Jamie McMurray Tag

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service In a stunning upset at the end of an action-filled, rain-interrupted Daytona 500, Front Row Motorsports driver Michael McDowell claimed his first NASCAR Cup Series victory after charging into the lead during a brutal multicar wreck in Turn 3 on the final lap. “I can’t believe it,” McDowell said. “I’ve got to thank God. So many years of just grinding it out, hoping for an opportunity like this. I’ve got to thank (team owner) Bob Jenkins for giving me this opportunity. I’m so thankful. Read More

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Florida native Aric Almirola drove to a convincing victory in the opening Bluegreen Vacations Duel at Daytona qualifying race Thursday night at Daytona International Speedway. Almirola’s No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford led a dominating 52 of the 60 laps and held off Christopher Bell’s No 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota by a mere .041-seconds for the Tampa native’s first victory in the Daytona 500 field-setting race. Ryan Newman, who was involved in a frightening last lap crash in last year’sRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Longtime motorsports owner, Felix Sabates, will be calling it a career with the end of the 2019 season and riding off into the sunset, Chip Ganassi Racing announced on Thursday. The 74-year old first entered the NASCAR ownership landscape with the founding of SABCO Racing in 1989, winning seven races with Kyle Petty and Joe Nemechek before joining forces with Chip Ganassi in 2001, when Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates was born. Fielding cars in NASCAR’s top two divisions, the duo won 43 racesRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer There was a time I’ve seen social media comments about Ross Chastain having a golden ticket to Kurt Busch’s No. 1 Chip Ganassi Racing ride after 2019 because the 40-year-old’s deal is a one-year contract. After a thriller in Saturday’s Quaker State 400 at Kentucky Speedway where Kurt eked out his younger brother Kyle Busch, no way that’s going to happen. In fact, Kurt’s 31st Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series victory might’ve been his finest performance yet, further proving a point of making teams better. Yes,Read More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Jamie McMurray first came on the scene in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series in the fall of 2002 when he took over in relief of Sterling Marlin and scored his first win at Charlotte behind the wheel of the No. 40 Chip Ganassi Racing Dodge. Five years and 166 races later, McMurray had yet to make a second trip to Victory Lane, but by the time the checkered flag flew at Daytona International Speedway in July 2007, the drought wasRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Sunday’s Daytona 500 will mark the final start of Jamie McMurray’s NASCAR career, dating back to 2002, when he filled in for Sterling Marlin in the final six races of the season. Though it’s likely the final time he’ll climb behind the wheel, McMurray notes that he won’t have any overwhelming emotions about the day, due in part to having a farewell of sorts at last year’s season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. “This is super different than Homestead was, knowing that itRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The start of the 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series is officially here and with it comes the biggest race of the season, the Daytona 500. For 61 years, drivers have been making the pilgrimage to the Daytona high banks to win the sport’s most prestigious race and write themselves into the record book as Daytona 500 champion. Many have attempted it, but only a select few have been able to hoist the Harley J. Earl trophy in victory lane at theRead More

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, NASCAR Editor The 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup season will roar to life with a Sunday doubleheader on February 10 at Daytona to signal the start of Speedweeks. Once again this year, Cup Series qualifying and the Advance Auto Parts Clash exhibition race will kick off a week of action leading up to the 61st annual Daytona 500 the following Sunday. On Thursday, the sanctioning body released the eligibility requirements and drivers that have met those requirements for the two-segment, 75-lap event. This year’s eligible drivers will conformRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer With so much emphasis on the Championship 4, three drivers may have strapped into their cars for the last time in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. The three of subject were AJ Allmendinger, Matt Kenseth, and Jamie McMurray, whose careers are up in the air after completing their last races in their current rides in Sunday’s Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Florida. Their results might’ve been what defined each of their seasons, with McMurray in 18th and Allmendinger in 19th, while sixth-place KensethRead More