Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 Tag

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Back in mid-March, NASCAR found itself heading into Atlanta for the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 when the COVID-19 pandemic started to take hold across the sports world and the race weekend was postponed. Fast forward to this weekend and the NASCAR Cup Series returns to the epicenter of where it all began for another shot at the 1.5-mile quad-oval. With a track surface that is old and worn, having not been repaved since its reconfiguration in 1997, Atlanta always gets rave reviews from drivers whoRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor With Coronavirus fears gripping the world and taking hold in sports leagues across the country, the status of events from coast to coast has been in flux in recent days. On Thursday, it was NASCAR’s turn to make a decision on how they would handle upcoming races at Atlanta Motor Speedway and Homestead-Miami Speedway and the decision came down just past 1:30 pm. For both race weekends, there will be no fans in attendance, with those at the track being limited to “competitors, crews, officials andRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Kyle Busch may not have been having any fun in Sunday’s Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, but the Joe Gibbs Racing driver sure did make a show out of his misfortunes on the 1.5-mile track. A day after crashing his primary car in final Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice, Busch would have to start the 334-lap event at the back of the field in a car that he had yet to turn a lap in. Despite the setback, Busch made theRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service HAMPTON, Ga. – Too sick to start practice on Saturday, Brad Keselowski found the cure to what ailed him in Sunday’s Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Still suffering from the effects of stomach flu, Keselowski held off a charging—and frustrated—Martin  Truex Jr. in the closing circuits of the 325-lap Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race and powered his No. 2 Team Penske Ford across the finish line .218 seconds ahead of Truex’s No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. The victory was Keselowski’sRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer A complete afterthought in last week’s Daytona 500, Martin Truex, Jr. showed up to race with a strong, but disgruntling runner-up effort during Sunday’s Folds of Honor QuickTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, leading 4 of 325 laps. The thought of scoring his first top-five at Joe Gibbs Racing was irrelevant to Truex, who voiced his displeasure about lapped cars, specifically Ricky Stenhouse, Jr, who he felt that by running the preferred bottom line, it cost him from beating Brad Keselowski, who went on to becomeRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service HAMPTON, Ga. – Clint Bowyer was on the doorstep of securing his first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series pole position since 2007, but teammate Aric Almirola and fellow Ford driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr. had the last say. Almirola powered his No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford to the fastest lap of the day in the final round of Friday’s knockout qualifying session at Atlanta Motor Speedway, claiming the second Busch Pole Award of his career—and his first since winning the pole for the Coca-Cola 600 in 2012.Read More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor After last Sunday’s barn burner of a finish in the Daytona 500, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series packs up and heads to Georgia for this weekend’s running of the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. With a track surface that is old and worn, having not been repaved since its reconfiguration in 1997, Atlanta always gets rave reviews from drivers who enjoy slipping and sliding around on the worn out asphalt. The track has been unpredictable when it comes to which driverRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service HAMPTON, Ga. – On Sunday night, after 17 barren years, Kevin Harvick finally completed the second chapter of his love affair with Atlanta Motor Speedway. In the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500, the second Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race of the season, Harvick delivered a proper thrashing to the rest of the field, leading 181-of-325 laps and beating runner-up Brad Keselowski to the finish line by 2.690 seconds. Early in 2001, after Dale Earnhardt Sr. died in a last-lap crash in the DaytonaRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Had it not been for the dominating day by Kevin Harvick, Brad Keselowski could have been celebrating two wins in a row at Atlanta Motor Speedway. However, it was still a successful day for the No. 2 team in the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 as they ended the day with a runner-up finish, along with a stage win. “I had a blast today,” said Keselowski. “Just really, really working your tail off in the car. It’s kind of old school. “We were good, butRead More

By Brian Eberly, Contributing Writer Speedweeks at Daytona International Speedway resulted in three wrecked race cars for Jimmie Johnson, including one in last Sunday’s Daytona 500 when he was involved in a multi-car accident on Lap 60. Johnson left Daytona Beach “really bummed out” and headed for a few days with his girls at Disney World before arriving at the 1.54-mile Atlanta Motor Speedway. The Hampton, Georgia track has suited Johnson well during his career. Leading all active drivers with five wins and a 105.4 driver rating, it appeared toRead More