All posts by David Morgan

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

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — After the field for the Daytona 500 was set with Thursday night’s Can-Am Duels, the 40 cars that will contest the Great American Race took to the track for two practice sessions on Friday, with Daniel Suarez laying down the fastest times in both sessions. Suarez led a Toyota trio at the top of the board in the first practice session, with a lap of 45.036 seconds, 199.840 mph, ahead of his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Denny Hamlin, and 2017 seriesRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — After a season that saw Chevrolet miss out on the top-four in the final championship standings in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series for the first time in recent memory, a new car model for the 2018 season has the Bowtie Brigade energized for the season to come. Late last year, Chevrolet unveiled the Camaro ZL1 model that would be replacing the outgoing SS, marking the first redesign for the manufacturer since the Gen 6 was rolled out in 2013. RightRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Have the Can-Am Duels at Daytona outlived their usefulness? The evidence certainly seems to point that way. Since the outset of the Daytona 500, qualifying for the biggest race of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season has been a mix of single car qualifying for the front row and qualifying races to set the remainder of the field. In seasons past, with more cars entered than the field allowed, the two qualifying races held the Thursday before the 500 have been full of dramaRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor As we head into the 60th running of the Daytona 500 this coming Sunday, we pause to take a look back on this “Throwback Thursday” at one of the most memorable Daytona 500’s in history, the 1998 Daytona 500. For 20 years, Dale Earnhardt had come to Daytona International Speedway to capture glory in the “Great American Race” only to suffer defeat in every way possible. Earnhardt had won nearly every other event held at the famous 2.5 mile superspeedway, but the Daytona 500 stillRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor The 30th season of the CBS reality show “The Amazing Race” is underway and this season’s cast included two IndyCar drivers, 2016 Indianapolis 500 winner Alexander Rossi and Conor Daly, among the 11 teams competing for the $1 million prize. As the duo races around the world, we’ll track how they’re doing in the race and see if they can capture the checkered flag when all is said and done. ***SPOLIERS AHEAD*** With just four legs remaining in the race, the five teams still inRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor For Jimmie Johnson, having to sit at the championship banquet last year and watch another driver being celebrated up on the championship stage after having been there the year before only served to further fuel his desire to make it back up there for a record eighth time. In one of his worst seasons of his storied Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series career, Johnson won three races and made the playoffs, but found himself eliminated in the third round at Phoenix, dropping to a finalRead More