Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Tag

By David Morgan, Associate Editor CONCORD, N.C. – Ahead of the second running of the Bank of America ROVAL 400 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Sunday, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series competitors took to the track for two practice sessions on Saturday as they looked to get their cars dialed in for the first elimination race of the Playoffs. Ryan Blaney, who was victorious in this race one year ago, topped the board in the morning session with a lap of 1 minute, 21.977 seconds (101.882 mph). Ryan PreeceRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor CONCORD, N.C. – When the news came down earlier this week that Roush-Fenway Racing would be making a driver change for its No. 17 entry in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series for 2020, current driver Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. was just as shocked as the rest of the garage area that he would be out of a ride when this season comes to a close. “Yeah, pretty blindsided,” Stenhouse said of hearing the news. The Olive Branch, Mississippi native added that last Wednesday was businessRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor CONCORD, N.C. – Heading into the Bank of America Roval 400 weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Ryan Blaney holds the title as the only man to ever win on the 2.32-mile, 18-turn road course. As he looks to defend that title and return to Victory Lane for the first time since winning here last year, the driver of the No. 12 Ford won’t have to go far when the green flag drops after qualifying ninth Friday afternoon. “Coming back here, it’s nice coming back toRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor CONCORD, N.C. – A year after coming agonizingly close to winning at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval, Jimmie Johnson got the Bank of America Roval 400 weekend started on the right foot Friday by posting the fastest time in first practice with a lap of 1 minute, 20.968 seconds. Kyle Larson was second on the leaderboard, followed by William Byron, Clint Bowyer, Matt DiBenedetto, Chase Elliott, Erik Jones, Daniel Suarez, Ryan Preece, and defending race winner Ryan Blaney. Outside of the top-10, Playoff drivers finishedRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer A reunion will come into fruition for the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series as Roush Fenway Racing announced Wednesday the sudden signing of Chris Buescher piloting the No. 17 Ford Mustang, replacing Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. after eight seasons. Buescher drove for RFR in all of his 74 Xfinity Series starts, including two full-seasons from 2014-15 where he scored three wins and brought the team’s final series title in 2015. Since moving to Cup in 2016, the Prosper, Texas native raced for Front Row Motorsports and JTG DaughertyRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer After over a month of speculation, Leavine Family Racing finally confirmed Tuesday that NASCAR Xfinity Series star Christopher Bell will move up to the the sport’s premiere series in 2020. The Norman, Oklahoma native will replace Matt DiBenedetto in the No. 95 Toyota Camry and he’ll have familiar names joining him. Calling the shots will be his Xfinity Series crew chief Jason Ratcliff as Mike Wheeler will become the team’s Competition Director. Bell’s long-time partner of Rheem, who will also move up with the versatile driverRead More

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The scenario for Sunday’s much-anticipated Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoff race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course provides exactly the intensity NASCAR fans want, but for the Playoff drivers competing to advance to the Round of 12 – the recently added road course also presents high anxiety. Coming into Sunday’s Bank of America ROVAL 400 (2:30 p.m. ET on NBC, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) the four Playoff drivers currently ranked outside the top 12 in the driverRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service RICHMOND, Va. –Martin Truex Jr. overcame late adversity and continued to assert his mastery over the first round of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. Rallying from a spin off the bumper of Ricky Stenhouse Jr.’s Ford, and passing Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch for the lead with 25 laps left, Truex led an 1-2-3 finish for JGR in Saturday night’s Federated Auto parts 400 at Richmond Raceway. In fact, the Gibbs cars were 1-2-3-4 at the finish, but a disqualification dueRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service RICHMOND, Va. – In a battle of late qualifiers at Richmond Raceway, Brad Keselowski knocked Kevin Harvick off the provisional pole for Saturday night’s Federated Auto Parts 400 to claim the top starting spot for the second race in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs (7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). The 36th of 38 drivers to make a qualifying run, Keselowski covered the .75-mile distance in 21.229 seconds (127.185 mph) to beat Harvick (126.559 mph) by .105 seconds. TheRead More

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service Second-year Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver William Byron shared the news this week that his longtime sponsor and current learning institution, Liberty University, will back him for at least another two years in NASCAR’s premier series. And it seemed fitting, as Byron has been a stellar student in his first version of stock car racing’s ultimate final exam – the Playoffs. The 21-year old NASCAR star/college student arrived at Richmond (Va.) Raceway for Saturday night’s Federated Auto Parts 400 (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN,Read More