Daytona 500 Tag

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Jamie McMurray started his Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series career driving the No. 40, and he’ll now likely end it with the same car number as Spire Motorsports have partnered up with Chip Ganassi Racing and announced Friday that McMurray will pilot the No. 40 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in the 61st Daytona 500 Feb. 17. The 2010 Daytona 500 champion will have McDonald’s, Cessna and Bass Pro Shops as his sponsors and is also eligible to compete in the Advanced Auto Parts Clash Feb. 10 dueRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Returning to the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series for the first time since 2014, Ryan Truex will team up with Tommy Baldwin Racing in an attempt to make the field for the 61st running of the Daytona 500. The 26-year old Mayetta, New Jersey native will pilot the team’s No. 71 entry in its first race back in NASCAR’s top division since the end of the 2017 season. “I’m excited to have Ryan back in a Tommy Baldwin Racing car,” team owner Tommy Baldwin said. “WeRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Editor’s note: Motorsports Tribune will be previewing the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season for the full-time drivers in the series leading into February’s running of the Daytona 500. Age: 34 Years in Cup: 11 years Career Wins: Zero Cup wins, one Xfinity Series win In his first season with Front Row Motorsports, Michael McDowell kicked the 2018 season off with a bang, finishing the Daytona 500 with a ninth-place finish and setting the tempo for the remainder of the season to come. Though he andRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer After being a one-off sponsorship at Darlington Raceway with Matt Kenseth last Labor Day Weekend, Oscar Mayer have extended its partnership with Roush Fenway Racing, becoming a primary sponsor for Ryan Newman’s No. 6 Ford Mustang. Their new partnership will begin in the 61st Daytona 500 Feb. 17, a race that Newman was triumphant in 2008. Jack Roush has two wins in the “Great American Race” (2008 and 2012) that came at the hands of Kenseth. In addition to Daytona, they’ll be on the car forRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Now that the 2018 NASCAR season is complete and the year is drawing to a close, we’ll take this opportunity to take a look back at the year that was. On the docket today is Part One of the 10 most memorable moments of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season. 20 Years Later: Austin Dillon Returns No. 3 to Daytona 500 Victory Lane In 1998, Dale Earnhardt finally broke through with his first win in the Daytona 500 after coming so close for so manyRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer StarCom Racing confirmed Monday that they’ve purchased a Charter previously held by Richard Childress Racing’s defunct No. 27 team, and have extended their partnership with Landon Cassill, who will run the No. 00 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 full-time in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series in 2019. Fresh off their first full season, SCR has recently acquired a new 20,000 square foot home in Salisbury, NC to operate their program, and will be powered by ECR Engines in an attempt to have more horsepower in Cassill’s carRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer With the 61st running of the Daytona 500 being 65 days away, Richard Childress Racing announced Friday their season-long 50th Anniversary celebration by unveiling two golden cars, driven by defending winner Austin Dillon and rookie Daniel Hemric, that’ll compete in the “Great American Race” Feb. 17. Dillon will have a gold No. 3 Dow Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 and for the Advance Auto Parts Clash Feb. 10, he’ll also run a gold car, with Bass Pro Shops being his primary sponsor. Dillon’s Clash car resembles a throwbackRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Days after announcing his official departure from Stewart-Haas Racing, Kurt Busch has landed a ride with Chip Ganassi Racing for the upcoming 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season, taking over the No. 1 Chevrolet. In his 20th season in NASCAR’s top division, Busch will be bringing Monster Energy on board as a primary sponsor and he will team up with Kyle Larson in the team’s two-car stable. “I am tremendously proud to be joining Chip Ganassi Racing and the prestigious group of alumni,” said Busch.Read More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor We may only be six weeks into the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season, but it’s never too early to start looking ahead to what is in store for next season. With that in mind, the sanctioning body released the 2019 Cup Series schedule on Tuesday, allowing fans and participants of all sorts ample time to get their planning done for the year. The 2019 schedule looks virtually identical to this year’s schedule, with the season kicking off with the Daytona 500 on FebruaryRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor For the first time in 18 years, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. didn’t have a race to run when the Daytona 500 went green last Sunday and for the 15-time Most Popular Driver, that was fine by him. While in Daytona to support his Xfinity Series teams and serve as the Grand Marshal, Earnhardt was asked how he felt not having to worry about being behind the wheel for the Great American Race and he noted how refreshing it was to not have the pressure of raceRead More