Monster Energy Cup Category

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service LAS VEGAS – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Christopher Bell got back in his pole-qualifying good mojo mode Saturday morning at Las Vegas Motor Speedway – claiming the pole position for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series South Point 400 – his series-best sixth of the year and fourth in just the last eight races. His No. 20 JGR Toyota turned a lap of 186.335 mph around the 1.5-mile Las Vegas high banks securing the sixth pole for Toyota in the season’s seven NASCAR Cup Series PlayoffRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor CONCORD, N.C. – Through two rounds of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, the 16-driver starting field has now been cut in half, with four more drivers getting axed from title contention following Sunday’s Bank of America ROVAL 400 at Charlotte. Entering the day, Tyler Reddick, Bubba Wallace, Ross Chastain, and Kyle Busch were the four drivers on the outside looking in, with Brad Keselowski hanging on by a thread, just two-points ahead of the cut-off line. By the time the checkered flag flew, Reddick had racedRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service  CONCORD, N.C. – Road course aficionado AJ Allmendinger stole some thunder from the NASCAR Cup Series Playoff drivers with a convincing victory in Sunday’s Bank of America Roval 400 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course.  Driving the No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet, Allmendinger led twice for a race-high 46 laps, including the last 33, and beat runner-up William Byron to the finish line by 0.666 seconds to win his first Cup race of the season, his first at the Charlotte Road Course andRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor CONCORD, N.C. – Tyler Reddick will start Sunday’s Bank of America ROVAL 400 at Charlotte Motor Speedway as he looks to race his way into the next round of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. Entering the weekend nine points below the cut-off to advance, the driver of the No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota showed off his road course prowess on Saturday by putting up the second-fastest time in practice and going one better in qualifying with a lap of one minute, 21.214 seconds at 102.839 mphRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor CONCORD, N.C. – There are numerous adjectives that can be used to describe this weekend’s race on the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course: unpredictable, volatile, treacherous, chaotic, etc. One thing is for sure, Sunday’s Bank of America ROVAL 400 is going to be a hell of a ride, with four drivers getting cut from the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs when the checkered flag waves. In an effort to spice things up back in 2018, Charlotte officials elected to switch from running another race on the 1.5-mileRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor The 2024 NASCAR Cup Series schedule is finally here. After weeks of piecing together next year’s schedule like a puzzle, the full picture was finally revealed on Wednesday when the sanctioning body rolled out the full lineup of tracks and dates for NASCAR’s premier series. While there are many mainstays that remain in known positions on the calendar, there have also been a number of changes made to the schedule, including the debut of Iowa Speedway next June.  Since opening in 2006, the Rusty Wallace designedRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor TALLADEGA, Ala. – Kevin Harvick’s runner-up result in Sunday’s YellaWood 500 at Talladega Superspeedway was nullified by disqualification in the hours after the finish, erasing a season-best result for the No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing team. After crossing the line 0.012 seconds behind Ryan Blaney, Harvick’s car was wheeled into post-race inspection, where issues with the fasteners on his windshield were discovered. NASCAR announced that the team had violated rule 14.5.6.2.F, which reads that the windshield fasteners must remain secure for the duration of the event. PriorRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Riley Herbst proved his worth among NASCAR’s elite racers with a ninth-place finish in Sunday’s YellaWood 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. Throughout the 188-lap contest, the Xfinity Series regular led five times for 10 laps which also marked Herbst’s first Cup race he’s ever led. As the laps were winding down, Herbst’s No. 36 Front Row Motorsports Ford Mustang was in the mix for the win, but also became an assistance for Ford in order to keep the Hendrick Motorsports train from running away with the topRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor TALLADEGA, Ala. – The Round of 12 comes down to one race. Following the conclusion of Sunday’s YellaWood 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, the picture has become clearer for the drivers not yet locked into the next round of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. Among the 10 drivers still hoping to punch their ticket to the Round of 8, there are some that just need a solid day on the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL, while others will need a win or some help to be able toRead More

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service TALLADEGA, Ala. – Ryan Blaney’s No. 12 Team Penske Ford crossed the finish line about a foot ahead of Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick to claim victory in a thrilling final 10-lap push to the YellaWood 500 checkered flag at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway on Sunday. With the crucial Playoff win – Blaney’s third on the famed 2.66-mile high-banks – the driver of the No. 12 Team Penske Ford punched his ticket to the next round of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs after being points awayRead More