Showing posts with label NASCAR. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NASCAR. Show all posts

Sunday, March 2, 2014


Kevin Harvick Holds Off Dale Earnhardt Jr. For Victory At Phoenix

 



March 2, 2014 
By Reid Spencer
NASCAR Wire Service

AVONDALE, Ariz.—In a race that began with an air of inevitability as thick as the storm clouds that pelted Phoenix International Raceway on Saturday night, Kevin Harvick survived a succession of late restarts to win Sunday's The Profit on CNBC 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.
In his first season with Stewart-Haas Racing and his first with crew chief Rodney Childers, Harvick entered the race as an overwhelming favorite and delivered, despite the best efforts of Daytona 500 winner Dale Earnhardt Jr., who chased Harvick’s No. 4 Chevrolet to the checkered flag.
Having shown his speed by pacing both Saturday practice sessions, before the rain came, Harvick led 224 of the 312 laps at the one-mile track, including the final 24, leaving Earnhardt to battle with front row starters Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano, who finished third and fourth, respectively, for Team Penske.
The victory was a record fifth for Harvick at Phoenix; he also won the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at the one-mile track in November. The 38-year-old driver from Bakersfield, Calif., won for the 24th time in 468 career starts. 
"Man, this just solidifies so many things and so many decisions," said Harvick, who left Richard Childress Racing after 13 seasons to make the move to Stewart-Haas. "It’s been so much work with all the time and effort that these guys (the crew) have put in--but what a race car."
In Harvick’s view, the victory vindicated his decision to change teams.
"Rodney Childers has just done a phenomenal job of putting this team together," Harvick said. "These guys all want to win. That’s why they came here. That’s why I came here, too. 
"I’ve just got to thank (owners) Gene (Haas) and Tony (Stewart), and (Stewart’s business manager) Eddie Jarvis. In 2012 I told (Jarvis) it would be fun to have Tony and I on the same team, and here we are in Victory Lane."
Hendrick Motorsports teammates Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson finished fifth and sixth, with Ryan Newman, Carl Edwards, Kyle Busch and Jamie McMurray completing the top 10. 
Even though Earnhardt had his best speed of the day on his last set of tires, Harvick was able to keep him at bay through four cautions and subsequent restarts in the last 65 laps of the race.
Earnhardt worked his way clear of the Penske cars after the final restart on Lap 304 but ran out of time in his pursuit of the race winner, who arrived at the finish line .489 seconds ahead of the No. 88 Chevrolet.
"We got running side-by-side there for second and just let Kevin get out there a little too far," Earnhardt said of the final restart. "I thought we were running him down those last few laps, but we were just too far away. 
"It was a great job by Kevin and his whole team. They did a great job all weekend. They were fast. We worked on our car. We got a little help from our teammates, and it was a lot of hard work to get better and better. I ended up where I thought we should have finished.
"We were a little faster at the end, but they were stellar—impressive as heck all weekend. I hope everybody enjoyed the race. We were really working our butts off there and giving it everything we had."
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race - The Profit on CNBC 500, Presented by Small Business Fueling America
Phoenix International Raceway
Avondale, Arizona
Sunday, March 02, 2014

               1. (13) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet, 312, $260048.
               2. (5) Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet, 312, $172240.
               3. (1) Brad Keselowski, Ford, 312, $180673.
               4. (2) Joey Logano, Ford, 312, $159641.
               5. (17) Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet, 312, $159326.
               6. (4) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 312, $152266.
               7. (15) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 312, $104380.
               8. (23) Carl Edwards, Ford, 312, $117330.
               9. (7) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 312, $132871.
               10. (3) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, 312, $122444.
               11. (11) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, 312, $101430.
               12. (19) Matt Kenseth, Toyota, 312, $130266.
               13. (14) Clint Bowyer, Toyota, 312, $118671.
               14. (18) Casey Mears, Chevrolet, 312, $108513.
               15. (9) Aric Almirola, Ford, 312, $119066.
               16. (20) Tony Stewart, Chevrolet, 312, $114963.
               17. (6) Greg Biffle, Ford, 312, $120480.
               18. (21) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ford, 312, $115605.
               19. (12) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 312, $87480.
               20. (8) Kyle Larson #, Chevrolet, 312, $108200.
               21. (29) Marcos Ambrose, Ford, 311, $105250.
               22. (27) Martin Truex Jr., Chevrolet, 311, $106538.
               23. (22) Paul Menard, Chevrolet, 311, $105594.
               24. (24) Austin Dillon #, Chevrolet, 311, $123466.
               25. (16) Brian Vickers, Toyota, 311, $110680.
               26. (25) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 310, $93938.
               27. (31) Cole Whitt #, Toyota, 310, $74355.
               28. (30) David Ragan, Ford, 310, $99588.
               29. (28) David Gilliland, Ford, 309, $96863.
               30. (43) Justin Allgaier #, Chevrolet, 309, $96002.
               31. (39) Reed Sorenson, Chevrolet, 308, $76790.
               32. (32) Brian Scott(i), Chevrolet, 308, $76105.
               33. (26) Michael McDowell, Ford, 307, $73480.
               34. (41) Michael Annett #, Chevrolet, 307, $73355.
               35. (34) Ryan Truex #, Toyota, 307, $73230.
               36. (33) Danica Patrick, Chevrolet, 306, $81075.
               37. (37) Blake Koch(i), Ford, 306, $72946.
               38. (40) Travis Kvapil, Ford, 302, $68380.
               39. (10) Kurt Busch, Chevrolet, Engine, 292, $64380.
               40. (38) Joe Nemechek(i), Toyota, 292, $68380.
               41. (35) Alex Bowman #, Toyota, Brakes, 230, $56380.
               42. (36) Parker Kligerman #, Toyota, Engine, 226, $52380.
               43. (42) Morgan Shepherd(i), Toyota, Brakes, 28, $48880.

Average Speed of Race Winner:  109.229 mph.
Time of Race:  2 Hrs, 51 Mins, 23 Secs. Margin of Victory:  0.489 Seconds.
Caution Flags:  8 for 38 laps.
Lead Changes:  14 among 8 drivers.
Lap Leaders:   B. Keselowski 0; J. Logano 1-37; D. Gilliland 38-39; B. Keselowski 40; J. Logano 41-73; K. Harvick 74-110; B. Keselowski 111-112; K. Harvick 113-190; J. Logano 191; K. Harvick 192-236; C. Edwards 237; J. Gordon 238-241; R. Newman 242-247; C. Bowyer 248; K. Harvick 249-312.
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led):  K. Harvick 4 times for 224 laps; J. Logano 3 times for 71 laps; R. Newman 1 time for 6 laps; J. Gordon 1 time for 4 laps; B. Keselowski 2 times for 3 laps; D. Gilliland 1 time for 2 laps; C. Edwards 1 time for 1 lap; C. Bowyer 1 time for 1 lap.
Wins: D. Earnhardt Jr., 1; K. Harvick, 1.
Top 16 in Points: D. Earnhardt Jr. - 90; B. Keselowski - 84; J. Gordon - 80; K. Harvick - 79; J. Johnson - 78; J. Logano - 75; M. Kenseth - 70; D. Hamlin - 68; C. Edwards - 65; G. Biffle - 64; C. Mears - 64; J. McMurray - 64; R. Stenhouse Jr. - 63; Kyle Busch - 61; R. Newman - 60; A. Dillon # - 56.

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Sunday, May 19, 2013

Johnson wins record fourth NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race 

 May 18, 2013

By Reid Spencer
NASCAR Wire Service

CONCORD, N.C.—The Brothers Busch won the first four segments of Saturday night’s Sprint All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, but Jimmie Johnson took the one the counted—the 10-lap dash to the finish—and continued to build his legacy, not to mentioned his bank account.

Speeding away from Hendrick Motorsports teammate Kasey Kahne after a restart on Lap 81 of 90, Johnson won the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series all-star exhibition race for a record fourth time, beating charging Joey Logano to the stripe by 1.722 seconds.

Kyle Busch, who won the second and third segments of 20-laps each, ran third, followed by Kahne and Kurt Busch. The elder Busch brother won the first and fourth segments and was first onto pit road before the final dash but exited fifth with a less-than-stellar pit stop.

Despite changes to his pit crew this week, Johnson’s over-the-wall gang performed an 11-second pit stop that got him out of the pits on the front row, beside Kahne, for the final restart. Ultimately, that made all the difference.

With the victory, Johnson broke a tie with teammate Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Sr. for most wins in the non-points race, won his second straight All-Star Race and collected $1 million for his efforts.

“To beat Jeff and Earnhardt, two guys I’ve looked up to my whole life—two massive icons of our sport—this means the world to me,” said Johnson, who started 18th after sliding through his pit box and drawing a penalty for a loose lug nut during Friday’s qualifying session.

“I really didn’t think we had a shot at winning tonight, starting (18th), but we had a great race car and worked our way through there and got the job done. Over time, honestly, it’s just dedication and drive from every member at Hendrick Motorsports, every member on this No. 48 team. We’re very proud of what we’ve accomplished, but we know we’ve got to keep pushing harder and pushing one another.”

Kyle Busch thought he had the fastest car, but a slower-than-usual four-tire stop put his No. 18 Toyota on the second row for the final restart.

“We just didn’t get the best pit stop there at the end to get us out on the front row, and when you’re back behind cars, you’re getting beat up on,” Busch said. “It is what it is. We’ll just take this as a good learning day and hopefully bring back some speed like this to the (Coca-Cola) 600 (May 26).”

NASCAR’s luck with weather held Saturday night, with a large enough window to complete the race with just one delay.

With Kurt Busch leading from the outset, NASCAR called a caution because of rain after Lap 8 and red-flagged the race after 13 laps when the shower intensified. The drivers came to pit road, parked in their stalls and waited.

The rain didn’t come soon enough, however, to save reigning Cup champion Brad Keselowski. On the second lap, transmission troubles sent his No. 2 Penske Racing Ford to the garage. 

“Something just broke in the back half of the drive train, either the transmission or drive shaft gear – I’m not sure which one – but it’s one of those deals, unfortunately,” Keselowski said. “We’ll try to learn from it and move on.”

With Keselowski in the garage, the race resumed after a stoppage of 41 minutes 28 seconds. Kurt Busch pulled away from brother Kyle Busch to win the first 20-lap segment by .751 seconds.

Kyle Busch kept the second segment in the family, pulling away from Clint Bowyer after a restart on Lap 29—after Ricky Stenhouse Jr. bounced off the Turn 4 wall and knocked Mark Martin for a loop through the grass in the quad-oval.

Jamie McMurray led wire-to-wire to win the Sprint Showdown and transfer into the main event. McMurray, who started second, took two tires during the halfway competition caution after 20 laps and pulled away to beat Cup rookie Stenhouse to the finish line by 1.226 seconds.

Stenhouse transferred into the All-Star Race as the second-place finisher. His romantic interest, Danica Patrick, finished ninth in the Showdown but punched her ticket into the All-Star Race as the winner of the Sprint Fan vote.

“Obviously being out front is massive,” McMurray said during the break between the Showdown and the main event. “When I got by (polesitter) Martin (Truex Jr.) at the start of the race… I was trying to take it easy because I didn't know with the track being green how quickly the tires would fall off, and even running at like 80 percent it was amazing what a difference just being in clean air was. 

“I had a really good car in practice (Friday). I thought honestly the 56 (Truex) and I had the two best cars looking at times yesterday, and then the two tire stop was the right call for us. It got us up front.” 

McMurray’s words proved prophetic. Being out front for the final 10-lap run was crucial to Johnson’s record run.


NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race - NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race
Charlotte Motor Speedway
Concord, North Carolina
Saturday, May 18, 2013

    1. (18) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 90, $1039175.
    2. (5) Joey Logano, Ford, 90, $244175.
    3. (4) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 90, $144175.
    4. (9) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, 90, $114150.
    5. (2) Kurt Busch, Chevrolet, 90, $109150.
    6. (7) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 90, $103150.
    7. (15) Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet, 90, $96975.
    8. (20) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, 90, $95975.
    9. (16) Matt Kenseth, Toyota, 90, $94975.
    10. (1) Carl Edwards, Ford, 90, $93975.
    11. (19) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet, 90, $92950.
    12. (10) Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet, 90, $91950.
    13. (11) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 90, $90950.
    14. (13) Tony Stewart, Chevrolet, 90, $90450.
    15. (3) Greg Biffle, Ford, 90, $89850.
    16. (21) Ricky Stenhouse Jr. #, Ford, 90, $89575.
    17. (17) Marcos Ambrose, Ford, 90, $89450.
    18. (6) Clint Bowyer, Toyota, 90, $89350.
    19. (14) David Ragan, Ford, 90, $89250.
    20. (22) Danica Patrick #, Chevrolet, 90, $89150.
    21. (8) Mark Martin, Toyota, Accident, 87, $88412.
    22. (12) Brad Keselowski, Ford, Transmission, 2, $87000.

Average Speed of Race Winner:  90.672 mph.
Time of Race:  1 Hrs, 29 Mins, 20 Secs. Margin of Victory:  1.722 Seconds.
Caution Flags:  7 for 13 laps.
Lead Changes:  8 among 5 drivers.
Lap Leaders:    0; Kurt Busch 1-20; C. Bowyer 21-28; Kyle Busch 29-40; C. Bowyer 41-43; Kyle Busch 44-60; K. Kahne 61-71; Kurt Busch 72-80; J. Johnson 81-90.
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led):  Kyle Busch 2 times for 29 laps; Kurt Busch 2 times for 29 laps; C. Bowyer 2 times for 11 laps; K. Kahne 1 time for 11 laps; J. Johnson 1 time for 10 laps.
Top 1 in Points: 

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Saturday, May 18, 2013

Kyle Busch breaks “drought” with NASCAR Camping World Truck Series win at Charlotte 

      
 
Kyle Busch breaks “drought” with NASCAR Camping World Truck Series win at Charlotte

May 17, 2013  (EDITORS: Updates with quotes and results.)

By Reid Spencer
NASCAR Wire Service

CONCORD, N.C.— Winless in his last seven starts in NASCAR’s Camping World Truck Series, Kyle Busch broke what was for him a major drought with a victory in Friday night’s North Carolina Education Lottery 200 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Busch, who owns his own truck, charged from the back of the field after a pit road penalty to win in the series for the first time since Sept. 24, 2011 at New Hampshire. The victory was Busch’s fifth at Charlotte and the 31st of his career in 107 starts.

Brendan Gaughan ran second, .468 seconds behind Busch, with the race decided in an eight-lap green-flag run to the finish after the eighth caution of the night. Max Gresham finished a career-best third, followed by series leader Matt Crafton and Ty Dillon.

“It was an eternity—the starts were spread over a year and half,” Busch said of his seven-race winless streak. “It certainly was frustrating last year that (crew chief) Eric (Phillips) and I weren’t able to get to Victory Lane. We only ran three starts, and in all of those three starts, we were a really good truck and had a shot to win in all three of those...

“We’ve been fast. These guys do a good job, (crew chief) Rudy (Fugle) here, taking over for my stuff on the No. 51with a smaller team—it’s only him and a couple of other guys that are full-time for it… These guys do a lot of work for being so small and just coming out here trying to knock out some wins.”

Busch had led 66 laps by the time Tyler Young’s spin caused the fourth caution of the race on Lap 82. On a fuel-only pit stop under yellow on Lap 84, Busch drew a penalty for dragging his gas can out of the pit stall and restarted on Lap 88 at the rear of the field.

Undeterred—and using the penalty as an opportunity to take four fresh tires--Busch carved his way through the field and had just taken over the seventh position when hard contact between the trucks of Ron Hornaday Jr. and Jake Crum—after Hornaday cut his right front tire--brought out the fifth caution on Lap 94.

After a spate of cautions, Busch finally regained the lead, passing Miguel Paludo for the top spot a lap before a pair of simultaneous wrecks caused caution No. 8 on Lap 122. A crash near the front of the field eliminated Darrell Wallace Jr. and damaged the truck of Brad Keselowski.

Note: The victory was the first as a crew chief for Fugle…Busch now has 113 wins in NASCAR’s top three series combined…Gaughan scored his third straight top-five finish and climbed three spots to fourth in points… Crafton leads in the series standings by 22 points over polesitter Jeb Burton, who finished 13th.


NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Race - North Carolina Education Lottery 200
Charlotte Motor Speedway
Concord, North Carolina
Friday, May 17, 2013

    1. (4) Kyle Busch(i), Toyota, 134, $39660.
    2. (23) Brendan Gaughan, Chevrolet, 134, $27875.
    3. (21) Max Gresham, Chevrolet, 134, $22420.
    4. (14) Matt Crafton, Toyota, 134, $16860.
    5. (2) Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, 134, $15035.
    6. (12) James Buescher, Chevrolet, 134, $13335.
    7. (5) Miguel Paludo, Chevrolet, 134, $11825.
    8. (18) John Wes Townley, Toyota, 134, $11725.
    9. (7) Ross Chastain, Ford, 134, $11600.
    10. (6) Justin Lofton, Chevrolet, 134, $12775.
    11. (24) Scott Riggs(i), Chevrolet, 134, $8825.
    12. (8) Dakoda Armstrong, Chevrolet, 134, $10900.
    13. (1) Jeb Burton #, Chevrolet, 134, $14075.
    14. (19) Brad Keselowski(i), Ford, 134, $8425.
    15. (20) Ryan Sieg, Chevrolet, 134, $11650.
    16. (11) Tim George Jr., Chevrolet, 134, $10475.
    17. (32) Todd Bodine, Toyota, 134, $10425.
    18. (15) Brennan Newberry #, Chevrolet, 134, $8125.
    19. (35) Blake Koch(i), Chevrolet, 133, $8075.
    20. (34) Danny Efland(i), Chevrolet, 133, $8650.
    21. (28) Jeff Agnew, Chevrolet, 133, $10205.
    22. (33) Chris Cockrum, Chevrolet, 133, $10150.
    23. (30) David Starr, Toyota, 132, $10125.
    24. (36) Mike Harmon(i), Chevrolet, 132, $7850.
    25. (9) Ryan Blaney #, Ford, 131, $10200.
    26. (3) Timothy Peters, Toyota, 122, $8775.
    27. (13) Darrell Wallace Jr. #, Toyota, Accident, 121, $8750.
    28. (16) Johnny Sauter, Toyota, Accident, 115, $7725.
    29. (26) Tyler Young, Chevrolet, Accident, 104, $7675.
    30. (22) Ron Hornaday Jr., Chevrolet, Accident, 104, $7650.
    31. (25) Jake Crum, Chevrolet, Accident, 93, $8125.
    32. (17) Joey Coulter, Toyota, 90, $7575.
    33. (27) Caleb Holman, Chevrolet, Accident, 20, $7550.
    34. (31) Bryan Silas, Ford, Accident, 13, $7525.
    35. (10) German Quiroga #, Toyota, Accident, 9, $7495.
    36. (29) Chris Jones, Chevrolet, Clutch, 4, $7473.

Average Speed of Race Winner:  105.882 mph.
Time of Race:  1 Hrs, 53 Mins, 54 Secs. Margin of Victory:  0.468 Seconds.
Caution Flags:  8 for 40 laps.
Lead Changes:  7 among 5 drivers.
Lap Leaders:    0; T. Dillon 1-3; K. Busch(i) 4-17; B. Gaughan 18-32; K. Busch(i) 33-84; M. Gresham 85-87; M. Paludo 88-120; K. Busch(i) 121-134.
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led):  K. Busch(i) 3 times for 80 laps; M. Paludo 1 time for 33 laps; B. Gaughan 1 time for 15 laps; M. Gresham 1 time for 3 laps; T. Dillon 1 time for 3 laps.
Top 10 in Points: M. Crafton - 202; J. Burton # - 180; T. Dillon - 175; B. Gaughan - 171; J. Buescher - 171; J. Sauter - 165; R. Blaney # - 160; D. Armstrong - 153; M. Paludo - 150; D. Wallace Jr. # - 144.


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Sunday, May 12, 2013

Matt Kenseth surges to third 2013 victory at Darlington

 

     Credit: 285854Geoff Burke/Getty Images

Matt Kenseth, driver of the #20 The Home Depot / Husky Toyota, performs a burnout in celebration of winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Bojangles' Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway on May 11, 2013 in Darlington, South Carolina. (Photo by Geoff Burke/Getty Images) 
 
                                   

May 11, 2013 

By Reid Spencer
NASCAR Wire Service

DARLINGTON, S.C.—Unsinkable.

Unsinkable Matt Kenseth capped a banner week for unsinkable Joe Gibbs Racing with a victory in Saturday night's Bojangles' Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway with a substitute crew chief on his pit box—the unsinkable Wally Brown.

The past four days could hardly have been better for JGR, with Wednesday bringing a substantial reduction in penalties on appeal for an engine infraction Apr, 21 at Kansas. On Friday, Gibbs cars ran 1-2-3 in the Nationwide Series race at Darlington, and the organization followed that Saturday with a 1-2 finish from Kenseth and Denny Hamlin in the 11th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race of the season.

Kenseth took the lead from JGR teammate Kyle Busch on Lap 355 of 367 and pulled away to win by 3.155 seconds over Hamlin, as Busch faded to sixth. Hamlin also had much to celebrate in his first full race back from a compression fracture to his first lumbar vertebra, sustained during a last-lap crash at Fontana, Calif., in late March.

It was a race of significant numbers. Jeff Gordon finished third in his 700th Cup start, all consecutive. Jimmie Johnson ran fourth and extended his series lead to a massive 44 points over seventh-place finisher Carl Edwards. In a race that saw just four drivers pace the field, Kyle Busch led 265 laps but faded to sixth at the finish, thanks to a cut tire on the final 30-lap green-flag run. 

Journeyman Brown won his first race as a Cup crew chief, after serving with four different drivers before his one-week shot on the pit box with Kenseth, who will get regular crew chief Jason Ratcliff back next week at Charlotte after Ratcliff's six-race suspension for an underweight connecting rod was reduced to one event on appeal. 

But the day belonged to Kenseth, whose resilience under trying circumstances was emblematic of the organization he joined this season.

"Honestly, I've only dreamed about winning the Southern 500," said Kenseth, who notched his first victory at Darlington, his third of the season and the 27th of his career. "This to me probably feels bigger than any win in my career. I really feel bad that Jason isn't here. This is obviously his team and his effort, but Wally did a great job filling in.

"We had a fifth- or sixth-place car, fighting loose, (and) those last two adjustments (on pit road) were just awesome."

For Hamlin, second place was the best he could have hoped for, given the strength of Kenseth's car in the closing laps.

"For me, we kept grinding away," Hamlin said, clearly tired from the effort of his first race back at one of NASCAR racing's most demanding tracks. "Pit crew picked us up some spots, obviously, throughout the night. 

"It was one of those days where we got our car better, pit crew picked us up positions, took us to the most optimum spot we could get to—and that was second."

>From a physical standpoint, Hamlin admitted the race took its toll.

"Really, it's just like starting your season over," he said. "To start it back over at Darlington for 500 miles, there's some muscles that have gotten weak. I've gotten pretty sore and tired, mentally tired as well. We'll have a couple of weeks really to rest until the next long event (Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte), and we'll be good to go then."

A caution for Regan Smith's spin off Turn 2 on Lap 302 of 367—only the second yellow of the race—interrupted a cycle of green-flag pit stops. After Juan Pablo Montoya took a free pass as the highest scored lap car, and Harvick availed himself of a wave-around, there were 11 cars on the lead lap for a restart on Lap 309. 

By then, Kyle Busch had led 218 laps and had dominated the race ever since he wrested the lead from his brother, polesitter Kurt Busch on Lap 74. But the pit stops on Lap 303 put the lead-lap cars on the edge of their fuel windows.

They need not have worried. On Lap 311, Casey Mears tangled with Kurt Busch and reigning series champion Brad Keselowski off Turn 4 to cause the third caution. All but the top-four cars came to pit road for fuel under the yellow, leaving Kyle Busch, Kenseth, Kasey Kahne and Gordon out front on slightly older tires. 

Johnson was first off pit road with new tires and quickly moved to third. Busch fended off a challenge from Kahne right after the restart and held a lead of .850 seconds when an accident involving David Reutimann and Josh Wise brought out the fourth caution and gave the lead-lappers a chance to pit for tires.

Kahne briefly took the lead after a restart on Lap 333, but one lap later, Kahne's Chevy slapped the wall near the apex of Turns 1 and 2 and the race went yellow for the fifth time.

The result was the same. Busch pulled away after the restart and opened a comfortable advantage, this time over Kenseth, only to have Kenseth run him down and pass him on Lap 355.

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race - Bojangles' Southern 500
Darlington Raceway
Darlington, South Carolina
Saturday, May 11, 2013
 
                   1. (7) Matt Kenseth, Toyota, 367, $309666.
                   2. (6) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 367, $211465.
                   3. (8) Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet, 367, $200026.
                   4. (2) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 367, $178876.
                   5. (10) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet, 367, $165976.
                   6. (3) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 367, $169323.
                   7. (17) Carl Edwards, Ford, 367, $142065.
                   8. (12) Juan Pablo Montoya, Chevrolet, 367, $131429.
                   9. (16) Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet, 367, $115265.
                   10. (21) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 367, $140423.
                   11. (13) Clint Bowyer, Toyota, 367, $137188.
                   12. (5) Martin Truex Jr., Toyota, 367, $130205.
                   13. (9) Greg Biffle, Ford, 367, $111505.
                   14. (1) Kurt Busch, Chevrolet, 367, $122975.
                   15. (20) Tony Stewart, Chevrolet, 367, $139855.
                   16. (25) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, 367, $121375.
                   17. (4) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, 367, $108230.
                   18. (14) Ricky Stenhouse Jr. #, Ford, 366, $139741.
                   19. (15) Paul Menard, Chevrolet, 366, $122871.
                   20. (18) Aric Almirola, Ford, 366, $130141.
                   21. (11) Jeff Burton, Chevrolet, 365, $99205.
                   22. (30) Joey Logano, Ford, 365, $118388.
                   23. (28) Travis Kvapil, Toyota, 364, $115863.
                   24. (27) Regan Smith(i), Chevrolet, 363, $113063.
                   25. (22) Mark Martin, Toyota, 363, $96755.
                   26. (23) Bobby Labonte, Toyota, 363, $109588.
                   27. (37) Dave Blaney, Chevrolet, 362, $98388.
                   28. (40) Danica Patrick #, Chevrolet, 362, $82980.
                   29. (29) David Gilliland, Ford, 362, $95327.
                   30. (32) Landon Cassill, Chevrolet, 360, $87105.
                   31. (43) Joe Nemechek(i), Toyota, 359, $82330.
                   32. (26) Brad Keselowski, Ford, 358, $135596.
                   33. (41) Timmy Hill #, Ford, 358, $84480.
                   34. (24) Marcos Ambrose, Ford, 358, $109069.
                   35. (42) JJ Yeley, Chevrolet, 354, $81605.
                   36. (33) David Reutimann, Toyota, Accident, 327, $81480.
                   37. (19) Casey Mears, Ford, Accident, 327, $89289.
                   38. (34) Josh Wise(i), Ford, Accident, 326, $75685.
                   39. (31) David Ragan, Ford, Engine, 318, $79685.
                   40. (39) David Stremme, Toyota, Engine, 230, $67685.
                   41. (36) Scott Speed, Ford, Brakes, 77, $63685.
                   42. (35) Michael McDowell, Ford, Brakes, 58, $59685.
                   43. (38) Mike Bliss(i), Toyota, Overheating, 18, $56185.
 
Average Speed of Race Winner:  141.383 mph.
Time of Race:  3 Hrs, 32 Mins, 45 Secs. Margin of Victory:  3.155 Seconds.
Caution Flags:  5 for 25 laps.
Lead Changes:  9 among 4 drivers.
Lap Leaders:   Kurt Busch 1-51; Kyle Busch 52-53; M. Kenseth 54-55; Kurt Busch 56-73; Kyle Busch 74-105; M. Kenseth 106-107; Kyle Busch 108-185; J. Gordon 186-201; Kyle Busch 202-354; M. Kenseth 355-367.
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led):  Kyle Busch 4 times for 265 laps; Kurt Busch 2 times for 69 laps; M. Kenseth 3 times for 17 laps; J. Gordon 1 time for 16 laps.
Top 12 in Points: J. Johnson - 423; C. Edwards - 379; M. Kenseth - 364; D. Earnhardt Jr. - 359; C. Bowyer - 349; K. Kahne - 326; Brad Keselowski - 326; Kyle Busch - 325; A. Almirola - 317; K. Harvick - 315; P. Menard - 315; J. Gordon - 311.


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Monday, September 3, 2012

Denny Hamlin repeats, edges Jeff Gordon for Atlanta victory

 
Credit: Brian Lawdermilk-Pool/Getty Images

Sept. 2, 2012

By Reid Spencer
NASCAR Wire Service

HAMPTON, Ga. -- Denny Hamlin did himself a favor -- and one for Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch in the process.

Outrunning Jeff Gordon on a two-lap dash to the finish in Sunday night's AdvoCare 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Hamlin scored his second straight NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory, his series-best fourth of the season and the 21st of his career.

Hamlin also preserved Busch's status as the second provisional wild card in the Chase for the Sprint Cup by keeping Gordon out of Victory Lane.

Hamlin beat Gordon to the finish line by .378 seconds after a caution spoiled a probable victory for Martin Truex Jr., who was leading by two seconds when Jamie McMurray wrecked on the frontstretch on Lap 320 of 327.

Brad Keselowski ran third, followed by Truex and Kevin Harvick.

Matt Kenseth (ninth Sunday), Truex, Keselowski, Hamlin, Clint Bowyer (27th) and Harvick all clinched top-10 spots in the Chase, joining series leader Greg Biffle, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jimmie Johnson. Defending Cup champion and pole-sitter Tony Stewart fought an ill-handling car all night and finished 22nd but clinched at least a wild-card spot.

"This is one I wanted real bad," Hamlin said. "Last week was a big one (at Bristol) -- no doubt about it -- but I've been really good here the last few years and not won."

Hamlin's crew got him off pit road in the lead when all the contending cars stopped under the final caution, which extended the race two laps past its scheduled lap count of 325.

"The pit crew won me the race," Hamlin said. "That's what a championship team is all about, to have all the pieces of the puzzle put together, and this year I think we have it all."

Gordon, who celebrated his 41st birthday last month, allowed that he must be getting soft in his old age.

"He (Hamlin) made a mistake off of (Turn) 2 (after the final restart), and I got a run on him, and I made a bad decision," Gordon said. "All night I was able to get to guys' quarter panels and get to the outside and stay there. I should have just run into the back of him going into (Turn) 3 and moved him up the race track.

"We'd be sitting in Victory lane right now counting another win. This Chase is too important to be in it for me not to make a move like that. I wouldn't have wanted to wreck him, but I would have liked to have that one over again."

Gordon trails Busch by 12 points with one race left before the Chase field is set next Saturday night at Richmond. A race win there would guarantee either driver a wild-card berth.

After the midpoint of the race, Harvick and Hamlin established themselves as the class of the field, running away from the pack after a restart on Lap 135. Hamlin's team opted to stretch fuel mileage, intending to finish the race on one more stop after coming to pit road under green on Lap 221.

Harvick had pitted for fuel and four tires on Lap 216 and would have needed two more stops to make it to the end of the race. The tradeoff was that the extra five laps on new tires had given Harvick an 8.4-second lead over Hamlin after the cycle of stops.

Hamlin, however, trimmed a second per lap from Harvick's advantage and had pulled up to the bumper of the No. 29 Chevrolet when caution for Juan Pablo Montoya's brush with the outside wall on Lap 241 made all the fuel calculations moot.

Hamlin beat Harvick off pit road under the yellow and held the top spot after a restart on Lap 248. Truex moved past Harvick into the second position one lap later and kept Hamlin in his sights during the ensuing green flag run.

Running a higher line than Hamlin, Truex was moments away from taking the lead when the engine in Carl Edwards' No. 99 Ford blew on Lap 264, causing the fourth caution of the night. The early end to Edwards' night forces last year's Chase runner-up, who finished 36th, to win next Saturday at Richmond to have even a remote chance at a wild-card spot in the Chase.

Pit stops on Lap 266 put fuel strategy back into play. Hamlin, for instance, left pit road needing to save four laps worth of fuel to get to the checkered flag. On the restart on Lap 270, though, the entire tenor of the race changed when Jimmie Johnson, Ryan Newman and Sam Hornish Jr. wrecked on the backstretch.

His car destroyed, Newman was credited with a 35th-place finish. His only realistic avenue into the Chase is a victory at Richmond.

RACE RESULTS

 1.  (7) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 327, $355,716.
 2.  (5) Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet, 327, $245,976.
 3. (21) Brad Keselowski, Dodge, 327, $197,435.
 4. (28) Martin Truex Jr., Toyota, 327, $173,354.
 5. (24) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet, 327, $172,101.
 6.  (3) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 327, $162,398.
 7. (35) Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet, 327, $127,490.
 8. (18) Paul Menard, Chevrolet, 327, $120,390.
 9.  (4) Matt Kenseth, Ford, 327, $153,801.
10.  (6) Mark Martin, Toyota, 327, $107,790.
11. (15) Sam Hornish Jr., Dodge, 327, $145,730.
12. (26) Jeff Burton, Chevrolet, 327, $142,255.
13. (16) Kurt Busch, Chevrolet, 327, $129,638.
14. (27) Regan Smith, Chevrolet, 327, $126,638.
15.  (2) Greg Biffle, Ford, 327, $112,205.
16. (32) Trevor Bayne, Ford, 327, $100,305.
17. (10) Marcos Ambrose, Ford, 327, $127,488.
18.  (9) Joey Logano, Toyota, 327, $106,680.
19. (25) Bobby Labonte, Toyota, 327, $120,013.
20. (40) Landon Cassill, Toyota, 326, $124,475.
21. (33) Juan Pablo Montoya, Chevrolet, 326, $126,146.
22.  (1) Tony Stewart, Chevrolet, 326, $156,380.
23. (11) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, 325, $102,555.
24. (20) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, 325, $124,763.
25. (22) Dave Blaney, Chevrolet, 324, $93,180.
26. (41) Travis Kvapil, Toyota, 324, $111,888.
27. (30) Clint Bowyer, Toyota, 324, $118,844.
28. (14) David Ragan, Ford, 323, $99,777.
29. (23) Danica Patrick, Chevrolet, 321, $87,555.
30. (42) TJ Bell, Ford, 319, $97,180.
31. (29) David Gilliland, Ford, 298, $87,255.
32. (13) Aric Almirola, Ford, 297, $124,291.
33. (19) Casey Mears, Ford, Engine, 291, $86,905.
34.  (8) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, Accident, 269, $133,966.
35. (17) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, Accident, 268, $131,013.
36. (12) Carl Edwards, Ford, Engine, 264, $132,946.
37. (36) Scott Speed, Ford, Suspension, 196, $86,280.
38. (34) Jason Leffler, Toyota, Vibration, 77, $86,157.
39. (31) David Stremme, Toyota, Suspension, 54, $82,700.
40. (39) Scott Riggs, Chevrolet, Vibration, 43, $82,550.
41. (43) JJ Yeley, Chevrolet, Brakes, 32, $82,375.
42. (38) Reed Sorenson, Toyota, Overheating, 24, $82,280.
43. (37) Joe Nemechek, Toyota, Rear Gear, 22, $82,641.

RACE STATISTICS

   Average Speed of Race Winner: 142.02 mph.
   Time of Race: 3 Hrs, 32 Mins, 45 Secs.
   Margin of Victory: 0.378 Seconds.
   Caution Flags: 6 for 31 laps.
   Lead Changes: 18 among 7 drivers.
   Lap Leaders: T. Stewart 0; G. Biffle 1; T. Stewart 2-9; J. Gordon 10-15; Kyle Busch 16-34; D. Hamlin 35-40; Kyle Busch 41-81; D. Hamlin 82; K. Harvick 83-84; Kyle Busch 85-90; D. Hamlin 91-134; K. Harvick 135-173; D. Hamlin 174-176; K. Harvick 177-215; D. Hamlin 216-221; K. Harvick 222-242; D. Hamlin 243-281; M. Truex Jr. 282-321; D. Hamlin 322-327.
   Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): D. Hamlin 7 times for 105 laps; K. Harvick 4 times for 101 laps; Kyle Busch 3 times for 66 laps; M. Truex Jr. 1 time for 40 laps; T. Stewart 1 time for 8 laps; J. Gordon 1 time for 6 laps; G. Biffle 1 time for 1 lap.
   Top 12 in Points: G. Biffle - 879; D. Earnhardt Jr. - 871; M. Kenseth - 858; J. Johnson - 848; M. Truex Jr. - 838; B. Keselowski - 831; D. Hamlin - 822; C. Bowyer - 811; K. Harvick - 807; T. Stewart - 769; K. Kahne - 751; Kyle Busch - 746.

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Sunday, May 8, 2011

NSCS Race Recap: Regan Smith pulls of major upset at Darlington

May 7, 2011

Regan Smith pulls of major upset at Darlington
 
By Reid Spencer
Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service
 
(May 7, 2011)
 
DARLINGTON, S.C.—Nearly three years after a NASCAR ruling denied him his first NASCAR Sprint Cup victory, Regan Smith finally got the elusive win.
 
After staying out on old tires, Smith held off Carl Edwards to win Saturday night’s Showtime Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway in a dramatic green-white-checkered-flag finish.
 
Smith crossed the finish line .196 seconds ahead of runner-up Edwards.
 
“This is the Southern 500—we’re not supposed to win this thing,” an incredulous Smith radioed to his crew after the race.
 
Brad Keselowski, also on old tires, finished third, with polesitter Kasey Kahne running fourth and Ryan Newman fifth.
 
The victory was redemption for Smith, who was deprived of an apparent victory at Talladega in 2008 when he was penalized for passing Tony Stewart below the yellow out-of-bounds line that separates the racing surface from the apron.
 
After a final round of green-flag pit stops, Edwards, the Sprint Cup points leader, passed Kahne for the lead as the cars sped into Turn 1. Edwards was comfortably in front when Jeff Burton’s engine blew and oiled the track with 10 laps left, causing the 10th caution of the night.
 
After Smith, Keselowski and Stewart stayed out, taking the top three spots under caution, Edwards climbed to second after a restart on Lap 363 of the scheduled 367-lap race. The previous caution, however, was only a prelude to a wild three-wide wreck involving Clint Bowyer, Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch later that same lap. That set up the two-lap sprint as the race went to overtime, with Edwards and Smith taking the green flag side-by-side.
 
Kahne, Edwards and Harvick took turns out front during the second half of the race after Busch made an unscheduled pit stop.
 
Busch had led 78 laps when a vibration forced him to the pits on Lap 205. A caution for Jimmie Johnson’s spin on the frontstretch trapped Busch a lap down. The driver of the No. 18 didn’t get the lap back until he received a free pass as the highest scored lapped car for a restart on Lap 244.
 
Busch had worked his way up to 12th before NASCAR called the ninth caution of the race on Lap 280 for debris on the backstretch.
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Sunday, April 3, 2011

Martinsville Speedway 62nd Annual Goody's Fast Relief 500 Points Report


    
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