All posts by David Morgan

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – When it comes to iconic names in the Daytona 500, Richard Petty is second to none, and on Sunday, his car brought home a second-place finish in the Great American Race with heralded rookie Darrell Wallace, Jr. behind the wheel. After an offseason of turmoil that saw changes in manufacturers, drivers, shop locations, and more, Richard Petty Motorsports has come out swinging in 2018 with Wallace as their driver, showcasing their new alliance with Richard Childress Racing and Chevrolet on theRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The first part of the “Danica Double” didn’t quite go to plan in Sunday’s Daytona 500. Making her final NASCAR start, Danica Patrick gave herself a fighting chance to try and win the Great American Race, but the roulette wheel that is restrictor plate racing, just didn’t fall her way as she got caught up in a crash on lap 101. After starting 28th, Patrick was biding her time as she worked her way forward in the pack, but when thingsRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – For Jimmie Johnson, the third time was not the charm. After losing two cars already in Speedweeks at Daytona International Speedway, Johnson was down to his third car of the week for the Daytona 500 and things didn’t get any better for the seven-time Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion. Johnson started from the rear of the field and was working his way forward when disaster struck on the final lap of Stage 1. When Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. made a miraculous saveRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Ahead of the 60th running of the Daytona 500, two members of the NASCAR Hall of Fame – Richard Petty and Ray Evernham – looked back at their memories of the Great American Race and expressed just how much this track and race means to them and the sport as a whole. Richard Petty, one of the members of the inaugural Hall of Fame class in 2010, is on the Mount Rushmore of NASCAR, both in terms of championships and DaytonaRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – For the second day in a row at the World Center of Racing, one of the smaller teams in the NASCAR garage was celebrating a top-five finish when the checkered flag flew. Kaz Grala, who pilots the No. 24 Ford for JGL Racing, provided the cause for celebration, surviving Saturday’s PowerShares QQQ 300 at Daytona to bring his team a fourth-place finish. The top-five marks the second straight race at Daytona that JGL entries scored top-five finishes after Dakoda Armstrong andRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The closest finish in NASCAR…ever. Elliott Sadler just wishes he would have been on the winning side of it. Falling 0.000 seconds short to his JR Motorsports teammate Tyler Reddick, Sadler had to settle for second place at Daytona for the third time in his Xfinity Series career and the third straight race at restrictor plate tracks. “I’ve been close here a lot of times, but this one hurt a lot today because you didn’t know,” said Sadler. “Did we? OrRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — In the final practice session ahead of Sunday’s 60th running of the Daytona 500, Darrell Wallace, Jr. took his No. 43 Chevrolet to the top of the board, posting the fastest time in the final hour of preparation before the Great American Race. Wallace turned in a time of 45.696 seconds, 196.954 mph, followed by Daniel Suarez, who was fastest in the two practice sessions on Friday, in second. With Richard Petty Motorsports’ new alliance with Richard Childress Racing and ChevroletRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — For the fourth straight year, a Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet will lead the field to green in the NASCAR Xfinity Series season opener at Daytona. With a lap of 47.451 seconds, 189.310 mph, Daniel Hemric, who finished fourth in the championship standings last season, scored his second career pole. He will be joined on the front row in the Powershares QQQ 300 by another Chevrolet in Kyle Larson. The remainder of the top-12 went to Matt Tifft, Joey Logano, Spencer Gallagher,Read More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Restrictor plate races at Daytona and Talladega always seem to be the great equalizer, with teams big and small all having a shot at taking home the win. In Friday night’s NextEra Energy Resources 250 at Daytona, that was indeed the case as Joe Nemechek delivered at top-five finish to his team, NEMCO Motorsports, for the second year in a row with a third-place result. His finish marks his best finish in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series since Texas inRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — While he may just be in a fill-in role until his son Todd turns 18, David Gilliland is making good use of the Kyle Busch Motorsports horsepower at his disposal by winning the pole for Friday night’s NextEra Energy Resources 250 at Daytona. Gilliland, the 2007 Daytona 500 polesitter, was the fastest in the first round of qualifying and backed it up in the second round with a lap of 49.017 seconds, 183.610 mph, to score his first career pole inRead More