Charlotte Motor Speedway Tag

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer Although Jimmie Johnson ran inside the top-10 for much of the Federated Auto Parts 400, the seven-time Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion still flew under the radar at Richmond Raceway. While the “Big Three” and Brad Keselowski dominated the race, Johnson quietly finished the race in eighth place. After a poor qualifying effort left him starting 21st, Johnson’s No. 48 Lowe’s for Pros Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 didn’t break into the top-10 until the second stage. A broken trackbar adjuster and a pit road speeding penaltyRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service CONCORD, N.C. – AJ Allmendinger didn’t hold back when he talked to reporters during a break in Tuesday’s road course test session at Charlotte Motor Speedway. “I think there’s going to be a lot of contact, for sure,” Allmendinger predicted. “Through the infield, it’s pretty narrow. In general, through the infield, I think there’s going to be contact.” The bus stop chicane on the backstretch may be the most challenging section of the 2.28-mile course. Drivers will carry tremendous speed into those two quick cornersRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service CONCORD, N.C. – Unable to contain himself, Kyle Busch let out an elated scream as his car entered Turn 3 on the 400th and final lap of Sunday night’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. And now, for the driver of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, you’re going to need a bigger broom. From start to finish, Busch fashioned a dominating victory at the only active Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series track at which he had never won a points event. That makesRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer For the third time this season, Denny Hamlin crossed the line in third during Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, dominated by his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch. After the race, Hamlin felt he could’ve battled with his teammate, but needed more speed during short runs. “I wish we would’ve won. I wish we had a little bit more speed. We were just a little bit off the 18 (Kyle Busch). It seemed like a half a tenth a lap or so,” HamlinRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer After a dismal Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race on May 19th, Alex Bowman regained his confidence at Charlotte Motor Speedway, thanks to a ninth-place finish during Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600. Not only the finish marked Bowman’s fourth top-10 of the season, it was his No. 88 Nationwide Chevrolet Camaro pit crew’s performance that’ll be best remembered after several shortcomings of scoring stage points. Bowman said they were on top of things all night, and brought him confidence after starting deep in the field. “Yeah, for sure,Read More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor CONCORD, N.C. – The 2018 season hasn’t been what any of the Chevrolet teams, Chip Ganassi Racing included, has expected, but on the 1.5 mile tracks the team seems to have hit on something. With a sixth-place finish in Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte, McMurray scored his second top-10 finish of the season, with his first coming at Texas – a sister track to Charlotte. “We had a really good car and we’ve come a long way, especially the Chevy’s from the beginning of the yearRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor CONCORD, N.C. – It’s been a whirlwind 24 hours for Team Penske. Not only did they win Sunday’s Indianapolis 500 with Will Power, they also had the opportunity to sweep the NASCAR weekend at Charlotte with Brad Keselowski. However, the weekend sweep was not to be for Keselowski and his No. 2 team as he finished fourth in the Coca-Cola 600. “I ran as hard as I could tonight and the team did a great job the last few stops to put us in a positionRead More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer CONCORD, N.C. – A pit road speeding penalty forced Martin Truex, Jr. to climb through the field. Truex, who was possibly the only driver that could contend with Coca Cola 600 winner Kyle Busch, spent the rest of the race chasing down those ahead. Truex, who dominated Charlotte Motor Speedway in 2016, was nowhere near as dominate in 2018. Even though he made quick work of the field, rocketing from outside the top-20 to second, there was no catching Busch. In a bid to keepRead More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer CONCORD, N.C. – Even a run through the spin cycle couldn’t hamper Jimmie Johnson in the Coca Cola 600. Johnson’s No. 48 Lowe’s Patriotic Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, along with most of the Chevrolet contingent, ran well throughout the race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. In the late stages of the race, Johnson fought with Chase Elliott, Brad Keselowski, Jamie McMurray, and Kyle Larson for position. The 18-year Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series veteran boldly took McMurray and Chase Elliott three wide on the frontstretch, making theRead More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer CONCORD, N.C. – A right front tire failure will keep Kevin Harvick from scoring three-straight points paying victories for the second time this season. The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver was running inside the top-five in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway at the time. This is the first time that Harvick has failed to finish the prestigious race in his 18-year career. It was also the first time that he has finished last in a race across all three of NASCAR’s NationalRead More