Monster Energy Cup Category

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service Note: This is the fifth in a five-part series of features detailing the careers of each of the five inductees for the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2018. The inductees, who will be officially enshrined on Jan. 19 (8 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), are Red Byron, Ray Evernham, Ron Hornaday Jr., Ken Squier and Robert Yates. For tickets to the Induction Ceremony, visit nascarhall.com/inductees/induction-ceremony.  CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Even before answering the first question from a ready group of racing reportersRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor When Danica Patrick wraps up her racing career with the Daytona 500/Indianapolis 500 double this year, she will be doing so in familiar colors. GoDaddy, which sponsored Patrick for her first six seasons in NASCAR and her last two in IndyCar, announced on Thursday that they would be returning to sponsor her again in her final two races. “This is definitely the way I want to finish my racing career — at these two iconic races, backed by my iconic, long-time sponsor,” said Patrick. “GoDaddyRead More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer * Editor’s note: Motorsports Tribune will be previewing the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season for the top-30 drivers in the series leading into next month’s 60th running of the Daytona 500. Age: 24 Years in Cup: Two Career Wins: One NASCAR Xfinity Series Victory It seems that one of NASCAR’s most recent journeyman drivers has finally found a permanent home. Alex Bowman will take over the reins of the No. 88 Nationwide Camaro ZL1 at Hendrick Motorsports. In 2017 Bowman competed sporadically. He finished third the in AdvancedRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Editor’s note: Motorsports Tribune will be previewing the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season for the top-30 drivers in the series leading into next month’s 60th running of the Daytona 500. Age: 26 Years in Cup: Eight (3 full-time, 5 part-time) Career Wins: One (2011 Daytona 500) The past few seasons haven’t been much to write home about for Trevor Bayne and his No. 6 team at Roush Fenway Racing, but in 2017 the team did show a slight improvement in their performance. Bayne scoredRead More

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service Note: This is the third in a five-part series of features detailing the careers of each of the five inductees for the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2018. The inductees, who will be officially enshrined on Jan. 19 (8 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), are Red Byron, Ray Evernham, Ron Hornaday Jr., Ken Squier and Robert Yates. For tickets to the Induction Ceremony, visit nascarhall.com/inductees/induction-ceremony.  Ken Squier, the man who coined the phrase “The Great American Race” to describe theRead More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer Chip Ganassi Racing is on the upswing and shows no signs of slowing down. For the second year in a row, the team made the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs with both Kyle Larson and Jamie McMurray. The team was a threat to win the championship until a blown motor for Larson and a series of events took both drivers out of contention in the second round of the Playoffs. Ganassi’s drivers accounted for 30 top-five and 64 top-10s in the past two seasons.Read More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer It’s hard to define the offseason for Kyle Larson. Larson, like several other Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers traveled to New Zealand to race midgets before returning to the United States for the Chili Bowl Nationals. He competed with NASCAR’s Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Kasey Kahne, Justin Allgaier, J.J. Yeley, and Christopher Bell, along with numerous dirt regulars. However, running the Chili Bowl is not an easy task. Stenhouse was unharmed after his midget flipped into the catch fencing after contact with another car. AllgaierRead More

By Beth Lunkenheimer, NASCAR Contributor Editor’s note: Motorsports Tribune will be previewing the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season for the top-30 drivers in the series leading into next month’s 60th running of the Daytona 500. Age: 37 Years in Cup: 14 Career Wins: One Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Win For the first time since 2011, Paul Menard will have to get to know a new team as he makes the transition from Richard Childress Racing to Wood Brothers Racing heading into the 2018 season. Menard finished 23rd in theRead More

By Indianapolis Motor Speedway INDIANAPOLIS, Monday, Jan. 15, 2018 – Dan Gurney, one of America’s true auto racing heroes, passed away Sunday, Jan. 14 in Southern California following complications with pneumonia. He was 86. A tall, handsome, larger-than-life American who raced in Europe during the late 1950s and 1960s at a time when the American public was generally not following European racing anywhere close to the extent it later would, Gurney enjoyed considerable success overseas, including winning four Formula One World Championship Grand Prix events and sharing the winning carRead More

By Beth Lunkenheimer, NASCAR Contributor Editor’s note: Motorsports Tribune will be previewing the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season for the top-30 drivers in the series leading into next month’s 60th running of the Daytona 500. Age: 36 Years in Cup: 10 Career Wins: One Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Win; Two Xfinity Series Wins For the fifth consecutive season, AJ Allmendinger will return to JTG Daugherty Racing for the 2018 season. The driver of the No. 47 Chevrolet finished the 2017 season 27th in the points standings and ended theRead More