Jimmie Johnson Tag

By David Morgan, Associate Editor TALLADEGA, Ala. – Two weeks ago, seven-time Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson was making his inaugural start in the Boston Marathon. Back at the race track for the first time since completing that grueling event, the race that Johnson called “awful and amazing at the same time” could be just what the doctor ordered when it comes to his on-track performance. “I had a goal in mind to run a certain pace and tried to hang onto it,” Johnson said of theRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor TALLADEGA, Ala. – Uncertainty surrounded the first day of on-track activity at Talladega Superspeedway, with the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series getting their first glimpse at the new post-restrictor plate aero package that will be used at the 2.66-mile facility as well as Daytona for the foreseeable future. The new package features a tapered spacer instead of a restrictor plate, making it the first race since 1987 to feature the horsepower sapping device. To counteract the increase in horsepower, about 100 more than the teamsRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor TALLADEGA, Ala. – With the first off weekend of the season in the rear-view mirror, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series gets back to business in grand fashion as they get set to take on the 2.66-mile Talladega Superspeedway and Sunday’s running of the GEICO 500. Racing at Talladega has always been crazy from the time the track opened back in 1969. From the driver boycott of the first race that led to unknown driver Richard Brickhouse scoring his one and only win in theRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Short track races have defined the last month of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule with two out of the last three being held on tracks less than a mile in length. This weekend, Richmond Raceway joins the short track party with Saturday night’s running of the Toyota Owners 400. Often described as the perfectly designed race track 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 trackRead More

By Kenny Bruce, NASCAR Wire Service BRISTOL, Tenn. – Kyle Busch wasn’t the only driver to overcome adversity during Sunday’s running of the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway. But he was the only one to end up in victory lane. The race winner was involved in a multi-car crash on the second lap of the 500-lap affair, sustaining damage to the rear of his car. But he patiently worked his way back through the field. He took his first lead at lap 384. The key to the win cameRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor After a visit to the Lone Star State, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series heads back to a short track with this weekend’s stop at Bristol Motor Speedway for the running of the Food City 500. Bristol always brings out the excitement from fans and competitors alike as packing 40 cars into the half-mile high banked bullring can only be explained by the phrase “flying fighter jets in a gymnasium”, which is more accurate than it would seem. Drivers race two and sometimes three wide throughoutRead More

By Lee Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service FORT WORTH, Texas — A fast car can cure a lot of mistakes. Just ask Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin. The reigning Daytona 500 winner overcame a slew of penalties—some self-inflicted—to win the O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. Although the driver of the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry got down, he was never out of contention. Hamlin led three times for 45 laps en route to his third win at Texas, his second win of the season and the fourthRead More

By Lee Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service FORT WORTH, Texas – Jimmie Johnson is back in the saddle again. After leading first practice at Texas Motor Speedway and the first two rounds of qualifying, the seven-time champion bumped his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Chase Elliott from the top spot with seconds remaining in the final round with a lap at 188.890 mph to win the pole for Sunday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 (at 3 p.m. ET on FOX, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). The Busch Pole Award is the first for Johnson in 96Read More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Following last weekend’s first short track race of the season at Martinsville, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series returns to a 1.5-mile track with Sunday’s visit to Texas Motor Speedway for the running of the O’Reilly Auto Parts 500. First joining the circuit in 1997, the 1.5-mile Texas track has provided some great racing over the years as the surface wore down as each season passed before being repaved and reconfigured prior to its 2017 race dates. As a refresher, the reconfiguration affected Turns 1 andRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor After weeks of aero package this and aero package that, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series returns to some normalcy this weekend as they head to Martinsville Speedway for the first short track race of the season and Sunday’s running of the STP 500. A mainstay on the schedule since 1949, the historic half-mile, which is also the smallest on the circuit, will test both man and machine over 500 grueling laps. The track has basically one groove, meaning the only way to pass will beRead More