NASCAR Playoffs Tag

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Austin Dillon had a strong points night in Sunday’s Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway, even coming up close of getting his second NASCAR Cup Series victory of the year. Dillon’s 367-lap odyssey began with a low note due to the fact he had to start the race from the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments, relinquishing the 12th starting position. During Sunday’s post-race video conference, Dillon went into detail on the pre-race hiccup that was a direct result of his tires beingRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer It’s hard to imagine a caliber driver like two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Busch being winless after 26 races, but here we are. Several pit falls such as lack of practice, crashes and not having the outright pace to battle his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Denny Hamlin and Kevin Harvick, the duo who have put on a stranglehold on the competition, have made things very frustrating for Busch. That became evident after being collected in a multi-car crash last Saturday at Daytona, simply describing hisRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Pending who you ask among the NASCAR Cup Series playoff contenders, they’ll likely say Aric Almirola is the true dark horse contender for this year’s 10-race championship odyssey. Who can blame them as Almirola has had a career year with a career-high five top-fives and 14 top-10s in just the regular season alone. Due to him being more consistency than last season, it was good enough for both Stewart-Haas Racing and long time sponsor Smithfield re-upping their deals for next season on Tuesday. Almirola said thatRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Fresh off his maiden NASCAR Cup Series win last Saturday at Daytona, William Byron has been upbeat now that he got the win, but also a contract extension. On Tuesday, Hendrick Motorsports announced that Byron will stay in the No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE through 2022. A day later, Byron discussed that talks about staying with them have been going on for some time with Rick Hendrick saying the deal was signed on August 8, according to Bob Pockrass. “I had one year left afterRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Joey Logano and Erik Jones share an odd bond in their captivating NASCAR careers and that’s being ousted by Joe Gibbs Racing. Logano was replaced by Matt Kenseth at the end of the 2012 season and landed a home with Team Penske where he won a Daytona 500 and a Cup Series title since. Meanwhile, Jones is about to be replaced by Christopher Bell next season and yet to find a ride. During Wednesday’s portion of NASCAR Playoffs Media Day, Logano went into greater detail aboutRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer AVONDALE, Arizona — Going into Sunday’s Bluegreen Vacations 500 at ISM Raceway, it was possible that one driver would make the Championship 4 via points. The man who claimed the final spot was runner-up finisher Kyle Busch. In a battle that boiled down between his teammate Denny Hamlin and rival Joey Logano, one spot would’ve made the difference of having three Joe Gibbs Racing drivers battling for the championship at Homestead-Miami Speedway or not. After wall contact from John Hunter Nemechek on Lap 303, the fieldRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer AVONDALE, Arizona — In a year that Roger Penske has dominated the world of motorsports, there won’t be a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship this season for “The Captain.” That’s because Joey Logano finished ninth in Sunday’s Bluegreen Vacations 500 at ISM Raceway. Not good enough of making the Championship 4 despite running extraordinarily well during the first half of the race, highlighted with a Stage 2 win. Then everything fell apart for the No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang as his pace was lost andRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer AVONDALE, Arizona — Chase Elliott’s heinous Round of 8 ends in a Lap 167 crash in Sunday’s Bluegreen Vacations 500 at ISM Raceway. “It’s just a continuation of our first two weeks, unfortunately,” Elliott on his elimination. “I hate it for our NAPA group.” Needing a win to make the Championship 4 for the first time in his career, Elliott had a competitive No. 9 NAPA AutoCare Center Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 where he had collected 17 stage points. Elliott’s main battle was against Denny Hamlin, whoRead More