Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Tag

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor CONCORD, N.C. – After turning heads in the Xfinity Series over the last couple of years, Ryan Preece’s bet on himself has paid off as he will be headed to a full-time ride in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series in 2019. Less than a week after JTG Daugherty Racing announced that they would be releasing AJ Allmendinger from his contract at season’s end, the team made it official on Friday that Preece would be taking over the seat of the No. 47 Chevrolet starting nextRead More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer MOORESVILLE, N.C. – Prior to the start of on-track action at Charlotte Motor Speedway for the Bank of America ROVAL 400, two NASCAR legends were honored up the road in Mooresville, N.C. Davey Allison and Ricky Rudd were inducted into the North Carolina Auto Racing Hall of Fame, with in-ground plaques honoring the drivers in the city’s downtown. On hand for the event was Don Miller, N.C. Auto Racing Hall of Fame board member, 2016 inductee, and key note speaker, as well as board membersRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor There are numerous adjectives that can be used to describe this weekend’s race on the new Charlotte Motor Speedway road course: unpredictable, volatile, treacherous, chaotic, etc. Once thing is for sure as the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series ventures into the unknown, it’s going to be a hell of a ride. In an effort to spice things up this season, Charlotte officials elected to switch from running another race on the 1.5-mile oval to creating what they are calling the ROVAL, incorporating both the high banksRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor After five years with JTG Daugherty Racing, AJ Allmendinger will be leaving the seat of the No. 47 car at the end of the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season. Though Allmendinger inked a five-year contract extension back in 2015 that would have kept him behind the wheel through 2020, the team announced Tuesday that they would be releasing him from his contract. “AJ Allmendinger has been a valuable asset to the growth of our company, and we are grateful for his professionalism with ourRead More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer Although Jimmie Johnson ran inside the top-10 for much of the Federated Auto Parts 400, the seven-time Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion still flew under the radar at Richmond Raceway. While the “Big Three” and Brad Keselowski dominated the race, Johnson quietly finished the race in eighth place. After a poor qualifying effort left him starting 21st, Johnson’s No. 48 Lowe’s for Pros Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 didn’t break into the top-10 until the second stage. A broken trackbar adjuster and a pit road speeding penaltyRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Chase Elliott was outside the Round of 12 cutoff line heading into Saturday’s Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond Raceway, and he’ll leave the 0.75-mile oval just 10 points to the good after finishing fourth and leading 34 of 400 laps. Elliott was on the outside looking in after an day-shortened 36th place finish due to a two-car crash at Las Vegas Motor Speedway Sept. 16. It put him in a vulnerable position of playing catch up, trailing 12th place Alex Bowman by nine points andRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer For the sixth time this season, a pit road penalty handcuffed Martin Truex, Jr., and he once again remains a bridesmaid on short tracks, finishing an agonizing third behind fellow “Big Three” members Kevin Harvick and race winner Kyle Busch in Saturday’s Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond Raceway. It was Truex’s race to lose as he lead 162 of the first 203 laps, and swept both stages in the process. Without any hurdles, it appeared that his bid of finally capturing his first short trackRead More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer A late charge for the lead left Brad Keselowski fading in the Federated Auto Parts 400. The Team Penske driver plummeted from having a chance to win four races in a row to ninth in the final 40 laps at Richmond Raceway. After the final restart, Keselowski battled eventual race winner Kyle Busch for the lead. It took 10 laps for his No. 2 Reese / DrawTite Ford Fusion take the lead from Busch. However, Keselowski couldn’t break away from Busch, who hounded him forRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service RICHMOND, Va. – On a night of important milestones, in a car hastily repaired after a brush with the wall during qualifying, Kyle Busch held off Kevin Harvick to win Saturday night’s Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond Raceway to advance to the second round of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. After a pitched battle against Brad Keselowski that lasted 21 laps, Busch made the winning pass for the lead on Lap 364 of 400 at the .75-mile track. Busch’s first victory in aRead More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer At Richmond Raceway on Saturday afternoon, Ryan Newman announced that he will be joining Roush Fenway Racing following the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season. The 17-year veteran will drive the teams’ iconic No. 6 Ford Mustang for the entire season. The Roush Fenway No. 6 has visited victory lane 36 times with Mark Martin and David Ragan behind the wheel. Currently, seat time in the No. 6 Ford Fusion is split by veteran Matt Kenseth and Trevor Bayne. In total, the organization hasRead More