Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Tag

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service BROOKLYN, Mich. – Clint Bowyer gambled. Then he made sure he cashed the winning ticket with a determined charge on two new tires as rain threatened Michigan International Speedway. Bowyer got the lead under caution at the end of Stage 2 of Sunday’s Firekeepers Casino 400 when crew chief Mike Bugarewicz opted for two tires on the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford. Bowyer had to do the rest, holding off teammate Kevin Harvick after a restart on Lap 126, barely preventing Harvick, who had freshRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Sunday’s Firekeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway ended up like pole sitter Kurt Busch’s last win at the 2-mile circuit in 2015, rain-shortened. However, he ended up third this time around, leading 46 of 133 laps. Busch’s third-place rounded out a 1-2-3 sweep for Stewart-Haas Racing, with Clint Bowyer scoring his second win this season and Kevin Harvick finishing second. This marked the team’s first ever feat since debuting in 2009. It’s the 2004 Premiere Series champion’s third top-five in the last six races,Read More

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service BROOKLYN, Mich. – Fourteen races into the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season, Brad Keselowski concedes he’s frustrated he hasn’t hoisted a winner’s trophy yet. By the time he arrived at his hometown track, Michigan International Speedway, last summer he had already won twice and would win again in the Fall Talladega race. That the 2012 Cup champion hasn’t won on his home state high banks surprises him as much as his many hometown fans. But after a good tire test here last month,Read More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service BROOKLYN, Mich. – Clearly, Kurt Busch enjoyed the rush of putting his No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford on the pole on Friday at Michigan International Speedway. “To go 217 (mph) into the corner—just hauling the mail—I love that feeling,” said Busch, who ran his fastest lap of the day at the 2-mile track to earn the top starting spot for Sunday’s Firekeepers Casino 400 (2 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). “This one is fun, because I could trust the car,Read More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor After last weekend’s race at Pocono saw Martin Truex, Jr. score his second win of the season, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series heads to Michigan to race on one of the biggest and fastest tracks on the circuit, Michigan International Speedway, in Sunday’s running of the FireKeepers Casino 400. With this race taking place near the home of two of the three manufacturers (Chevrolet and Ford), teams put extra emphasis on winning this race for bragging rights. The two-mile speedway tends to favor the teamsRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Kyle Larson may have not led any laps in Sunday’s Pocono 400 at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania, but he continued carrying the Chevrolet banner after scoring his third runner-up finish this season. Larson had a top-10 car throughout the afternoon, finishing eighth in the opening stage, and sixth in the second stage. From there, he gradually moved his way towards the front pack. As the race was less than 10 laps to go, Larson tried outperforming race leader Martin Truex, Jr., but toRead More

By NASCAR Wire Service LONG POND, Pa. – Taking charge of Sunday’s Pocono 400 by staying out under caution on Lap 140 of 160, reigning Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion Martin Truex Jr. pulled away after a restart with seven laps left to win the race and inject himself emphatically into the title conversation. The outcome was all about control. Five-time winner Kevin Harvick had it for most of the event, leading a race-high 89 laps. Four-time winner Kyle Busch had it late, winning the race off pit roadRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor A week after Kyle Busch completed the cycle by winning at every track on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series circuit, Kevin Harvick looked to be in good shape to knock another track off of his winless list, but it was not to be for the five-time winner in 2018 as he finished fourth at Pocono after leading the most laps. “We just lost our track position of being in the lead and lost control of the race,” said Harvick. “That is what did us inRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service LONG POND, Pa. – Just as he had done in winning his first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race last June, Ryan Blaney kept Kevin Harvick behind him at Pocono Raceway when it mattered most. Blaney sped around the 2.5-mile triangular track in 50.877 seconds (176.897 mph) in Friday’s knockout qualifying session to earn the top starting spot for Sunday’s Pocono 400 (2 p.m. ET Sunday on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). In winning his first Busch Pole Award at the Tricky Triangle,Read More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Entering last June’s race at Pocono Raceway, Darrell Wallace, Jr. was in new territory, making his first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series start with Richard Petty Motorsports with his driving future still up in the air. A year later, Wallace returns to the “Tricky Triangle” as the full-time driver for RPM, his future secure behind the wheel of the No. 43 car as both driver and team have their sights set on improving their performance thus far in 2018. “I was thinking about it in theRead More