Daytona International Speedway Tag

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Following last Sunday’s road course race at Sonoma Raceway, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series heads back to where it all began, Daytona International Speedway, for this weekend’s 58th running of the Coke Zero 400, the third restrictor plate race of the season. From 1959 until 1987, the 160 lap, 400 mile shootout at the World Center of Racing, then called the Firecracker 400, was held on July 4th, even if the holiday fell in the middle of the week. Beginning in 1988, the raceRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor After losing a left rear wheel in last Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Dover, Kyle Busch’s No. 18 team was handed a stiff penalty from NASCAR on Wednesday, which will leave Busch without his crew chief and two pit crew members for the next four races. Just 19 laps into the AAA 400 at Dover, Busch made his way down pit road for routine service under caution, but that’s when everything went wrong for his Joe Gibbs Racing team. Before any ofRead More

By Seth Eggert, NASCAR Writer For this week’s edition of Climbing the Ladder, Seth Eggert sat down with Kaz Grala. Grala is an 18-year-old NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver, driving the No. 33 Kiklos Greek Extra Virgin Olive Oil Chevrolet Silverado for GMS Racing and is also contending for the 2017 Rookie of the Year award in the Truck Series. Seth Eggert: How did you become interested in Motorsports? Kaz Grala: Motorsports itself is really what interested me. Once you try it, it’s hard to lose that feeling. MyRead More

By Seth Eggert, NASCAR Writer In the 2017 Daytona 500, D.J. Kennington and Gaunt Brothers Racing (GBR) made an impressive run before getting wiped out in ‘The Big One’ just passed the end of Stage 2. Now, both Kennington and GBR will team up once again for the GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. The Daytona 500 marked the first-ever Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race for GBR. For Kennington, a native of St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada, his start also marked the first start in the Daytona 500 for a CanadianRead More

By Beth Lunkenheimer, NASCAR Contributor Dale Earnhardt Jr. just completed his 600th career start in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series last weekend at Auto Club Speedway. During that time, the 42-year-old has 26 career victories, including two Daytona 500 wins. Oh, and that doesn’t include that he is also a 14-time Most Popular Driver. “I just wanted to drive. I wanted to race cars for a living. I wanted to do it well enough to be able to afford to make a living doing it,” Earnhardt said. “I didn’tRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Contributor To say that Kurt Busch’s NASCAR career has been a rollercoaster of a ride would be an understatement. From the moment the Las Vegas native entered the sport, he has endured the highest of highs and the lowest of lows throughout his 18 year career, but after winning the Daytona 500 last Sunday, Busch is still riding the high of winning NASCAR’s biggest race. Following his win, Busch not only celebrated with his team into the wee hours of the morning, but also went onRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Michael Waltrip had a puncher’s chance and gave it his best shot on Sunday. The two-time Daytona 500 champion announced last month that the 59th edition of ‘The Great American Race’ would be his last in Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series competition. However in his 30th appearance of the event, the 53-year-old Kentucky native made the most the moment and drove to an impressive 8th place finish at the same track that broke his 462-race winless streak. After starting the day in 30th,Waltrip avoided disaster in theRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – His car damaged in a wreck on the backstretch and held together with tape, Kurt Busch grabbed the lead on the final lap of the 59th Daytona 500 on Sunday and took the checkered flag in the Great American Race as a capstone to a checkered career that has trended upward since Busch joined Stewart-Haas Racing in 2014. In a race that featured the first test of a new three-stage race format in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series—and featuredRead More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor Following in the footsteps of a legendary father in motorsports is good in one aspect, as it usually opens doors for you that most drivers won’t have an opportunity to open. However the downfall of carrying on a legacy is having lofty expectations from a fan base that want you to be as good as your father. Chase Elliott’s father — Bill — was one of the greatest to ever drive around Daytona International Speedway. The elder Elliott won the Daytona 500 twice (1985 and ’87)Read More

By Seth Eggert, NASCAR Writer At restrictor plates races, including the Daytona 500 always expect the unexpected. That’s exactly what most Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers, including Kyle Larson, were thinking as they were about to experience stage racing for the first time. In qualifying, Larson put his No. 42 Target Chevrolet SS 16th on the grid. This put Larson eighth on the grid in the second Can-Am Duel. He finished ninth in a relatively uneventful race. Larson started his Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates in the 16thRead More