Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Tag

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor With the first round of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs complete after last weekend’s race at Dover, NASCAR’s premier division heads home to Charlotte Motor Speedway this weekend to kick off the Round of 12 with Sunday’s running of the Bank of America 500. As the first race in the Round of 12, Charlotte will play a big role in setting up how the remainder of the round will play out at Talladega and Kansas in the next two weeks. The 1.5-mile quad-ovalRead More

By Seth Eggert, NASCAR Writer How can a driver in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs fly under the radar in an elimination race? Jamie McMurray found out at Dover International Speedway by avoiding trouble and cruising to a top-10 finish. McMurray had a quiet weekend at the ‘Monster Mile’ as focus was on those below the cutoff line to advance from the Round of 16 to the Round of 12. He finished ninth after having to climb up through the field the entire race. McMurray avoided trouble inRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Each week NASCAR Editor David Morgan will break down who’s hot and who’s not after the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race weekend. Today, we break down the Apache Warrior 400 at Dover International Speedway. WINNERS Kyle Busch – Since breaking through for his first win of the season at Pocono in late July, Kyle Busch has been on fire, winning four of the last nine races, including two in a row between last week at New Hampshire and Sunday at Dover. Though Sunday’s winRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service DOVER, Del. – Call him the Grinch. Halloween may be the next holiday on the calendar, but Kyle Busch stole Christmas morning from Chase Elliott late on Sunday afternoon at Dover International Speedway. Running Elliott down from more than four seconds back in the last 40 laps of the Apache Warrior 400 at the Monster Mile, Busch powered his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota around the outside of Elliott’s No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet and cleared him off Turn 4 as the carsRead More

By Seth Eggert, NASCAR Writer A little bit of luck was just what Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. needed to move on to the Round of 12 in the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. Entering the Apache Warrior 400 at Dover International Speedway, Stenhouse was tied with Austin Dillon for the cutoff in the Round of 16. In the closing laps the battle for the final spot in the Round of 12 came down to Stenhouse and Ryan Newman. Although Newman was ahead of Stenhouse on track, he was betweenRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor The 2017 season has not gone the way that Dale Earnhardt, Jr. or his No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports team planned for it to go, but in his final race at Dover on Sunday, Earnhardt showed the kind of speed that he has been lacking for the majority of the season and came away with a seventh-place finish. Not only was it Earnhardt’s best finish at Dover since the fall race in 2015, but it also his first top-10 finish since Sonoma back in June. “ItRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor When it comes to scoring his first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series win, Chase Elliott seems to be snake-bitten. Time after time over the last two seasons, Elliott has been in position to make his maiden voyage to victory lane only to fall short when the checkered flag flew and that story played out once again in Sunday’s Apache Warrior 400 at Dover after finishing second to Kyle Busch. “I’m just so disappointed in myself,” said Elliott. “Golly, I couldn’t have had it any easier.Read More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Dover International Speedway has always been a treacherous track since its inception in 1969, but the “Monster Mile” really earned its nickname when the asphalt surface was converted over to concrete in 1995, making Dover the first concrete track on the circuit and really giving “Miles the Monster” some teeth. Our Dover edition of “Throwback Thursday Theater” will focus on that first race on the concrete surface – the 1995 Miller Genuine Draft 500. The new concrete surface brought worries about the tires being ableRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Two races into the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs and the first round comes down to the Monster Mile to determine which 12 drivers move on with their shot at the title still intact. Dover began its life as an asphalt track back in 1969, but in 1995 the track was converted to concrete, making it one of only two on the circuit. The one mile high banked oval has always drawn similarities to Bristol and is often referred to as “Bristol on steroids”.Read More

By Seth Eggert, NASCAR Writer Another Playoff race for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, and another Playoff competitor flies just under the radar. Ryan Blaney quietly ran inside the top-10 the entire day, but never had the opportunity to compete for the victory. Blaney had a quiet weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway as focus was on Toyotas’ domination once again as well as Joey Logano’s practice penalty. He finished ninth, despite running fifth and ninth at the end of the first two stages. Blaney avoided trouble in hisRead More