Erik Jones Tag

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Following a wild opening race for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs in Las Vegas, the championship contenders head back to the East Coast this weekend to take on Richmond Raceway in their inaugural playoff date. Often described as the perfectly designed racetrack by drivers, the 0.75-mile track lends itself to not only short track characteristics of beating and banging, but also the characteristics of a larger track with the side-by-side racing that will take place throughout the event. Saturday night’s Federated Auto Parts 400,Read More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor When looking at the 10 races that make up the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, Sunday’s South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway would not have been the one many circled to give the drivers competing for the championship the most issues, but by the time the checkered flag flew, more than half of the 16 playoff drivers ran into problems of some sort. Kyle Larson kicked things off with a blown tire early in Stage 1, but luckily for him, he was ableRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Not even halfway through the opening race for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs and two drivers contending for the championship will leave Las Vegas with Lady Luck not on their side. On lap 147 in Sunday’s South Point 400, Kevin Harvick, who entered the day as the co-points leader suffered a blown tire in Turn 1 sending him hard into the outside wall and collecting fellow playoff driver Erik Jones in the process. The crash would relegate Harvick and Jones to 37th and 38th,Read More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Viva Las Vegas…again? Yes, ladies and gentlemen, for the first time in the track’s history, Las Vegas Motor Speedway will be hosting a second Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race this season as they kick off the 10-race Playoff stretch with Sunday’s running of the South Point 400. Las Vegas began its life on the NASCAR circuit as a 1.5-mile oval with 12 degrees of banking in 1998, but following the 2006 running of the race, the track underwent a massive reconfiguration that saw progressive bankingRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Now that the checkered flag has flown following Monday’s rain-delayed Big Machine Vodka 400 at the Brickyard, the regular season for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series is complete and the 16-driver field for the playoffs is set. Starting next week in Las Vegas, the playoff contenders will begin a 10-week grind toward crowning a champion at the season finale at Homestead-Miami, but how do they really stack up against each other? Kevin Harvick (2050 Points) – Harvick and Kyle Busch can be ranked as 1A andRead More

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service SPEEDWAY, Ind. – It’s been a historical two weeks for Brad Keselowski. The No. 2 Ford driver executed a hard-nosed pass of Denny Hamlin with two laps remaining in Monday’s rain-delayed Big Machine Vodka 400 at the Brickyard to win his first race at prestigious Indianapolis Motor Speedway, one week after visiting Victory Lane in the “crown-jewel” Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. Keselowski earned Team Penske its first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series win at the track to go with the storied organization’s 17 IndianapolisRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor INDIANAPOLIS – The 2018 calendar has reached September and with it comes one of the marquee events on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule, the Big Machine Vodka 400 at the Brickyard, the 25th running of the race at the historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway. First joining the circuit in 1994, the track has provided some classic moments and some that the powers that be would rather forget. The track’s relatively flat surface, combined with narrow corners and high speeds, makes passing a premium on theRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service DARLINGTON, S.C. – By a matter of inches, Brad Keselowski won the race off pit road under the final caution in Sunday night’s Bojangles’ Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. That narrow margin was all the driver of the No. 2 Team Penske Ford needed to secure a stunning victory in one of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series’ marquee races. On the flip side, Keselowski’s first victory of the season left Kyle Larson bitterly disappointed. Larson led 284 of the 367 laps in additionRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor After a weekend off to recharge the batteries before making the final 12 race push to finish off the season, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series heads to one of the crown jewels on the circuit, Darlington Raceway, for this weekend’s running of the Bojangles’ Southern 500. Darlington Raceway has been a staple of the Cup Series since opening in 1950 for its annual Labor Day weekend event with the Southern 500 being held on that date until a controversial decision was made to move theRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service BRISTOL, Tenn. – “Old guys rule!” screamed 40-year-old Kurt Busch after he took the checkered flag in an action-filled Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race on Saturday night at Bristol Motor Speedway. Busch’s first victory since the 2017 Daytona 500 overshadowed a miraculous drive by brother Kyle Busch, whose car came back to life after a Lap 2 wreck like a relentless horror movie villain. Starting on the inside lane, Busch grabbed the lead from Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Clint Bowyer on a Lap 478 restart,Read More