Erik Jones Tag

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service AVONDALE, Ariz. – In a Saturday qualifying session that provided validation that the cream rises to the top, Kyle Busch earned his first pole position of the season, as seven Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoff drivers claimed the top seven positions on the grid. Navigating one-mile ISM Raceway in a blistering 25.693 seconds 140.116 mph, Busch edged Joey Logano (139.752 mph) by .067 seconds for Sunday’s Bluegreen Vacations 500 (2:30 p.m. ET on NBC, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), the race that willRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service FORT WORTH, Tex. – For Kevin Harvick, Texas is the new Phoenix. Overcoming a pit road penalty for a tire placed in his pit box too early, Harvick took control of the AAA Texas 500 as the sun set on Texas Motor Speedway and won his third straight Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoff race at the 1.5-mile track in Cowtown. Locked into the Championship 4 race two weeks hence at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Harvick can now breathe easy heading into the final Round ofRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service FORT WORTH, Tex. – Kevin Harvick took the first step toward getting back on the right side of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoff cut line, winning the pole for Sunday’s AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway (3 p.m. ET on NBCSN, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Harvick, who trails fourth-place Joey Logano by 14 points entering the second race of the Round of 8, toured the 1.5-mile track in 28.465 seconds (189.707 mph) to win his second Busch Pole Award atRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor The penultimate round of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs rolls on to Texas Motor Speedway after a drama-filled race at Martinsville a week ago. On Sunday, the stock car racing elite will take on the 1.5-mile track with a pair of six-shooters, a cowboy hat and a berth in the Championship 4 on the line should any of the remaining playoff drivers find themselves in victory lane when the checkered flag falls on the AAA Texas 500. First joining the circuit in 1997,Read More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service KANSAS CITY, Kan. – As Denny Hamlin was finishing off a dominating day in Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway, Chase Elliott stole perhaps an even bigger prize—a spot in the Round of 8 in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. Hamlin, who led 153 of 277 laps, crossed the finish line .128 seconds ahead of Elliott in a second overtime to secure his fifth victory of the season, his second at Kansas Speedway and the 36th of his career. But theRead More

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service It was a friendly golf wager made good on the race track. Denny Hamlin began marking his 500th career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race start this weekend with a record pole-winning speed Saturday afternoon at Dover (Del.) International Speedway. And Hamlin earned his – and Toyota’s – second pole of the season by a mere .003-seconds over the very guy he made that all-in-fun wager with – Kyle Larson. “I got him, I got him,’’ Hamlin said smiling after qualifying for Sunday’s DrydeneRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor CONCORD, N.C. – Sometimes you’re the windshield, sometimes you’re the bug. Weeks after winning the Bojangles’ Southern 500 at Darlington to punch his ticket into the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs and solidifying his place at Joe Gibbs Racing for 2020, Erik Jones has been on a downward spiral ever since and things didn’t get much better in the first elimination race of the postseason. Since his Darlington win, Jones hadn’t scored a finish better than 36th in the races since, putting him inRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor CONCORD, N.C. – A year after coming agonizingly close to winning at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval, Jimmie Johnson got the Bank of America Roval 400 weekend started on the right foot Friday by posting the fastest time in first practice with a lap of 1 minute, 20.968 seconds. Kyle Larson was second on the leaderboard, followed by William Byron, Clint Bowyer, Matt DiBenedetto, Chase Elliott, Erik Jones, Daniel Suarez, Ryan Preece, and defending race winner Ryan Blaney. Outside of the top-10, Playoff drivers finishedRead More

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The scenario for Sunday’s much-anticipated Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoff race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course provides exactly the intensity NASCAR fans want, but for the Playoff drivers competing to advance to the Round of 12 – the recently added road course also presents high anxiety. Coming into Sunday’s Bank of America ROVAL 400 (2:30 p.m. ET on NBC, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) the four Playoff drivers currently ranked outside the top 12 in the driverRead More

By Seth Eggert, NASCAR Correspondent The Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond Raceway saw the first disqualification in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series since the policy was instated prior to the season. Joe Gibbs Racing’s Erik Jones earned the dubious honor after he finished fourth, part of an initial sweep by JGR of the top-four positions. The No. 20 Craftsman Toyota Camry is now credited with a 38th-place finish. Jones also loses his stage finishes, ninth and fourth. Post-race, Jones’ No. 20, along with the other Playoff Grid carsRead More