Jimmie Johnson Tag

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor It’s been a banner day for Kurt Busch and Stewart-Haas Racing at Texas Motor Speedway. Earlier on Friday afternoon, the Las Vegas native put down the fastest lap in practice, followed by two of his SHR teammates, and qualifying for Sunday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 was more of the same as Busch was at the top of the board at the end of the first round of qualifying, with two of his teammates in tow once more. While there were two other rounds scheduled, MotherRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor After a much needed weekend off to recharge the batteries, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series is back to business as they head to the Lone Star State and Texas Motor Speedway for Sunday’s 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. For the second time the season, drivers will get a crack at the track that was repavedRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor With the first six races of the season complete and the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series reaching their first weekend break, we’ll take this opportunity to evaluate the season to this point and the storylines that have come to the forefront over the first month and a half. Stewart-Haas Racing Has Come to Play in 2018 If there’s one thing we’ve learned above all else this season, it’s that Stewart-Haas Racing is not messing around when it comes to their performance in the Cup Series.Read More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor After completing a trip out to the West Coast, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series heads back east this weekend and straight to the first short track race of the season, with Sunday’s running of the STP 500 at Martinsville Speedway. 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 be the moveRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor With the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series rolling into Southern California this weekend for the Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway, the time has come again to dive into the past at the two-mile oval in this week’s edition of “Throwback Thursday Theater”. This week, with Kevin Harvick on a hot streak, winning the last three races in a row, we look back at the 2011 running of the Auto Club 400 and the fantastic finish between two California natives, Harvick and Jimmie Johnson.Read More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor It’s the end of an era. Lowe’s Home Improvement, which has sponsored Jimmie Johnson and his No. 48 team at Hendrick Motorsports since the team came into the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series in 2001, announced on Wednesday that they would not be returning to adorn Johnson’s Chevrolet in 2019. “Working with Hendrick Motorsports, Jimmie, Chad (Knaus) and the entire No. 48 team has been an incredible journey,” said Michael P. McDermott, Lowe’s chief customer officer. “Rick Hendrick and his organization have been exceptional partners,Read More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor After stops in Las Vegas and Phoenix, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series wraps up their venture to the West Coast this weekend as they roll into Southern California to do battle on the two-mile Auto Club Speedway in Sunday’s Auto Club 400. Built on the site of an old steel mill featured in the movie “Terminator”, the two mile oval has been a part of the NASCAR schedule since opening in 1997. The track has gone through ownership changes throughout its history, as wellRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor New name, still the same old Phoenix. For now. After the kickoff to the West Coast swing last weekend in Las Vegas culminated in a second straight domination by Kevin Harvick, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series heads to Phoenix this weekend to take on the TicketGuardian 500 at ISM Raceway. Phoenix has resided on the Cup Series schedule since 1988, but the track looks completely different than it did 30 years ago, having undergone a reconfiguration back in 2011. The reconfiguration added progressive bankingRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Sunday’s Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway couldn’t have gotten off to a worse start for Jimmie Johnson and his No. 48 team, but the seven-time champion was able to rebound to a 12th place finish. After qualifying 14th, pre-race inspection issues, which saw the team fail inspection three times, led to the ejection of car chief Jesse Saunders and forced Johnson to start the race at the back of the field. “I’ve never been in this situation,” Johnson said. “Last weekend, there wereRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Viva Las Vegas! After spending the first two weekends of the 2018 season in the southeastern United States, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series packs up and heads west for the first leg of the West Coast swing at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with Sunday’s running of the Pennzoil 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 reconfigurationRead More