Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Tag

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Needless to say, the past week has been a rollercoaster ride for Joey Logano and his No. 22 team after winning at Richmond only to have a mid-week penalty strip the benefits of the win from the driver and team and set them back to square one heading into Sunday’s GEICO 500 at Talladega, where Logano looks to score his second win in a row at the 2.66-mile superspeedway. Despite losing all of the benefits of the win from last weekend, the always positive LoganoRead More

By Aaron Bearden, NASCAR Contributor It took only one instance of a race-winner suffering an “encumbered” finish for this writer to reach a significant conclusion regarding the ruling: it, or at the minimum the name it’s been given, needs altered. One thing’s been confirmed with relative consistency regarding NASCAR’s latest buzzword – it doesn’t seem a good fit. Don’t believe me? Look no further than NASCAR’s most popular (and soon to be retired) driver. Never used the word “encumbered” to describe anything. Don’t plan on ever using it. Can weRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Drivers always remember their first win. For Brad Keselowski, his first win in the 2009 Aaron’s 499 at Talladega will be one that him, Carl Edwards, and NASCAR as a whole will never forget. Eight years later, the sight of Edwards’ car taking flight toward the catchfence with the finish line in sight as Keselowski captured his first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series win is one that is still seared into the minds of NASCAR nation. To this day, the finish is one that isRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor After winning last weekend at Richmond International Raceway, Joey Logano and his No. 22 team received some unwelcome news on Thursday morning as NASCAR penalized the team for a violation discovered in post-race teardown at the NASCAR R&D Center. The violation that NASCAR found was in the rear suspension area of the car and was an infraction against Section 20.14.2 of the NASCAR Rule Book: “The Truck trailing arm spacer / pinion angle shim mating surfaces must be planar and must be in complete contactRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor While short tracks have been the order of the month of April, the calendar now turns to May and with it comes the biggest and baddest track on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series circuit, the 2.66-mile Talladega Superspeedway and Sunday’s running of the GEICO 500. Racing at Talladega has always been crazy from the time the track opened back in 1969. From the driver boycott of the first race that led to unknown driver Richard Brickhouse scoring his one and only win in theRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service RICHMOND, Va. – It took Joey Logano all afternoon to drive from the back of the field to the front in Sunday’s Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond International Raceway. Logano started from the rear after a post-qualifying transmission change, but when the checkered flag waved after Lap 400, the driver of the No. 22 Team Penske Ford was at the head of the field, having held off a banzai charge from teammate Brad Keselowski during a 19-lap green-flag run. Logano took the lead for theRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Growing up just 20 miles from Richmond International Raceway, Denny Hamlin has always run well at his hometown track, scoring three wins at the 0.75-mile oval over the years. Though Sunday’s Toyota Owners 400 did not result in a win for Hamlin and his No. 11 team, they were still able to come away with their best finish of the season after ending the day in third place. Through the first seven races of the season, Hamlin would either finish inside the top-10 or findRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor For Roush-Fenway Racing, 2017 has been a year of resurgence after a poor outing last season led to off-season restructuring for the team. Leading the charge thus far for the team’s return to relevance has been Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. and Sunday’s race at Richmond was just another example of how far the team has come in so little time. After qualifying fourth, Stenhouse was strong early in the going in the 400-lap event as he held steadfast in the top-five, but contact with the TurnRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Joe Gibbs Racing has had their hands full this season as they still search for their first win as an organization, but Richmond International Raceway looked like it would be the place for one of their drivers to finally break through, given that the team had won the three previous races at the track heading into Sunday’s Toyota Owners 400. Leading the JGR charge through the weekend was the elder statesman for the team, Matt Kenseth, who blazed his way to the pole on FridayRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor When looking through the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series garage area, the number of drivers that Dale Earnhardt, Jr. has had an impact on throughout his career is countless. Martin Truex, Jr. is a prime example of that, as Truex may have never gotten his shot to make it to the Cup Series contending for wins and championships if not for the connection between himself and Earnhardt. Having made only a handful of starts for his family team in the NASCAR Xfinity Series between lateRead More