1000Bulbs.com 500 Tag

By David Morgan, Associate Editor TALLADEGA, Ala. – Round One of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs had the Charlotte ROVAL as the big wild card and this weekend the wild card race of the second round of the Playoffs looms large as the series rolls into Talladega Superspeedway for Sunday’s running of the 1000Bulbs.com 500. Racing at Talladega has always been crazy from the time the track opened back in 1969. From the driver boycott of the first race that led to unknown driver Richard Brickhouse scoring hisRead More

By Seth Eggert, NASCAR Correspondent Contact under caution was the ‘highlight’ of the day for Clint Bowyer. The Drydene 400 was uncharacteristically quiet in regard to cautions at Dover International Speedway. With just one natural caution, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoff Grid drivers had little chance move up the running order. Bowyer’s No. 14 ITsaavy / Haas Ford Mustang started mid-pack. While several of his playoff competitors had trouble early, the Stewart-Haas Racing driver quietly moved forward. Bowyer didn’t break into the top-10 until the end of theRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Points are excruciating heading into the Round of 12 cutoff race at Kansas Speedway Sunday, and Chip Ganassi Racing’s No. 42 team piloted by Kyle Larson is no different as the team announced Thursday they’ll appeal their L1 penalty handed out earlier in the week. NASCAR penalized Larson 10 driver points and Ganassi 10 owner points, fined crew chief Chad Johnston $25,000, and suspended car chief David Bryant due to an infraction found after last Sunday’s 1000Bulbs.com 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. The infraction in subject wasRead More

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – As is the case at the inevitably unpredictable Talladega Superspeedway, Sunday’s 1000Bulbs.com 500-miler provided a surprise ending and for several season-long championship contenders – an uncertain Playoff situation. The last few laps changed the fortunes of teams generally expected to blaze through at least the opening rounds of Playoff competition. Yet when Talladega’s checkered flag flew, some of the sport’s biggest names were left teetering on the brink of championship elimination as the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series heads to KansasRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor When Jimmie Johnson’s Chevrolet turned sideways and spun in the tri-oval on lap 63, it looked like it was going to be another one of those days for the seven-time champion. Not so fast. Though his car looked like it had visited a short track rather than a superspeedway where aerodynamics is key, Johnson was able to salvage a top-10 finish for himself and the No. 48 team. Returning to the track for the first time since Hendrick Motorsports announced that he and crew chief ChadRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor TALLADEGA, Ala. – “It’s a good day to be in a Ford,” Clint Bowyer said with a laugh after Sunday’s 1000Bulbs.com 500 at Talladega. “We finally got all four cars to the cream of the crop. Oh my gosh, was it awesome.  To be able to work together like that, we could hold on.  They get runs on you and everything else, but as long as you stayed your ground, stayed in line, we’d prevail.” A good day indeed, as Stewart-Haas Racing Fords finished first andRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer It was the Ford show Sunday at Talladega, leading 185 of 193 laps. However, it didn’t stop Denny Hamlin from spoiling the Ford party as he was not only the highest non-Ford finisher, but also dashed their bid of a top-five sweep, finishing fourth in the 1000Bulbs.com 500. Still winless this season, Hamlin gave it all he got to get his No. 11 FedEx Ground Toyota Camry going and stop the Stewart-Haas Racing and Team Penske parade, but it would take a late caution and aRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service TALLADEGA, Ala. – Aric Almirola has been tantalizingly close to winning this season, only to come up empty. On Sunday at Talladega Superspeedway, he finally got to light the victory cigar. When the No. 41 Ford of Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Kurt Busch lost fuel pressure on the final lap of the 1000Bulbs.com 500, Almirola was there to collect his first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series victory since 2014 and clinch a spot in the Round of 8 in the series Playoffs. Almirola’s second careerRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Public enemy No. 1 after the last restrictor plate race at Daytona in July, Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. was able to avoid instigating trouble and finished a salvageable third in Sunday’s 1000Bulbs.com 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, the highest non-Stewart-Haas Racing finisher. Although it was a clean race, Stenhouse felt his No. 17 Sunny D Ford Fusion wasn’t as competitive as his car has been in previous restrictor plate races. “We definitely had to fight hard today,” Stenhouse said. “We weren’t near as good as we normally areRead More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer Handling issues kept Martin Truex, Jr. in the back of the pack for much of the 1000Bulbs.com 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. The defending Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Champion lost much of his cushion over the cutoff for the Round of Eight. With his No. 78 Bass Pro Shops / 5-hour Energy Toyota Camry ‘bouncing’ in the rear of the field, there was not much Truex could do. With the juggernaut of Stewart-Haas Racing dominating the entire race, and a disorganized pack, the points swungRead More