Can-Am 500 Tag

By David Morgan, NASCAR Contributor After being thrust into the spotlight as the replacement driver for Dale Earnhardt, Jr. in the No. 88 car for Hendrick Motorsports, Alex Bowman has impressed in his nine starts for the team, but took it to a new level at Phoenix, scoring a sixth place finish. As a native of Tucson, Arizona, Phoenix serves as Bowman’s home track and in Bowman’s own words is a track that has “always been a place that’s been close to my heart,” so running well on the desertRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service AVONDALE, Ariz. – Saving his best effort for the final round of Friday’s knockout qualifying session at Phoenix International Raceway, substitute driver Alex Bowman won the pole for Sunday’s Can-Am 500 (2:30 p.m. ET on NBC), the race that will determine the Championship 4 drivers in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. Filling in behind the wheel of the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet for Dale Earnhardt Jr., Bowman covered the one-mile distance in 25.619 seconds (140.521 mph) to win the first CoorsRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service AVONDALE, Ariz. – Though he’s last in the Chase standings, 34 points below the current cut line with one race left in the Round of 8, Kurt Busch already has had plenty of reason to celebrate this month. After all, his beloved Chicago Cubs rallied from a 3-1 deficit to win the World Series and break a 108-year championship drought. Likewise, Busch will have to rally from two lackluster races in the Chase’s Round of 8. Barring an extraordinary set of circumstances, he’ll haveRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service AVONDALE, Ariz. – Six drivers vying for two spots in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship 4 Round at Homestead-Miami Speedway just might be a recipe for bad blood – particularly since three of the six drive for the same organization. “There’s an opportunity for two or three of us to be disappointed – or one of us,” says Denny Hamlin, who is battling his Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Kyle Busch and Matt Kenseth, along with Joey Logano, Kevin Harvick and KurtRead More

SHOW #436 – Guest: Alex Bowman – We recap the Texas weekend, run down the Chase scenarios, Dale Jr. made of wax, Dale Jr. pulled over, plus a full Phoenix preview. Hosted by Kerry Murphey and Toby Christie DOWNLOAD HERE CREDITS: Hosts: Kerry Murphey & Toby Christie Executive Producer: Kerry Murphey Music: Russell Nash Audio Director Voice Over: Thomas Moog SUBSCRIBE FREE HERE RSS FEED RADIO STATIONS CLICK HERE SUBSCRIBE FROM iTUNES: Take us with you! Subscribe to our audio shows from iTunes, and they will automatically show up on yourRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Contributor The Round of 8 all comes down to this. After last week’s rain delayed race at Texas, the stage is set for the final race of the round to determine which drivers will move onto Homestead and which drivers will see their championship hopes vanish in the Valley of the Sun. Phoenix has resided on the Cup Series schedule since 1988, but the track looks completely different than it did 28 years ago, having undergone a reconfiguration back in 2011. The reconfiguration added progressive bankingRead More