Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Tag

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer It was “Damage Inc.” on the final lap of Sunday’s GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama that ended in violent blows for several drivers, putting a damper on what was considered a thrilling 188-lap race. The situation began to unravel once the red-flag was lifted due to a multi-car crash on Lap 182 that ended with Matt DiBenedetto plowing into the back end of Chris Buescher in Turn 2. This led to the race restarting with just four laps to go. The chaos began toRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer The ultimate equalizer known as Talladega Superspeedway proved to be an ultimate breakthrough result for two of this year’s Sunoco Rookie of the Year contenders Daniel Hemric and Ryan Preece. Both drivers have shown flashes of brilliance in the first nine races, but luck has hampered their results. Sunday’s GEICO 500 changed all of that as both rookies scored their maiden top-fives in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series after surviving the intense competition and violent crashes. After having a heroic Daytona 500 that can beRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor TALLADEGA, Ala. – After the checkered flag flew in Sunday’s GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, Brendan Gaughan couldn’t help but smile, noting how much fun he just had driving his way to an eighth-place finish on the day with his underdog team. “I was telling the guys, ‘I don’t know what y’all think is so tough about this. I show up once every three months and drive into the top-10!’ This stuff is easy,” Gaughan said. “I miss this sport. It is a lot ofRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor TALLADEGA, Ala. – After putting himself in a position to win Sunday’s GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, Kurt Busch had good reason to be hard on himself when his path to victory didn’t come to fruition and he was left with a sixth-place finish when the checkered flag flew. “I feel like we had a great day with our Monster Energy Chevy. I just didn’t deliver the win,” said Busch. “I felt like I had it in my hands and let it drop. I didn’tRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service TALLADEGA, Ala. – Chase Elliott seized the lead in the GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway during a four-lap shootout to the finish and took the checkered flag under caution after Kyle Larson barrel-rolled behind him. Elliott’s victory broke a Chevrolet drought in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series dating to last October at Kansas Speedway and broke a seven-race Ford stranglehold on the 2.66-mile track. The first driver not from Team Penske or Joe Gibbs racing to win this season, Elliott crossed the stripe aheadRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service TALLADEGA, Ala. – Picking up significant speed from the first round of knockout qualifying to the second, Austin Dillon won the pole for Sunday’s GEICO 500 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway (2 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Covering the 2.66-mile distance in 49.734 seconds (192.544 mph) in his No. 3 Chevrolet, Dillon edged first-round leader Aric Almirola (192.131 mph) for the top starting spot by .107 seconds. In Saturday’s first round, Dillon had run 192.108 mphRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor TALLADEGA, Ala. – Sunday’s GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway will mark the 100th Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series start for Ty Dillon in a career that has stretched back to the 2014 season. After getting his start on a part-time basis driving for his grandfather at Richard Childress Racing, Dillon moved over to Germain Racing full-time in 2017, where he has remained ever since. Though the younger Dillon brother has yet to visit Victory Lane, he noted Sunday’s milestone coming at Talladega would be aRead More

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 Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service It was the last question reporters asked Martin Truex Jr. on Friday before opening practice at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway and it was the biggest smile they received. How important was it for the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup champion to score his first win of the season – and first since joining Joe Gibbs Racing team – two weeks ago at Richmond, Va.? “It definitely felt good’’ Truex said, adding with a grin. “It was nice to go into an off-weekend with a winRead More