No. 78 team from track to track might not have made the trip to Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

On the final restart, Keselowski passed Truex again on the high side off of turn two. Then, as quickly as he had taken the lead, "Bad Brad's" Miller Lite Ford was slowly being reeled back in by Truex's Bass Pro Shops Camry.

Something had broken on Keselowski's that caused him to lose his brakes, which enabled Truex to pass him back off of turn two with just two laps to go.

In the end, the black cloud had dissipated, the bad luck took the weekend off, and Martin Truex Jr scored his first win of the 2017 season. This was also the first win for the new 2018 Toyota Camry and the first time a driver had swept all three stages of a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Race. This netted Truex 60 championship points and seven playoff points.

"We definitely had our share of races where we've dominated and gave one away, and it looked like today was going to be another one of those," Truex said after the race. "We had to run that last set of tires on that last caution longer than we did all race long. I was out of control, and Brad was really good on the long run. I hate that he had problems. He was strong and we weren't going to do anything with him, but then he lost the brakes or something. A little bit of a gift, but we've given some away, so it feels good to come out on the good end for once."

Kyle Busch (center with back to camera) takes a swing at
Joey Logano (center in black hat) (Google Images)

But unfortunately, it was the extracurricular activities on pit road that stole the show after Truex took the checkered flag.

On the final lap, Joey Logano pinned Kyle Busch behind Keselowski's slower car going into turn three while racing for fourth. Busch dove under Keselowski, bumped Logano down the track and drove off into the final set of turns. But that bumped messed up Logano's entry into turn three, which caused him to get loose under Busch and slide up into him, sending the No. 18 car sliding down the track to the entrance of pit road.

Busch climbed from his smoking cockpit, tossed his helmet onto his seat and set off briskly down pit road to find Logano's fourth-place machine. Flanked by Joe Gibbs Racing handlers, Busch approached Logano and took a swing at the Penske Racing driver.

While it was a good swing, Busch's punch didn't make contact. To make matters worse, he was promptly tackled to the ground by several members of Logano's pit crew. He was dragged away from the scuffle with a bloody cut on his forehead.

You can click here to watch a full video of the fight. The footage was captured by Jeff Gluck of JeffGluck.com.

When asked about the altercation after the fact, Logano said that Busch didn't have much to say on the incident.

“Not a lot of talking,” Logano said. “Just a lot of swinging. We usually don’t have any issues.”

When asked if any punches were landed, Logano smirked and simply replied, “none to me.”

Fox Sports pit reporter Vince Welch caught up with Busch walking through the garage area. He told Welch that that's simply the way Logano races and that "he's gonna get it."

After announcing that they would receive a second date in the playoffs next year, a move that was lambasted by many fans because another "cookie cutter" mile-and-a-half track took a date from a short, one-mile track (New Hampshire Motor Speedway), Sunday's Kobalt 400 might have proved that Las Vegas Motor Speedway might be worthy of a second race after all. With the excitement that fans saw on and off the track, this should fire every race fan up for what the rest of 2017 has in store.

Kurt Busch Beats Young Guns to Win First Daytona 500

Kurt Busch won the Daytona 500 in his 17th try (Google Images)

It was a long offseason for Stewart-Haas Racing.

This time last year, the team announced that they would be leaving Chevrolet and their coveted alliance with Hendrick Motorsports to run Fords during the 2017 campaign, new hire Clint Bowyer began his transition into team co-owner Tony Stewart's old ride, and the sponsor of the majority of Danica Patrick's races, Nature's Bakery, announced last month they would be leaving the team, resulting in SHR filing a breach of contract suit and a counterclaim by Nature's Bakery.

So what better way to overcome all this change and adversity than to go out and win the biggest race of the year, right? Well, that's exactly what Kurt Busch and his No. 41 Ford team did.

This race also featured the return of Dale Earnhardt Jr. NASCAR's most popular driver spent the last 18 races of the 2016 season on the sidelines after suffering a concussion. Junior just missed out on the pole for the 59th running of the "Great American Race" and was forced to start second to his Hendrick Motorsports teammate, sophomore driver Chase Elliott. This was Elliott's second consecutive Daytona 500 pole.

Elliott and Earnhardt led the field to green and led NASCAR into a new era. For the first time ever, NASCAR would run their races in stages, rather than non-stop green flag to checkered. Races would instead be broken up into three stages, with Daytona being broken into 60, 60, and 120 lap stints to make up the 200 lap total distance. Stage winners would receive 10 regular season points and one playoff point to count towards their championship run.

Dale Jr (88) and Kyle Busch (18) wreck at Daytona
(Google Images)

The race ran caution free until pit stops began around lap 17 when the Joe Gibbs Racing and Furniture Row Racing Toyotas came in for service. Rookie Erik Jones overshot his pit box, while fellow freshman Daniel Suarez was hit with a pass through penalty for speeding. But both of their issues paled in comparison to Corie LaJoie's problems. While attempting to slow down to enter pit road, LaJoie locked up his brakes, slid past the entrance to pit road, and hit the outside wall.

Aside from these minor incidents, the race got off to a relatively calm start. But it wouldn't stay that way for long.

Restrictor plate tracks are known for close quarters racing and spectacular multi-car wrecks. It's never a matter of if "the Big One" will happen, but when it will happen and how many cars will get swept up in it. So the question on everyone's mind was could their favorite driver avoid trouble as the afternoon wore on.

At the close of the first stage, Kyle Busch was the leader and collected 10 championship points and a playoff point for the win.

When the race went back to green, SHR teammates Kevin Harvick and Danica Patrick on the front row. The team was beginning their switch to Ford look seamless.

Then the first of several big wrecks happened on lap 105. Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth, and Jones were drafting together after making pit stops and trying to stay on the lead lap. Busch was leading the Toyota trio into turn three, just ahead of the leaders when he blew a tire. Busch's No. 18 M&M's Camry spun into the wall and collected Jones, Kenseth, and the race-leading car of Earnhardt Jr. 

After suffering a serious concussion last year, NASCAR Nation collectively held their breath when Junior's No. 88 Chevy rode over Busch's right front fender and into the outside wall. But he told reporters that his head felt fine and he was ready to head to Atlanta for the next race.

The 2017 edition of stock car racing's biggest event began calmly, but the Daytona garage area would quickly turn into a junkyard in the third segment, as Junior's wreck would be the first of many on the day.

Jamie McMurray pushed Jimmie Johnson into turn 3 on lap 127, triggering a 14-car pileup that collected Patrick, Bowyer, and Harvick. Following an incident involving Roush-Fenway Racing teammates Ricky Stenhouse Jr and Trevor  Bayne, McMurray would trigger another wreck with 59 laps remaining in the race that collected Ryan Newman, rookie drivers Suarez and Ty Dillon, and Brad Keselowski.

Kurt Busch celebrates his first Daytona win with his crew
(Google Images)

The race would resume with 47 laps and only a handful of cars remaining. Aric Almirola grabbed the lead from Cole Whitt after the green flag, but Kyle Larson would wrestle the top spot away just a few laps later. The youth movement at the front of the field continued when Joey Logano grabbed the lead from Larson with 37 to go, followed by Elliott charging to toe front just ten laps later. 

But with seven laps to go, Elliott ran out of fuel handing the lead to last year's runner-up Martin Truex Jr. The New Jersey native looked primed to grab his first Harley J. Earle trophy after losing last year's race by two-thousandths of a second. But Truex, too, would run out of gas after taking the white flag. This handed the lead back to Larson, who's fuel cell ran dry down the backstrech on the final lap. This enabled Busch to grab the lead and win his first Daytona 500.

After finishing second in the Great American Race three times, Busch was finally able to pull into victory lane. The win was also huge for his crew chief Tony Gibson, who grew up just hours from the speedway and had never won the Daytona 500 as a crew chief. It was also huge for all of SHR. After switching to Ford, many wrote the team off, saying it would take a while for the team to regain the strong footing they had while running Hendrick-powered Chevrolets. 

But clearly, Busch and SHR have proven that they will be a force this season. SHR might've missed out on the final four in last year's playoffs, but with Busch's Daytona triumph locking him into this year's title hunt, the sky is the limit for Stewart Haas Racing.

Breaking: Carl Edwards to Retire Immediately, Per Report

Carl Edwards may have done his final backflip in NASCAR (Google Images)

FoxSports.com broke the story late Tuesday morning, January 10, that Carl Edwards would be leaving Joe Gibbs Racing. The move is effective immediately and would end a successful 13-year career if "Cousin Carl" is indeed retiring for good.

The news came as a shock to NASCAR fans. Edwards is only 37 years old, he's won 28 times in 445 starts in what is now the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, and he came within just a few laps of winning the season finale at Homestead last year and securing his first cup title.

JGR announced that they will hold two press conferences tomorrow morning, January 11, starting at 10:00 am ET. During that time, they are expected to announce Edwards' departure, as well as name 2016 Xfinity Series champion Daniel Suarez as his successor.

Edwards is one of the most outgoing, fan-friendly, energetic drivers in the garage and his victory backflips after each of his win have made him a perennial favorite among fans. He is also one of the most private about his personal life. He lives with his wife and two children in his native Missouri rather than in the Charlotte/Mooresville area with the majority of the drivers, and he is the only active driver without a Twitter handle.

Edwards rose to prominence in NASCAR's premier series when he replaced Jeff Burton in Roush Fenway Racing's No. 99 Ford. He drove for Roush through the 2015 season, moving to JGR the following year.

This past season, Edwards won three races, his most recent being a rain shortened event at Texas Motor Speedway that ended under the lights and solidified him as a championship contender.