Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Tag

By David Morgan, Associate Editor The Round of 8 is on. Following a barn burner of a finish at Kansas last weekend, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series heads to Martinsville Speedway for Sunday’s running of the First Data 500. A win by any of the eight drivers still in contention for the title and they punch their ticket to the championship race at Homestead. 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 overRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Twelve drivers entered Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas still in the running for the championship, but by the time the checkered flag flew, four of them were on the outside looking in as their hopes for a title were erased. Starting the day, Chase Elliott, Alex Bowman, William Byron, and Clint Bowyer were the four drivers in the danger zone, sitting 18 points or more below the cut-off line, with all of them in a virtual must-win situation. Among the four, only Elliott wasRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer A Kansas City Miracle bestowed Chase Elliott in Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway as a runner-up effort and massive circumstances advanced him into the Round of 8 by just three points. For much of the afternoon, crew chief Alan Gustafson urged the popular racer to win after two gut wrenching Round of 12 races at Dover and Talladega end his races. Elliott said he was trying his best to score his fourth win of the season but it didn’t worked out but understood thatRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service KANSAS CITY, Kan. – As Denny Hamlin was finishing off a dominating day in Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway, Chase Elliott stole perhaps an even bigger prize—a spot in the Round of 8 in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. Hamlin, who led 153 of 277 laps, crossed the finish line .128 seconds ahead of Elliott in a second overtime to secure his fifth victory of the season, his second at Kansas Speedway and the 36th of his career. But theRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service Daniel Hemric may be out of the Playoffs and out of his ride at Richard Childress racing next year, but that didn’t stop the driver of the No. 8 RCR Chevrolet from winning the pole position for Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway (2:30 p.m. ET on NBC, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). In Saturday’s time trials for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Round of 12 elimination race, Hemric covered the 1.5-mile distance in 30.329 seconds (178.047 mph) to earn the topRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Clint Bowyer won’t be going anywhere as Stewart-Haas Racing announced Thursday that he’ll be back in the No. 14 Ford Mustang for the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season. The 10-time Cup Series winner said he’s proud to have a deal put together that’ll keep him around for his upcoming 15th season and fourth at SHR. “I’m proud to be back with Stewart-Haas Racing next year and very happy to announce it the week leading into my home race,” Bowyer said. “This is a team filled withRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer JTG Daugherty Racing announced Wednesday that two-time Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series winner Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. will be joining the No. 37 Chevrolet team in 2020 as a part of a multi-year deal. Stenhouse will be replacing Chris Buescher, who will be driving Stenhouse’s No. 17 Roush Fenway Racing Ford Mustang, the only full-time team he’s ever raced in his tenured NASCAR career. Team owner Tad Geschickter said he’s looking forward to have a veteran driver like Stenhouse and is expecting both he and Ryan PreeceRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Moments after his No. 62 Beard Oil Motorsports Chevrolet went flying through the air at the end of the backstretch in the waning laps at Talladega, Brendan Gaughan emerged from the Infield Care Center with his signature sense of humor and explained the crash as only he could. “Stuck the landing,” Gaughan joked. “The Russian judge docked me a little bit. I didn’t keep it straight” Running in one of the only four races he runs each year, Gaughan had placed himself in position toRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Alex Bowman found himself on an island as he was the lone Chevrolet in the lead with an onslaught of Fords behind him heading down the backstretch on lap 106. With Joey Logano leading the Blue Oval brigade and closing in on the Hendrick Motorsports entry in a hurry, Bowman moved down the track to try and halt the momentum of Logano and the others, but the closing rate was too much to overcome. As soon as Logano made contact with Bowman’s rear bumper, itRead More

By Holly Cain,NASCAR Wire Service It was a dramatic day for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoff drivers in Monday’s rain-delayed 1000Bulbs.com 500 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway – with all 12 championship-eligible drivers involved in some way in an assortment of wrecks, including three versions of the track’s famous “Big One.” The race ultimately came down to a photo finish between a pair of Ryans. Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney beat Roush-Fenway Racing veteran Ryan Newman to the finish line by a foot – .007-seconds – to take the victoryRead More