Weekend Wrap-up: Martinsville

Truex Jr Scores First Martinsville Win, Advances to Championship Four

The 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series playoffs got off to a fast start for Martin Truex Jr. Winning the first two races in the Round of 16, the 2017 series champion has stayed consistent, quietly finishing inside the top ten in every playoff race but Talladega.

Truex Jr and girlfriend Sherry Pollex pose with their new
grandfather clock in victory lane (Google Images)

Sunday in Martinsville, however, Truex and his No. 19 team were anything but quiet, leading 464 of the 500 laps in the First Data 500. Not only was this victory redemption after getting mugged by Joey Logano in the final corner of this event one year ago, but it also locked the New Jersey driver into the championship four round a Homestead Miami Speedway in three weeks.

“I don’t think anyone expected that,” said Truex of his team's dominating performance. “This race track, in general, you don’t see that. Hats off to my guys. Pit crew was stellar today, and we didn’t make many adjustments. We adjusted on early and it came to life, and that was a lot of fun.

“I don’t know, maybe now I’ve got this place figured out. Who knows? But just really proud of everybody, and after last year, we talked earlier, everybody wants to keep talking about last year, and I’m like, ‘We’ve got work to do.’ I’m just proud of everybody for giving me a race car like that and being able to put it all together today when it counted.”

While Truex was busy putting on a clinic, his Joe Gibbs Racing teammates had trouble keeping their tempers in check. Kyle Buscch got into a shoving match with Aric Almirola that resulted in both drivers spinning and Almirola getting tagged in the driver's side door by Jimmie Johnson. Busch would rebound to finish 14th, Almirola vowed to make the last three races "hell" for the 2015 series champion.

Following the race, JGR's Denny Hamlin got into it with Joey Logano on pit road after the two made contact on the track. Hamlin slid into Logano's No. 22 with around 40 laps to go, causing the 2018 champ to spin and taking away any chance they had to win. After a heated discussion, Logano shoved Hamlin's shoulder and turned to walk away. After giving chase, Hamlin was restrained by several members of Logano's team, one of whom executed a horsecollar tackle, dropping Hamlin to the pavement. That crew member, Tire Technician Dave "Mule" Nichols, Jr. has been since been suspended for one week by the sanctioning body.

Tensions overflowing at @MartinsvilleSwy! @joeylogano and @dennyhamlin get into an altercation on pit road! #NASCARPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/bBIBuS0A7W

— NASCAR (@NASCAR) October 27, 2019

“We were having a discussion,” Hamlin said. “Everything was civil, and then, like Joey does, he does a little push and then runs away. So that’s Joey. Scared. He said, ‘Do you want to go?’ I said, ‘Yes, I’m here.’ But then he runs away.”

“I just wanted to see what his thoughts were, and it wasn’t quite the answer I was looking for,” said Logano.

Sophomore driver William Byron also had a strong showing, giving Truex fits in the final run to the checkered flag and coming home second.

“This isn’t a place that I’ve loved coming to, and it just clicked this weekend, the things we did with the car going into qualifying and then obviously our race. Super excited, but second is not super fun, either. We’ll try to get one spot better next time,” said Byron.

Brad Keselowski, who won the spring Martinsville event, came home in third, Hamlin finished in fourth, and Ryan Blaney rounded out the top five. Kurt Busch finished sixth, Kevin Harvick came home seventh, Logano finished in eighth, Kyle Larson crossed the line ninth, and Ryan Newman was tenth.

The NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series heads west to Texas Motor Speedway this weekend for the AAA Texas 500. The race is set to go green at 3:00 pm ET on Sunday, November 3, with NBC, PRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio covering all the action.

Todd Gilliland Edges Chastain for First Truck Series Win

After 46 races for Kyle Busch Motorsports, ever-growing expectations, and being called out in the media by his team owner, Todd Gilliland scored his first Gander Outdoor Truck Series victory in the NASCAR Hall of Fame 200 at Martinsville Speedway.

Gilliland scored his first truck series win in 46 starts
(Google Images)

Both Gilliland and teammate Harrison Burton have faced intense pressure this season for missing the playoff field and not winning in KBM equipment that Kyle Busch took to victory lane five times this year and that veteran Greg Biffle won in after an almost 20 year absence from the truck series.

After the 11th caution, Gilliland drove underneath title contender Ross Chastain, with Gilliland’s No. 4 Toyota clearing Chastain’s No. 45 Chevrolet for the top spot. Gilliland led the final 11 laps, surviving the race's final caution and an overtime that took the race one circuit past its scheduled distance of 200 laps.

“I wish we had won two years ago, just like everyone else thought we would,” Gilliland said. “I thought we would, too. We went through some growing pains. Marcus Richmond was my crew chief, and we got rid of him, and then he came back and was helping us again. He’s really great here at Martinsville.

“I’m just so proud of these guys. Man, this is a long time coming. Hopefully, this will get some momentum rolling and open up some doors for next year.”

Gilliland, who revealed he doesn't have any plans in place for 2020 admittedly let his emotions get the better of him following the checkered flag when he keyed his radio, thanked his crew, and told Busch he "could stay in his f**king motorhome."

In spite of coming up one lap short of the victory, Chastain led 68 laps and came home second, gaining some serious points in a race that was hard on most of the other playoff drivers like Tyler Ankrum, Austin Hill, and Stage One winner Brett Moffitt.

Johnny Sauter came home third, Grant Enfinger came home fourth, and Timmy Hill rounded out the top five. Stewart Friesen recovered from a lap 150 spin to finish in sixth, John Hunter Nemechek came home seventh, Whelen Modified winner and native of Freehold, N.J. Danny Bohn finished eighth in his truck series debut, Jeb Burton finished ninth, and Codie Rohrbaugh rounded out the top ten finishers.

The Gander Outdoors Truck Series will take this weekend off, returning to action on Friday, November 8 at ISM Raceway in Phoenix for the Lucas Oil 150. The race will go green at 8:30 pm ET with FS1, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio covering the event.

Bell, Buescher on the Move in 2020

As the playoffs continue and the 2019 season winds to a close, silly season is beginning to move fast and furious as teams prepare - and improve - for 2020.

Christopher Bell will be promoted to the No. 95 car
next season (Google Images)

In a move that surprised literally no one, news broke earlier this week that Christopher Bell would be replacing Matt DiBenedetto in the Leavine Family Racing No. 95 Toyota. JGR and Toyota needed a landing spot for Bell, lest they risk losing him to another team with a Monster Energy Cup Series ride open (all four of the current Gibbs cup drivers are filled through next year). As a Gibbs satellite team, LFR was the only logical landing spot for the Xfinity Series title contender.

Yes, fans were more than a bit distraught to see DiBenedetto lose his ride in the No. 95, but he has since landed in the Wood Brothers No. 21 Ford to replace a retiring Paul Menard.

Rheem, Bell's current Xfinity Series sponsor, will be moving up with him next year. They will join current LFR backer Procore as a primary sponsor on the car in 2020. Likewise, crew chief Jason Ratcliff will join the 24-year-old Norman Okla. native at NASCAR's top level year, along with the rest of his Xfinity crew. Current crew chief Mike Wheeler will move to LFR competition director.

“Since I was young, I wanted to make a career out of racing,” said Bell. “To take this next step and race in the NASCAR Cup Series with the support of LFR, JGR and Toyota is just a dream come true... Having been under the JGR banner these past seasons in the Xfinity Series and with TRD for as long as I can remember, having their continued support as I transition to LFR is extremely comforting and will be a tremendous benefit to me. I can’t wait to close out this season in the Xfinity Series with a strong run, and I’m looking forward to the challenge that awaits in 2020.”

While Bell's talent is expected to significantly elevate the performance of LFR's Toyota, the move also comes with a substantial increase in technical, engineering, and financial support from the JGR mother ship.

“I’ve said from the start, I want this team to be competitive,” said team owner Bob Leavine. “Christopher is one of the most talented drivers we’ve seen come up through NASCAR’s ranks and together, with JGR and Toyota’s support, I’m confident our team will continue to grow, just as it has this past year. We’re certainly happy to continue to progress our relationship with both JGR and TRD as the technical partnership takes the next step forward.”

Stenhouse Jr (L) will be replaced in Jack Roush's No. 17 by
Chris Buescher (R) in 2020 (Google Images)

Now that this news had officially been announced, many felt that this would set other dominoes in motion. Perhaps RCR would tell us that Tyler Reddick is replacing recently ousted Daniel Hemric, or SHR would say where Cole Custer will be driving next year. But then Roush Fenway Racing came out of left field with a story that no one in the industry saw coming.

Late last week, RFR announced that they will be replacing Ricky Stenhouse Jr in the team's No. 17 Ford with 2015 Xfinity Series champion Chris Buescher. Similar to the DiBenedetto to Wood Brothers Racing story from a few weeks ago, this was a very well-kept secret. It even caught the ownership at JTG Daugherty Racing off guard.

“We were in the final strokes of the contract when learning that Chris has gone in a different direction,” said Geschickter said in a statement. “We appreciate all of the efforts from Chris through the past three seasons at JTG Daugherty Racing. When the dust settles, we will begin the process of searching for our next driver to fill the No. 37 seat for the 2020 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season.”

While Stenhouse Jr won two Xfinity Series titles for RFR, he has long had a reputation as a hard-charging driver. That has won him quite a few races in NASCAR's top two series, but more often than not, it's also gotten him in trouble. Before his days as a championship contender at the Xfinity level, Stenhouse was parked by Roush for tearing up too many race cars, a move many felt settled him down and contributed to his back-to-back titles in 2011 and 2012. Signed through 2021, the dirt racer from Olive Branch, Miss. has had some rough luck this year, including spinning leader Martin Truex Jr at Richmond last weekend (a mistake that cost Stenhouse a potential top ten finish). Team principal Jack Roush had a small window to sign Buescher, who was on loan to JTG, and told the media that his reputation for being easier on equipment factored into his decision.

Stenhouse Jr (C) won two Nationwide (now Xfinity) Series
titles for Roush Fenway Racing (Google Images)

“We had so much trouble getting speed out of our cars,” Roush said. “With Ryan (Newman) and with Matt Kenseth’s help last summer we identified some things we should be working on which had not been on our radar and worked on those things. When we put Ryan in the car, he fell right in line with what Kenseth had thought were the priorities and we see Chris falling in the same line.

"I look forward to having cars that are more similar for both drivers that we can develop from race to race by not having so many wrecks. Ryan’s done really well about keeping his car together and Chris has a history of doing the same thing."

Stenhouse Jr said that, while he was blindsided by RFR to release him, he also understands that his cup series results haven't been what anyone expected and that he's looking forward to his final few races in the No. 17 car, as well as seeing what his options are for next season.

“It was fun, a little emotional with the relationship Jack and I have," said Stenhouse. "It’s the only team I’ve ever been at, so I’m looking forward to see what’s next. Like I said, there’s a lot of work to do on that, but, all in all, I’m definitely looking forward to these last eight with the great partners that we have, everybody on the 17 team. I’ve worked with a lot of them since my Nationwide days, so it will be tough, but it will be a fun eight races with them.”

“I still feel like I’ve got unfinished business in this series,” he added.

Weekend Wrap-up: Darlington

Jones Wins Southern 500, 100th Cup Start

After a nearly four hour rain delay and a race that ran into the early hours of Monday morning, Erik Jones was able to silence his critics and lock himself into the 2019 playoffs with a victory at NASCAR's oldest and most challenging superspeedway. While his Joe Gibbs Racing teammates have won a dozen races total this year, the Byron, Michigan native has been rumored to be the odd man out and headed to JGR satellite  Levine Family Racing, as Xfinity Series phenom Christopher Bell waits in the wings.

Erik Jones celebrates his second career win (Google Images)

It also didn't help that in 99 Monster Energy Cup Series starts, Jones' only win came at last year's Coke Zero 400 at Daytona; a difficult track to be sure, but one where a car's placement in the draft and a lot of luck can sometimes overrule the driver's ability. But the Bojangles' Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway, NASCAR's Official Throwback Weekend, has been a driver's track since it opened in 1950. It is, after all, "the track too tough to tame."

This was very much a statement win for the third-year cup series driver, who raced a paint scheme throwing back to a livery he ran on a late model early in his career. Kurt and Kyle Busch won the race's first and second stage respectively and led almost two thirds of the race between them. But, after leading twice for 79 laps, Jones grabbed the top spot for the final time on lap 283 and was able to hold off Kyle Busch and Kyle Larson for his second career victory.

“It was a lot of pressure,” said Jones, who claimed his first victory of the season and the second of his career. “Kyle (Busch) is a great race car driver. I’ve raced him a lot, and obviously you want to beat him to win, right? I was just locked in, man. I stayed focused. I really thought it was our night when we got out front."

As with many races this year, the Southern 500 highlighted the strengths of the new 2019 cup series' aero package. There was three wide racing all over the track, 13 lead changes among eight different drivers. This was anybody's race and it was well worth trying to stay up to see who took the checkers and it was clear to see why this event became the third grandstand sellout this season.

The playoff picture was also impacted, as Daniel Suarez and Ryan Newman will go into next week's regular season finale at Indianapolis tied for the final playoff spot. Clint Bowyer was also able to slide up to 15th in the standings, while 7-time champion Jimmie Johnson saw a potential top-five run evaporate when he was collected in a six car pileup with 91 laps to go. However, Johnson still remains in the playoff fight, just 18 markers outside of 16th place.

Jones, Larson, and Kyle Busch were the race's top three finishers, with Kevin Harvick and Brad Keselowski rounding out the top five. Bowyer came home sixth, Kurt Busch was seventh, Matt DiBenedetto had another strong showing in eighth, Paul Menard was ninth, and Austin Dillon was tenth.

The Monster Energy Cup Series heads to the Brickyard this weekend for the final race of the regular season. Kyle Busch has already clinched the regular season title with his third place run in Darlington, but the final playoff spot is still up for grabs. Tune in this Sunday at 2:00 pm ET on NBCSN, ISM Radio Network, or SiriusXM NASCAR Radio to see who makes the cut to run for the championship.

Custer Declared Darlington Winner After Hamlin DQ

After going to a backup car and starting the Sports Clips Haircuts VFW 200 at the rear of the field, it looked as if Denny Hamlin was in line to collect his sixth victory in the event. That is, until the Virginia native was disqualified for not meeting minimum height requirements in post race inspection, which handed runner-up Cole Custer his sixth win of the season.

Custer and his team celebrate at Darlington (Google Images)

“It’s a really strange feeling, honestly—obviously,” Custer said after being declared the winner without having led a single lap. “You don’t want that way, but it is what it is. We all play by the same rules. Was that the deciding factor? No.

“But it is what it is. We get the points. We get the money. We get the trophy. I guess it’s a way to win.”

In addition to Hamlin, who led 27 circuits, the only other drivers to spend time out front on the day were Ryan Blaney and series title contender Tyler Reddick, who led 50 and 70 laps respectively.

“We did not have the best car by any means, but luckily, the techniques I’ve learned over so many years kind of (helped) us there,” Hamlin said before learning of the disqualification. “They guys did a great job getting this car ready.”

The event was also highlighted by the return of Dale Earnhardt Jr. The two-time Xfinity Series champion-turned-broadcaster planned on running this race for months in a paint scheme that was a tribute to the blue and yellow No. 8 Dodge Charger that his legendary father ran in his first cup series race at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 1975. But after he and his family were involved in a terrifying plane crash just two weeks ago, those plans were in jeopardy.

Thankfully, aside from a bruised back, Earnhardt Jr was not injured in the accident and was able to run the race. What's more, despite not turning a competitive lap in a race car since Richmond last fall, the two-time Daytona 500 winner ran inside the top ten all day long and was credited with a top five finish at the end of the day.

“I love this place,” said Earnhardt. “We love Darlington… You never know how good you are till you come back and try it.

“All these guys are elite. All these guys do this every single week, and they’re very, very talented. To think you can take a year off and come back and be good… you just never know. But we did all right!”

With Hamlin's disqualification, Reddick, Blaney, and Christopher Bell all moved up one position, with Earnhardt Jr moving up to fifth. Chase Briscoe was bumped up to sixth, Brandon Jones came home seventh, Noah Gragson finished eighth, Justin Allgaier was ninth, and Austin Cindric rounded out the top ten.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series will join the Monster Energy Cup Series at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend, with coverage beginning tomorrow, September 7, at 3:00 pm ET. The Indiana 250 can be seen on NBCSN and heard on the ISM Radio Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

NASCAR Rumor Mill Picking Up Speed

The annual tradition of "silly season" seemed to take a while to get going this year. But, when news broke this week that Matt DiBenedetto would not be returning to the No. 95 Levine Family Racing Toyota next season, the rumor mill began to pick up speed and speculation has begun to surface about which drivers may and may not have a seat when the music stops.

Matt DiBenedetto will not return to the No. 95 in 2020
(Google Images)

A perennial fan favorite, DiBenedetto has gained quite a fan following through his social media interaction on Twitter and Reddit and is one of NASCAR's biggest underdog stories. After years of driving for back-marker teams like BK Racing and Go FAS Racing, DiBenedetto bet on himself going into this year and landed at Levine Family Racing. His timing seemed perfect, as LFR was had just completed a deal to move from Chevrolet to Toyota and become a Joe Gibbs Racing satellite team following the closure of Furniture Row Racing.

In 23 starts so far this year, the No. 95 team has caught fire as of late. DiBenedetto has two top-fives, four top-tens, and led the most laps in the season-opening Daytona 500 before being involved in a wreck. But, despite helping to engineer the most successful run LFR has ever had, Xfinity Series title contender Christopher Bell has been waiting in the wings at JGR for a cup ride to open up with the organization.

When LFR owner Bob Levine signed his agreement to become a JGR affiliate, the uptick in performance came with the loss of some of the autonomy other owners enjoy. So, because both JGR and Toyota see Bell as the next big thing (he's been earmarked for cup since the beginning of last year), Levine must do what is best for his team and let DiBenedetto go when his contract expires at year's end. Bell has not been officially announced as the driver of the No. 95 yet, but it's pretty much assumed that the dirt track ace is the heir apparent to that ride. It is also assumed that, once Bell takes over, JGR and TRD will throw a lot more money and resources at LFR then they've had this season running chassis that are around a year old.

But, in spite of this "devastating news", DiBenedetto helped his cause immeasurably two weekends at Bristol when he came within eight laps of winning the race. Bell might be getting his current ride and Erik Jones is more than likely going to return to the No. 20 at JGR, but Matty D made the case that he belongs in the sport at some level.

Is Cole Custer cup-bound next season? (Google Images)

There are rumors that he might be a good fit for the Front Row Motorsports No. 38 Mustang now that David Ragan has announced he will retire from full-time competition after this season to spend more time with his wife and young daughters. While this would be a bit of a downgrade from a pseudo JGR machine, it is an open seat that would keep DiBenedetto in the Cup Series garage and it would still be a more competitive ride than the BK Racing cars he drove just a few years ago.

The other heir to the No. 38 who has been mentioned is Cole Custer. Winner of five Xfinity Series races this year, and a favorite for the 2019 title, Custer has proven to be a top talent for Stewart Haas Racing and Ford Motor Company. But, much like JGR, there aren't any open rooms at the SHR inn. There has been talk that Clint Bowyer might be in danger of losing his ride in the No. 14 if they can't make the playoffs, but recent talk has the Kansas native potentially returning to the team at a reduced salary, which would prove problematic for cup-bound Custer.

Enter Front Row Motorsports, who have had a partnership with Roush Fenway Racing; affording them access to parts and pieces that have allowed them to slowly but surely improve their performance in recent years. If they do, indeed, wind up being the landing spot for Custer, it could be a boon for the entire organization, allowing FRM to possibly get even more resources from Ford since they will be fostering one of the manufacture's rising stars.

Another scenario that has popped up in recent days has Custer going to the Go FAS Racing No. 32 Ford with technical support and a fleet of cars from SHR. As teams begin to transition to the still somewhat mysterious "Gen-7" race car for 2021, their current fleets will soon be outdated. This move would allow SHR to unload some of it's obsolete inventory to Go FAS (for a price, no doubt) and allow them to make room for new Mustangs. This would also allow Go FAS to seriously upgrade their on-track performance.

But, if Custer moves to the No. 32 and a new alliance with Stewart Haas is forged, where does that leave Corey LaJoie? The current pilot of the Keen Parts Mustang, LaJoie has one top ten finish (a sixth at Daytona this past July), an average finish of 25.4 and three DNFs in the first 24 races of 2019. However, LaJoie has proven himself as a competitive driver, winning multiple races in both the K&N East Series and ARCA Series.

Tyler Reddick ran the 2019 Daytona 500 and could
run the full 2020 cup slate for RCR (Google Images)

Richard Childress Racing has also been in the rumor mill in recent weeks, with defending Xfinity champion and 2019 title contender Tyler Reddick. Winner of four Xfinity Series events this season, and a threat to repeat as champion, Reddick jumped from JR Motorsports last season to RCR because JRM didn't have a direct line to the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series like Childress does. The issue is that RCR must come up with a season's worth of funding to run Reddick full-time next season at the sport's top level.

Other than that, if sponsorship doesn't materialize, rookie driver Daniel Hemric could be on the hot seat. While he has a contract through the end of 2020, Hemric has had a typical rookie season; not overly impressive, but with a few flashes of brilliance with one top-five, two top-tens, and an average finish of 21.8. Likewise, Hemric's teammate Austin Dillon has three top-tens and an average finish of 21.3. The difference is that Dillon has won twice at NASCAR's premier level, and he's Childress' grandson. Hemric has shown speed, but has yet to win in a truck, Xfinity, or cup car. So, while the rookie has an extension through next season, team officials have said that they will do whatever it takes to try and keep Reddick on their team. If a third car doesn't materialize, you'd have to believe that Hemric's job might be in jeopardy.

There are still a few months left until the end of this season and about half a calendar year until next year's Daytona 500, so there's plenty of time until the final few pieces of the 2020 NASCAR puzzle fall into place. But with the DiBenedetto news seemingly setting silly season in motion, it will be interesting to see how the sport's annual game of musical chairs comes to an end.

Dale Earnhardt Jr, Family OK Following Plane Crash

NASCAR champion and current NBC broadcaster Dale Earnhardt Jr and his family were hospitalized and later discharged are all OK following a terrifying plane crash at the Elizabethton Municipal Airport in Carter County, Tennessee.

Dale Earnhardt Jr, his wife Amy, and their daughter Isla
(Google Images)

Earnhardt Jr's Cessna Citation jet, which was registered to his JR Motorsports Xfinity Series team, rolled off of the end of the runway and caught fire at 3:40 p.m. ET, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). While photos and videos posted to social media showed flames and giant plumes of black smoke, as the plane lay smoldering on it's side near the edge of the highway.

The five passengers on board the plane were Earnhardt Jr, his wife Amy, their 15-month-old daughter Isla Rose, and two pilots. The family's dog Gus was also on the flight. Dale Jr's sister and business manager, Kelley Earnhardt Miller, tweeted that "everyone is safe and has been taken to the hospital for further evaluation."

Photos and videos posted to social media showed everyone on the flight making their way off the plane to safety as first responders arrived on the scene, as well as some scary images of the wreckage. Armature video also showed one person, believed to be Earnhardt Jr, collapse as they made their way from the crash site. It was later disclosed that the family and their pilots were hospitalized with minor cuts and abrasions, per the Carter County Sheriff's Office.

Earnhardt Jr was flying in to join his colleagues on the NBC Sports broadcast crew for the race weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway. That will not happen, however, as both parties agreed it was best for Earnhardt to take the weekend off to spend time with his family. He will be back in the broadcast booth at Darlington Raceway.

"We're incredibly grateful that Dale, his wife Amy, daughter Isla, and the two pilots are safe following today's accident," the network said in a statement to The Associated Press. "After being discharged from the hospital, we communicated with Dale and his team, and we're all in agreement that he should take this weekend off to be with his family."

Early this morning, Earnhardt Miller took to Twitter once more to thank those who offered their prayers and well-wishes in the aftermath of this terrifying accident:

Finally laying down for the night and want to say thank you to God, the angels among us, our pilots, first responders, medical staff, our NASCAR family and everyone that has reached out in whatever way to support us all. ❤️

— Kelley Earnhardt (@EarnhardtKelley) August 16, 2019

The FAA will investigate and two investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board will determine the probable cause of the accident.

Weekend Wrap-up: Michigan/Mid-Ohio

Harvick Goes Back-to-Back at Michigan

Coming off eight wins and a championship four appearance last season, the No. 4 team of Kevin Harvick got off to an unexpectedly slow start in 2019. The 2014 championship team didn't reach victory lane until the race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway four weeks ago, but since then, Harvick has rattled off two top tens at Pocono and Watkins Glen, as well as stretching his fuel this past weekend to win his second consecutive Consumers Energy 400 at Michigan International Speedway.

Kevin Harvick celebrates with son Keelan following his
second straight Michigan win (Google Images)

The driver known as "Happy" Harvick started on the front row, inside of Ford Performance teammate Brad Keselowski who was gunning to be the first Michigander to enter victory lane at MIS. But despite leading laps early, it was Martin Truex Jr. who would race from the rear of the field to the Stage One victory.

The race's first stint also saw Jimmie Johnson's promising day go south for the second week in a row. The seven-time champion brushed the outside wall off turn two on lap 15 and blew a tire as a result of the damage. Johnson would go on to finish 34th on the day, dropping from 16th to 18th in points, just 12 markers outside of playoff contention with three races remaining.

Truex established himself as a contender early on, while Keselowski would have to battle back from adversity. On lap 115, the No. 2 Mustang lost a right rear tire entering turn three. Normally a one-way ticket to the outside retaining wall, Keselowski kept his car clean, spun it to the infield grass, and was able to limp to pit road without any major damage.

In the backyards of Ford and Chevrolet, Toyota was flexing their muscles, as Kyle Busch edged out his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Truex for the victory in Stage Two. But, as the field came back to the green checkered flag, Aric Almirola slid up the racetrack into Richard Childress Racing teammates Daniel Hemric and Austin Dillon. The contact sent Dillon spinning through the infield grass, as Almirola and Hemric rode the outside wall across the start/finish line.

Stage Three went green and the field raced three, sometimes four wide for position. However, at the rear of the pack, Paul Menard made contact with Clint Bowyer, which sent the No. 14 into the wall. The rear of Bowyer's Mustang was demolished in the lap 138 incident, ending his day and severely damaging his playoff hopes. A driver thought by many to be in jeopardy of losing his ride next year, Bowyer sits 16th in points, with only a slim six point margin between he and teammate Daniel Suarez for the final playoff spot.

Keelan Harvick waves the checkers after his father's
second win of 2019 (Google Images)

As is typically the case at Michigan, the Menard/Bowyer crash set up a fuel mileage race. It looked as though Joey Logano would sweep Michigan in 2019, but both he and teammate Ryan Blaney needed to pit for fuel with just a handful of laps remaining. Kurt Busch, as well as a few other drivers also ran out of gas as the race wound down.

This opened the door for Harvick, who was hotly pursued once again by Hamlin. But, unlike their battle one month ago in Loudon, Hamlin could not get close enough to Harvick to do anything with him, enabling the No. 4 Mobil 1 team to cruise to their second victory of 2019. That also meant that, like this race one year ago, fans in the Irish Hills got to see Harvick's son Keelan ride shotgun out to the frontstrech to celebrate with his father.

“Takes a lot of people to make these cars go around, and winning races is what it's all about,” Harvick said. “Just can't do it without all you (fans). I mean, to come here to Michigan and win for Ford, and I know how much Mobil 1 likes to beat that Shell car [driven by Joey Logano], so that was cool.”

Kyle Larson and Truex finished behind the two leaders in third and fourth respectively, while Suarez finished a very impressive fifth. Kyle Busch finished sixth, Ryan Preece finished seventh, followed by the Hendrick Motorsports trio of William Byron, Chase Elliott, and Alex Bowman to round out the top ten.

With just three races left in the regular season, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series rolls into Bristol for the Bass Pro Shops/NRA Night Race on Saturday, August 17 at 7:30 p.m. ET. The race will be broadcast on NBCSN, PRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Cindric Doubles Down on Road Courses, Wins Mid-Ohio

One week after scoring his first Xfinity Series win at Watkins Glen International, Austin Cindric earned the pole for the B&L Transport 170 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and rode that momentum to his second consecutive win.

Austin Cindric score his second win in a row this weekend
(Google Images)

However, while Cindric was able to dominate this event at the track once owned by his grandfather, the race wasn't as easy for everyone else in the field. On lap 15, title contender Cole Custer spun after making contact with road course expert Jack Hawksworth, filling in as the driver of the No. 18 Toyota.  Meanwhile, Custer's teammate Chase Briscoe would go on to win the stage and collect another playoff point.

On a 33 restart following a spin by Brandon Brown, Chris Dyson rear-ended Custer as the field took the green flag. While Custer was able to continue, Dyson's chances at a good finish went up in a cloud of smoke.

After restarting on lap 37, Justin Allgaier spun in turn two. The incident also collected his JR Motorsports teammate Noah Gragson, as well as Aaron Quine. While both Allgaier and Gragson were able to finish the event, the same could not be said for Quine, who was forced to park his No. 74 Camaro behind the wall. This incident also handed the Stage Two victory to Hawksworth.

While it looked like Briscoe was in position for his second road course victory, Cindric tracked him down and passed him with 13 to go. Never looking back, the No. 22 PPG Ford easily rolled into the winner's circle for the second straight week.

“To get my first two wins within a week is incredible,” Cindric said. “To win on a road course like this obviously gives you a lot of confidence.”

Title favorite Christopher Bell finished an impressive second place, while road course ace A.J. Allmendinger came home third, Tyler Reddick got fourth, and Gragson battled back for fifth. Allgaier finished in sixth, Briscoe got seventh, Custer was eighth, Justin Hayley was ninth, and Brandon Jones rounded out the top ten.

The Xfinity Series will be the second feature of the NASCAR triple-header this weekend at Bristol. The Food City 300 will go green at 7:30 p.m. ET on Friday, August 16, and can be seen on NBCSN, as well as heard on PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Hill Scores Second Win of 2019, Truck Playoff Field Set

The Monster Energy Cup and Xfinity Series' may still be a few weeks away from setting their playoff fields, but the Gander Outdoors Truck Series will have eight drivers fighting for a championship when they roll into Bristol Motor Speedway tomorrow night.

Austin Hill parties with his team after their second
win of the year (Google Images)

Ross Chastain won the pole for the Corrigan Oil 200, his first in the truck series, and led every lap in Stage One. However, the Melon Man's luck would run out during their first pit stop. As Chastain left his pit stall, Johnny Sauter and Codie Rohrbaugh made contact which sent Rohrbaugh's No.9 into Chastain's door. The damage behind the right front tire was too much to continue, and the Alva, Florida native was relegated to a 30th place finish.

Aside from a few single truck spins and Brett Moffitt winning Stage Two, the race was fairly clean. That is, until the Big One broke loose late in the race on lap 98.

Matt Crafton got into the back of second place Tyler Ankrum on a restart, in an attempt to shove the No. 17 past leader Austin Hill. However, Crafton's Ford caught Ankrum's Toyota in a bad spot, sending the Kentucky winner sliding down into traffic. Nine trucks were involved in the wreck, including Sauter, Sheldon Creed, and Natalie Decker.

But once the race went back green, Hill was able to hold off a quickly closing Creed for his second win of the year. Tyler Dippel finished in third, Moffitt was fourth, and Austin Wayne Self was fifth. Bayley Currey came home sixth, Grant Enfinger was seventh, last week's winner Stewart Friesen was eighth, Ray Ciccarelli finished a very impressive ninth, and two-time series champion Crafton rounded out the top ten finishers.

Your 2019 truck series playoff contenders (L-R Ankrum,
Crafton, Hill, Enfinger, Moffitt, Friesen, Chastain, Sauter)
(Google Images)

So, as the tailgate brigade heads to Bristol, their playoff grid is set and eight drivers will begin racing for a championship. Enfinger won the Regular Season championship, as well as the 15 extra playoff points that go along with it. Here is how the standings shook out once the dust settled at Michigan International Speedway:

1. Brett Moffitt
2. Grant Enfinger -3
3. Stewart Friesen -8
4. Ross Chastain -10
5. Austin Hill -10
6. Matt Crafton -11
7. Johnny Sauter -13
8. Tyler Ankrum -17

The UNOH 200 will go green tomorrow night at 8:30 p.m. ET, and will be broadcast on FS1, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Weekend Wrap-up: Watkins Glen/Eldora

Chase Elliott salutes the fans after his second consecutive Watkins Glen win

Elliott Scores Back-to-Back Watkins Glen Wins

The NASCAR world was turned on its ear last season when, after three seasons of trying, fan favorite Chase Elliott finally scored the first win of his Monster Energy Cup Series career at Watkins Glen International. As the cup campaign returned to the Finger Lakes region of Upstate New York this past weekend, the 2014 Xfinity Series champion looked like the driver to beat once again by winning opening practice, as well as the pole.

Chase Elliott goes out to turn some practice laps at the Glen

When the race went green, Elliott's No. 9 NAPA Chevy jumped out to an early lead. The Dawsonville, Ga. native had the first stage locked up, but there was a strong contender in Martin Truex Jr. lurking just behind him.

Stage Two saw a bit more action, with Kyle Busch and William Byron trading shots under caution at stage end. Busch felt the sophomore driver raced him a bit too hard early in the event, which prompted him to send Byron for a trip through the inner loop. This didn't sit too well with Byron, so under caution he went to express his displeasure with the driver of the No. 18 Camry. However, a Busch brake-check resulted in Byron destroying the nose of his No. 24 Camaro.

This wouldn't be the last incident that the 2015 series champion experienced in this race, as he got into Bubba Wallace entering the Carousel, sending the No. 43 car into the guardrail. After Elliott collected the victory in the second stage, Bubba caught back up with Busch and the two banged doors down the length of the frontstrech. When they got to turn one, Wallace turned Busch into the runoff area on lap 63 as the crowd erupted in a chorus of cheers.

As the race wound down, Jimmie Johnson and Ryan Blaney also had a run-in that resulted in both drivers having a heated discussion on pit road after the race. Seven-time series champion Johnson felt that Blaney ran into the rear of his No. 48, sending him into the Armco Barrier in turn five. Despite being tied for the most championships in series history, Johnson hasn't visited victory lane in over two years, and Watkins Glen was the first race with new crew chief Cliff Daniels, his second crew chief of the season and just the third in his career. So, it's a bit understandable that the typically level-headed Johnson would have a shorter fuse than normal.

Meanwhile, at the front of the field, Truex attempted to run down Elliott for the win. The 2017 series champion got within a few car lengths of the leader, but he couldn't quite get past him. After the race, Truex told reporters that, while he could get a run on the No. 9 car, his car was stalled by a bubble of air between the two cars, preventing him from making a pass for the win.

Martin Truex Jr (19) got close to Chase Elliott (9), but
couldn't quite pass him for the victory

"I tried to do all I could. Chase did an excellent job just not making mistakes,'' Truex said. "He hit his marks. His car was really fast in the key areas that you need to be. I just couldn't get a run on him.

"Really, it was all about restarts and track position," he added. "If I could have just got by him on that last one, we could have set sail.''

So, for the second year in a row, Elliott was the victor at Watkins Glen, while the 2017 race winner was relegated to second place.

"I think it's huge,'' Elliott said of his fifth career win. "We've had fast cars at times, but one thing or another ended up for a bad weekend. The way we did it was the biggest thing. That's the kind of effort you have to put on often to compete with the guys in the field.''

Last week's winner Denny Hamlin came home in third place, while JGR teammate Erik Jones finished fourth and Blaney finished fifth. Matt DiBenedetto finished an impressive sixth place, Kevin Harvick finished seventh, Kyle Larson got eighth, Brad Keselowski finished ninth, and Kurt Busch came home in tenth.

Cindric Grabs First Xfinity Win

In a year that has been dominated by Christopher Bell, Cole Custer, and Tyler Reddick, Team Penske's Austin Cindric was able to flip the script at Watkins Glen and outduel A.J. Allmendinger for the win the Zippo 200 at Watkins Glen. The 20-year old also became the youngest driver to win on a NASCAR road course.

Austin Cindric celebrates his first Xfinity Series win
(Google Images)

Kyle Busch set sail from the pole, as he has done in many an Xfinity race over the past decade or so, but the race win was up for grabs sooner than anyone was expecting. As Busch raced through the "Bus Stop" early in the event, his car suddenly went straight through the Carousel as everyone else's turned right for the corner. It turned out that the No. 18 would suffer a broken right front suspension, ending their bid for the victory, As expected, the crowed erupted into celebration as the Las Vegas driver made the hard right turn into the garage area.

This was the time when road course aces like Allmendinger, who won the 2014 Cup Series race at the Glen, and Cindric, who's only Truck Series win came at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park, to show what they could do.

On lap 69, crew chief Brian Wilson brought Cindric down pit road for four tires, dropping the No. 22 to ninth place. But, a caution for a pileup in turn one on lap 76 left Cindric in sixth, and on the subsequent restart, a scuffle at the front of the field between Justin Allgaier and Bell allowed Cindric to slip into second place. Over the final five laps, Cindric methodically ran down Allmendinger, eventually giving him a bump into the first corner that allowed the MoneyLion Mustang to slip by and into the lead on the penultimate lap of the race. Allmendiger returned the favor later on that same circuit, but entered turn seven wide, allowing Cindric to slip by for good as they took the white flag.

“Congrats to Austin," said Allmendinger after the race. "He went in there and nudged me, and that was fair. I nudged him—you race how you get raced—but that’s what racing’s all about. He deserved it. He was on it the whole race."

"That was nuts," Cindric said of the lap 76 restart melee that enabled him to grab second. "I didn't know how that was going to work out, but sometimes the path clears and you've got to take advantage of it and we executed all day today."

After post race inspection, Allmendiger's No. 10 Chevy failed to meet rear height requirements, so he forfeited his runner-up finish and was relegated to last on the field. Second was instead awarded to Bell, followed by Allgaier, Ryan Blaney, Reddick in third, fourth, and fifth. Stewart-Haas Racing teammates Chase Briscoe and Custer finished sixth and seventh respectively, with Jr Motorsports trio Michael Annett, Noah Gragson, and Ryan Preece rounding out the top ten.

Dirt Track Ace Friesen Scores First Truck Win

After what seemed like an endless string of second place finishes; of coming close but  not getting close enough, Canadian driver Stewart Friesen was able to score his first victory in a race that  has become appointment television for NASCAR fans: the Eldora Dirt Derby.

Stewart Friesen celebrates his first Truck Series win after
six second place finishes (Google Images)

This event has become known for short tempers and close racing, and the 2019 edition was no exception. Friesen, who grew up racing dirt at his family's Ransomville Speeway in Upstate New York, has raced big block modifieds all across the Northeastern United States. So, naturally, many pointed to him as the driver to beat at the Rossburg, Ohio half-mile.

While it took a bit for him to take the top spot, Friesen was able to grab the lead on lap 95. Needing a victory to get off the bubble and lock himself into the playoffs, the driver of the No. 52 Halmar International Silverado needed to make something happen to beat fellow dirt racer and defending race winner Chase Briscoe, who had won the race's first two stages. So, at the end of Stage Two, Friesen overrode crew chief Trip Bruce and elected not to pit.

Even though they had track position, Friesen would have to survive a number of restarts, as well as a two-lap shootout for the checkered flag to score the victory. That final battle saw Briscoe restart right behind Friesen, in third place. But, despite a valiant effort by the Indiana native to score his second Eldora win in a row, Friesen was able to hold off the field and, after six career second place finishes, score his inaugural Gander Outdoors Truck Series victory.

“These guys have been down and out, down and out,” Friesen said of his team. “They keep busting their butts for me and working on stuff and fixing stuff by putting in so much long hours. I can’t thank everyone enough.”

Friesen led 57 laps on the night, with Sheldon Creed finishing right behind him. Grant Enfinger finished third, Mike Marlar came home fourth, and Todd Gilliland finished fifth. Christian Eckes ran sixth, Briscoe, who led the race's other 93 laps, dropped to seventh after the final restart, Tyler Dippel finished eighth, Tyler Ankrum came home ninth, and Matt Crafton finished in tenth.

Weekend Wrap-up: Hamlin Saves Enough Fuel, Scores Fifth Pocono Win

Hamlin Heads JGR 1-2-3 Finish at Pocono

After a less than competitive Pocono race last month, the track known as the "Tricky Triangle" became the first non-Speedway Motorsports, Inc. facility to coat its corners with the sticky substance known as either VHT or PJ1. The extra adhesion did play a bit of a factor, but fuel mileage and pit strategy also helped Denny Hamlin score his third win of the year.

Denny Hamlin celebrates his fifth Pocono win
(Google Images)

Last week's winner Kevin Harvick grabbed the pole for the Gander RV 400, but it was Kyle Busch who would go onto win a fairly uneventful Stage One. This first stint also saw fans render a lap 11 salute to Nick Harrison, the crew chief of Kaulig Racing's No. 11 Xfinity Series entry who passed away in his sleep following last Saturday's Xfinity race in New Hampshire.

Chase Elliott's recent bad luck continued at the start of Stage Two, when the four-time cup series winner blew a right front tire in turn three on lap 85, destroying the right side of his NAPA Chevy and ending his day very early. Elliott's Hendrick Motorsports team would finish last on the day; an uncharacteristically bad run for a driver that many thought would contend for the title after a strong end to their 2018 season.

Following a brief caution for some light rain showers, Daniel Suarez and Ryan Blaney made contact off the Tunnel Turn that resulted in Blaney slowly backing his Mustang into the turn three wall and Suarez having to pit for a severe right rear tire rub.

The other side effect of this yellow flag was that, as most of the leaders pitted for fuel and tires, Jimmie Johnson stayed out on track to win his first stage of the year. Surprisingly, this is also just the seven-time champion's second stage victory since NASCAR began stage racing in 2017.

As Hamlin, Martin Truex Jr, and Erik Jones began to assert their dominance in Stage Three, Ryan Preece tried to test the rigidity of the turn one wall on lap 115. His No. 47 Camaro got loose on entry and slid into the wall, demolishing his Kroger machine and relegating the rookie to a 37th place finish.

The trio of Gibbs drivers would swap the lead back and forth as the final stage went on, all the while trying to draft off each other and save fuel. As Jones was leading late in the race, it looked as though Truex and Hamlin were content to follow and wait until the closing laps to make a move. That is, until Hamlin made a move around both his teammates to grab the lead for good on lap 144.

Kurt Busch (1) and Michael McDowell (34) were wrecked
late in the race (Google Images)

With just five laps remaining, fuel got even tighter, as Kurt Busch and Ricky Stenhouse Jr made contact, sending Busch into the wall, then into Michael McDowell's No. 34 car.The lead cars almost immediately cut their engines off to conserve as much gas as possible. On the subsequent restart, Jones, Truex, Harvick, and a few others made a run at Hamlin, but it wasn't quite enough to keep the four-time Pocono winner from winning his third event of 2019, and fifth at the treacherous tri-cornered track.

“You just want to know that you’re a race winner,” said Hamlin. “You just want to know that you can contend for wins. Yeah, you’re looking for momentum, but you’re just looking for wins week-in and week-out."

Two of Hamlin's JGR teammates finished right behind him, with Jones and Truex grabbing second and third respectively. sophomore William Byron finished an impressive fourth-place, and Kyle Larson grabbed fifth. Harvick finished in sixth, rookie Daniel Hemric finished a very respectable seventh, Brad Keselowski came home eighth, Kyle Busch's offbeat pit strategy netted him ninth place, and Blaney rebounded from his early spin to finish tenth.

The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series will now head to the Finger Lakes region of Upstate New York and the always unpredictable road course at Watkins Glen International. The Go Bowling at the Glen will be run on Sunday, August 4 at 3:00 p.m. ET, and will be carried live on NBCSN, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Briscoe Breaks Through for Iowa Win

So far in 2019, Tyler Reddick, Cole Custer, and Christopher Bell have established themselves as frontrunners for the Xfinity Series title. In fact, save for Michael Annett and Ross Chastatin winning both Daytona events and Kyle Busch's three victories, the so-called "big three" have been the only other drivers to visit victory lane this year. That is until this weekend's race at Iowa Speedway, where a strategy call by Chase Briscoe and crew chief Richard Boswell allowed the Indiana native to run down Bell and score his first win of the year.

Chase Briscoe celebrates his first win of 2019
(Google Images)

"It was a fun race first off," Briscoe said in victory lane. "I just cant believe it ... once we got that caution when I was gonna restart fourth I knew we were in good shape. Christopher was way better than I thought he was gonna be on those tires though. It was fun we were throwing sliders on each other and everything else."

Bell established himself as the car to beat early on, passing Jeremy Clements on a restart following an incident between Austin Cindric and Noah Gragson to score the win in Stage One.

On lap 74, Bell's teammate Riley Herbst spun out, collecting Clements and forcing another restart. However, the 2017 Gander Outdoors Truck Series champion proved to be up to the task once again, winning the US Celluar 250's second stage.

During the race's final stage, things finally got interesting, as Stewart-Haas Racing teammates Briscoe and Custer were sent to the rear of the field for pit road violations with less than 100 laps to go. However, something would break on Custer's Mustang, sending him into the wall in turn three on lap 162. As the field rolled onto pit road under the caution for Custer's wreck, Dillon Bassett seemed to get lost in a cloud of speedy dry, causing him to drive into the back of a sweeper truck ending his day. Both Bassett and the sweeper driver were uninjured in the crash.

Dillon Bassett's car after hitting a track sweeper truck
(Google Images)

With 22 laps to go, the race went back green and Briscoe, who's crew had put scuffed tires on their car late in the race in favor of a fresh set, had run down Bell for the lead and passed him with just six laps to go. The move helped Briscoe claim his second career Xfinity win and relegated Bell to second place after leading 234 of the race's 250 laps.

John Hunter Nemechek finished third, Gragson rebounded to finish fourth, and Reddick came home fifth. Justin Allgaier finished sixth, Shane Lee got seventh, Justin Hayley finished eighth, just one week removed from the unexpected passing of his crew chief Nick Harrison, Zane Smith finished ninth, and Annett rounded out the top-ten.

The Xfinity Series will join their Cup Series counterparts in New York wine country this weekend, as they attempt to tackle the Zippo 200 at Watkins Glen International. The race will be run on Saturday, August 3 at 3:00 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on NBC, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Chastain Scores Convincing Pocono Victory

Ross Chastain's career trajectory has been unconventional, and incredibly difficult to keep on track. But at Pocono Raceway, he made things look oh so simple, as he cruised to his third win of the season in the Gander RV 250.

Ross Chastain celebrates another sweet truck win
(Google Images)

Stewart Friesen, who is on the bubble to make the Gander Outdoors Truck Series playoff field, started the race with a bang - literally. On lap one of the race, the dirt track ace spun his truck around in turn one, making an aggressive three-wide move to the inside of Sheldon Creed. Friesen slid up the track and into Anthony Alfredo's No. 15 truck. The wreck relegated Friesen to a last place finish, making a good run at Eldora Speedway critical to making a playoff run that is hanging by a thread.

Chastain, who started second, set sail once the race went green again. The Florida native led twice for 54 laps, with truck series newcomer Harrison Burton leading the other six circuits.

Late in Stage Two, Chastain pitted from the lead on lap 33, but regained the top spot not long after to beat Kentucky winner Tyler Ankrum by just over a second. In victory lane, Chastain and his Niece Motorsports team dedicated their victory to Nick Harrison, the crew chief of Kaulig Racing's No. 11 car, who passed away unexpectedly following last week's Xfinity race at New Hampshire.

“I know we were a little mad because we lost Nick Harrison,” Chastain said. “We realize that everybody goes when it’s their time, but, man, we miss that big boy. These boys (on the Niece Motorsports team), a lot of them worked with him.

“I got to work with him at Kaulig Racing this year. Man, we miss him.”

Ankrum came home second, while Stage Two winner Burton came home third. While he didn't win, the 18-year old rookie did have an excellent points day. Sitting just one spot outside of the eight-team playoff field, Burton is now just 13 points behind Friesen thanks to his first-lap fowl-up with just two races left until the cutoff.

Burton's Kyle Busch Motorsports teammate, Christian Eckes, came home fourth after winning Friday's ARCA race, and defending truck champ Brett Moffitt finished fifth. Matt Crafton got sixth, Todd Gilliland netted seventh, Johnny Sauter finished eighth, Ben Rhodes got ninth, and Grant Enfinger completed the ThorSport trifecta by rounding out the top-ten.

The next race on the schedule for NASCAR's truckers is tomorrow night's Eldora Dirt Derby from Tony Stewart's Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio. Coverage of this bit of appointment television will begin with heat races at 7:00 p.m. ET on August 1. The broadcast will be carried on FS1, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

NASCAR President Steve Phelps Gives Fans a Look at Racing's Future

NASCAR President, Steve Phelps
(Google Images)

In the midst of what has been a season of change for NASCAR, specifically the Monster Energy Cup Series' new 550 horsepower engine and aero package updates, fans have had many different questions about what else might be coming down the pike. Has the 2020 rules package helped or hurt attendance? What will the schedule look like in a few years? Will rumored electrification technology lead to quiet, Formula E-style cars?

Well aware that the fan base is more than a little curious about the direction the sport is heading, NASCAR President Steve Phelps stopped by SiriusXM Speedway on Tuesday afternoon to speak with host Dave Moody about a wide array of subjects and help put some fans fears about the state of the sport and it's future to rest.

But before discussing what lies ahead, Phelps spoke about NASCAR's present and how the aero and engine changes made for 2019 have been successful and had a positive impact on competition in the eyes of the sanctioning body.

“If you listen to the fan base, or you’re watching on television, or listening on the radio, and the excitement of the announcers, I think it’s been an overwhelmingly positive reaction to the racing product. So, from that perspective, I think it’s been fantastic," he stated.

Phelps went on to explain that other important metrics, such as social media traffic and television ratings, have been trending in a positive, upward direction. "I would say, if you look at the first half of the season, and as we head down the stretch here to the playoffs, we’ve been very pleased with what we’ve seen," he said.

As far as at-track attendance, Phelps explained that, following a sold out Daytona 500 and greater fan presence at four of the five races that followed, attendance took a bit of a dip through the spring. However, that has proved to be the exception rather than the rule as we approach the playoffs.

"We’ve been either flat or up almost every race that we’ve had," the president explained. " The All-Star Race was up, the (Coca-Cola) 600 was up, we had a couple of weather issues obviously. But Sonoma was a sellout. If you look at kind of the 'eyeball test,' I think you would say yes, it looks like things are positive in that direction, and our racetracks have worked really hard on that. We’ve worked hard with out racetracks as well and we’ve had our drivers do significantly more promotion to try to drive both ticket sales, as well as ratings, and it’s working.”

The 2019 Daytona 500 was a sellout (Google Images)

Naysayers have made the case for years now that NASCAR is in trouble because television ratings are down. Well, according to Phelps, ratings so far this year have been up 3%. While this may not sound like a huge increase, the sanctioning body is happy with what they've seen through the Fox portion of the season, and are looking for more positive news as NBC grabs the broadcasting baton.

Phelps also explained that, while gaining that 3% increase has been a struggle, NASCAR is not alone in that fight.

"If you’re going to look at all sports, and we have all this research that we look at, all sports for the first half of the year was down 9%. And so, for us being +3, we’re 12 points to the good. That’s a pretty good metric," he stated.

Phelps again credited the closer competition on the track, as well as some of the story lines that have developed this year and the sport's younger drivers taking root among fans, for the ratings increase. "Those are all positive things for this sport, and I think that’s why we’re seeing an increase in metrics, both from a television standpoint and what we’re doing, trending on the attendance side as well," said Phelps.

The conversation then shifted to the future of the sport, and how the current race car's truck arm rear suspension and internally cammed, push rod driven V8 engine have made it a bit archaic compared to their showroom counterparts. For that reason, NASCAR has been developing what has become known as their Gen-7 car. This new iteration of stock car will also increase brand identity and individual body styling for each of the manufacturers.

"Do I think that having increased body style and some of the chassis things that we’re looking at, will have the car be more relevant and more like the showroom counterpart? Yes, I think that will be a good thing. If I’m a fan, do I care? I care because, really for two reasons: one, the body styling is going to be more like the showroom car. So, to me, to have it more 'stock' and look like that showroom car is a really important thing for us, and our fans tell us the same thing," Phelps stated.

"As it relates to the engine, which is the second piece of it, the new engine won’t have push rod technology. It will have, most likely, some form of electrification," he continued. "We’re working right now with our OEM partners to determine what that is going to be. A lot of healthy debate about what it should be. But we’re excited about the direction that it’s going, and I think this kind of Gen-7 body style, chassis, and then Gen-7 engine, is something that, ultimately, is going to be very good for this sport. But again, to me it comes back to why should I care as a fan? You’re going to care as a fan because the racing is going to be better and the car is going to look cooler and more stock.”

Moody then brought up the elephant in the room. The phrase "some form of electrification" has caused more than a few race fans to worry that NASCAR would be shifting towards a Formula E-style of racing that would replace the roar of engines with the woosh of cars gliding down the frontstrech at Daytona.

Overall, NASCAR has been satisfied with the results the
2019 rules package has provided (Google Images)

Phelps put those fears to rest fairly quickly.

"What I can say is we’re not racing electric cars. That’s not what we’re interested in doing. So, the cars will continue to sound like our stock cars, our current cars," he explained. "It’s just, the architecture of that engine is going to have some type of electrification in  it, some type of battery storing device that allows this combustible engine to create additional horsepower and make it more relevant to what our existing  manufacturers have in their vehicles today. That’s what this is meant to be. We are not going to be an E series that’s running electric cars around the racetrack. That’s not something we are interested in doing. That’s not what NASCAR is. That’s not part of our DNA. So, we will never get there, and we don’t want to get there."

However, Phelps stated that this type of change is essential for car manufacturers to keep their stock cars relevant to those in their showroom. "If I’m an OEM and I can talk about that to people who are buying my cars and say that this race car goes 200 mph in the Coke 600, you’re racing for 4.5 hours on this engine, and it’s relevant to another engine that they’re trying to sell in the showroom, that’s important to them. And I think it’s important to us, and I think it creates more relevance for the fan as well," explained Phelps.

There have also been rumors that NASCAR has been in discussions with new manufactures who might be interested in joining the sport. As it turns out, the sport is in fact in talks with some new automakers, and the idea of an updated, Gen-7 race car has played a major role in that.

"As it relates to new OEMs who might come into the sport, yes, we are in discussions with a half dozen right now, at varying stages of levels of talks with them," stated Phelps. "The body style is important to them, the engine is a must. So, we wouldn’t be having these discussions with our current engine architecture. No new OEM wants to come in and run that block V8, with push rod technology. They just don’t want to do it. So, when they hear about us talking about the direction we want to take this new vehicle they get very excited about it."

When could the sport see a new brand join Chevy, Ford, and Toyota on the track?

"Hard to say when we would have a new OEM, if we’re able to close things up and get something signed how quickly they’d be on the racetrack," Phelps explained. "It’s going to take a while, it’s not an easy thing to do. You just can’t flip a switch, like a new sponsor, and you just have a new paint scheme out that you can do or wrap a car. This takes a significant amount of time. So I would say, maybe 2022, if it’s going to be engine and body style. So, the new body is coming out in 2021, I would say the earliest we’d be able to get a new engine would be 2022, maybe 2023."

The "Tricky Triangle" at Pocono Raceway will host a
double-header weekend next season (Google Images)

NASCAR will head to Pocono this weekend for the second time in 2019. Next year, the track will still have two races, however they will be held on the same weekend. This outside the box, innovative idea is one that the sanctioning body will be watching closely, especially as track sanctioning agreements are set to expire in the next year.

"We wanted to try and test it with a track, (Pocono) raised their hands and said  'hey, listen, given our camping, we think we can have a blowout weekend with these two cup dates being on the same weekend, and then companion events that go with it,'" said Phelps. "So, do I think that other tracks are looking at it? For sure. I know we’re looking at it, I know our broadcast partners are looking at it, and I think it’s going to be a phenomenal weekend for them, I really do."

The maiden Pocono double-header is just one of a few changes taking place next year. Indy will move to Fourth of July weekend, Daytona will move to the final regular season event, and short track racing will play a more prominent role in the playoffs. So, as these sanctioning agreements expire, does Phelps see any major schedule shakeups on the horizon?

"I do not see our season contracting in terms of the number of events that going to run in 2021. I just don’t see that. I think that our existing fan base likes the length of the schedule," he stated. "There are certainly those in the sport that, you know, the season is a long one, right? 36 points paying events, plus the two exhibitions. So, I don’t see a contraction in the number of races.

"Whether in 2021 we pull the season up further, so we pulled it a week from ‘19 to ‘20, whether we pull it up further it’s hard to say. I do think that, again, our fan base likes racing into November and, you know, the first, second, third week are all potential options for us moving forward in ’21. I do not think we’re going to have significant pullback to what those dates are. I could be wrong. As I’ve said before, everything is on the table, but based on the conversations that we’re having with our broadcast partners, our fans, our teams, our OEMs I think that, again, the length of the season, in terms of the number of races, as well as when we start and finish, it’s going to remain roughly the same, if I had to guess.”

It's always refreshing to hear high-level decision makers like Phelps take to the airwaves to have an honest discussion about the direction of the sport. NASCAR is very unique, and very fortunate, in that regard.

Change can be difficult, but it sounds like there is a lot on the horizon for NASCAR Nation to get excited about. While many things still need confirmation, Phelps' comments have made things a bit less murky. Hopefully, they also assuaged the fears of fans who thought pit crews would soon be plugging extension cords into their race cars instead of gas cans.