2017 Tag

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor *Editor’s note: Motorsports Tribune will be previewing the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Season for 24 drivers. We will release one driver preview per day over a 24-day stretch. Age: 26 Years in Cup: 3 Career Wins: 0 Biggest Accomplishment: 2013 NASCAR Xfinity Series Champion In 2016, Austin Dillon emerged as a driver to watch as a possible championship contender going forward. Driving for his grandfather’s much-maligned race team — Richard Childress Racing — things looked to finally go in the right direction last season. Dillon rackedRead More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor It was beginning to look like the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season would get off to an inauspicious start, as the first race of the year — The Clash at Daytona — had yet to find an entitlement sponsor with just a month until the race was set to start. However, Advance Auto Parts was announced as the new sponsor for the season-opening exhibition race on Wednesday. According to a track press release, the automotive aftermarket parts provider has also signed on to beRead More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor After an explosive 2016 campaign, which saw Martin Truex Jr. collect four victories, lead 1,809 laps and cement himself as a formidable championship contender, the Mayetta, New Jersey native is being rewarded with more sponsorship backing. Auto-Owners Insurance, which adorned the hood of the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing machine for three races in 2016, will double that commitment for the next two years according to a press release from the race team. “Teaming up with Furniture Row Racing has been an outstanding fit forRead More

By Aaron Bearden, Contributing Writer *Editor’s note: Motorsports Tribune will be previewing the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season for 24 drivers. We will release one driver preview per day over a 24-day stretch. Age: 39 Years in Cup: 15 Career Wins: 17 Biggest Accomplishment: 2008 Daytona 500 Champion 2016 was a surprisingly inconsistent season for one of NASCAR’s most consistent drivers, but the good news for Ryan Newman is that he’ll have a chance to return to form in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series with Richard Childress Racing (RCR)Read More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor Earlier this week, Carl Edwards announced that he was stepping away from NASCAR just a little less than two months removed from being one of four drivers with a shot at the championship in Homestead, Florida. In his press conference, Edwards cited happiness with his achievements in his career, wanting to stay healthy, and spending more time with his family as reasons for his departure from Joe Gibbs Racing and a sport that consumes your life for 38 of the 52 weeks out of theRead More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor Another ripple effect of Carl Edwards leaving the sport, is where do his former sponsors go? Obviously Arris will be sticking around to sponsor Daniel Suarez’s Rookie of the Year campaign, but what about the other affiliated sponsors from the No. 19 team? Sports Clips — who had sponsored Edwards for the last couple of years, has announced via their website that they will be moving their primary sponsorship over to Denny Hamlin’s No. 11 Toyota Camry for two races, and they will adorn theRead More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor *Editor’s note: Motorsports Tribune will be previewing the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season for 24 drivers. We will release one driver preview per day over a 24-day stretch. Age: 23 Years in Cup: 1 Career Wins: 0 Biggest Accomplishment: Led 252 laps en route to winning Xfinity Race at Iowa in 2015 Ryan Blaney flashed signs of brilliance throughout his rookie campaign in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, but overall his first year was wildly inconsistent. Blaney’s best finish on the season was fourth,Read More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor One of the power house organizations in the Truck Series, ThorSport Racing is making a slew of changes to their team this offseason. An interview with Rico Abreu with Motorsport.com revealed that the young short track superstar will not run full-time with the organization in 2017. Abreu cited sponsorship as the reason in the interview. “The way sponsorship goes, sometimes things change. That’s just the way things go. I’m not going to give up on it. I’m just going to take a step back,” saidRead More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor Nobody expected to wake up Tuesday morning to news that one of the four drivers who competed for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship would be leaving the sport. However, a report from Tom Jensen of Fox Sports suggests that Carl Edwards will step away from NASCAR in 2017. According to the report, Edwards will be pursuing interests outside of driving a race car. Joe Gibbs Racing has a press conference scheduled for Wednesday at 10 a.m. ET, and it is expected that EdwardsRead More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor *Editor’s note: Motorsports Tribune will be previewing the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Season for 24 drivers. We will release one driver preview per day over a 24-day stretch. Age: 42 Years in Cup: 18 Career Wins: 26 Biggest Accomplishment: two-time Daytona 500 champion Last season started off with such promise for Dale Earnhardt Jr. For the last few years, the sport’s most popular driver had been among the sport’s most consistent drivers. But the 2016 campaign started off inauspiciously for Earnhardt with a crashRead More