NASCAR Wire Service Tag

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service Note: This is the third in a five-part series of features highlighting the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2020 – Buddy Baker, Joe Gibbs, Bobby Labonte, Tony Stewart and Waddell Wilson. The class will be officially enshrined on Jan. 31 at the Charlotte Convention Center, broadcast live at 8 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. Last November, on the eve of his team fielding an unprecedented three of the four cars eligible for the 2019 NASCAR Cup Series championship trophy,Read More

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service The review was clearly evident on Matt DiBenedetto’s face and in his voice. After only one morning testing a NASCAR Xfinity Series car for the first time on one of Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s road courses, DiBenedetto’s reaction said it all. “It’s been fun,’’ DiBenedetto said during a break from the test Wednesday morning, adding, “I’m already jealous of these [NASCAR] Xfinity [Series] guys, just how cool the race is going to be and how good of a show it’s going to put on.’’ LastRead More

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service Note: This is the second in a five-part series of features highlighting the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2020 – Buddy Baker, Joe Gibbs, Bobby Labonte, Tony Stewart and Waddell Wilson. The class will be officially enshrined on Jan. 31 at the Charlotte Convention Center, broadcast live at 8 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. To a whole generation of NASCAR fans, Buddy Baker was for years the gentle voice and big personality on television race broadcasts and a popularRead More

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service Note: This is the first in a five-part series of features highlighting the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2020 – Buddy Baker, Joe Gibbs, Bobby Labonte, Tony Stewart and Waddell Wilson. The class will be officially enshrined on Jan. 31 at the Charlotte Convention Center, broadcast live at 8 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — The indications were there from that first green flag he took as a little boy growing up in small town Texas. Bobby LabonteRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The structure is new, and the level of commitment is elevated, but the four companies announced Thursday as Premier Partners for the NASCAR Cup Series are hardly new to the sport. Busch Beer, Coca-Cola, GEICO and Xfinity already enjoy significant roles in NASCAR, but the presence of those four companies will expand as part of a paradigm shift in sponsorship structure in 2020. NASCAR’s premier division will be named the NASCAR Cup Series, with the four cornerstone brands announced Wednesday as PremierRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service AVONDALE, Ariz. – Out, demon! Denny Hamlin’s exorcism is complete. At ISM Raceway, the site of one of his biggest disappointments, Hamlin barged back into the Championship 4 with a dominating victory in Sunday’s Bluegreen Vacations 500. Hamlin joins Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Martin Truex Jr. and Kyle Busch, Sunday’s runner-up, in the Nov. 17 race for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series title at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The three JGR drivers will battle Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing for the trophy. After losing controlRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service AVONDALE, Ariz. – Justin Allgaier’s timing was impeccable. After a pit road speeding penalty and a subsequent spin KO’d the winning chances of polesitter Christopher Bell, Allgaier took full advantage, leading the final 66 laps of Saturday’s Desert Diamond West Valley 200 to win for the first time this season and advance to next week’s NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship 4 event at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Allgaier joins the so-called Big Three of Bell, Saturday’s runner-up Cole Custer and third-place finisher Tyler Reddick in the titleRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service AVONDALE, Ariz. – In a Saturday qualifying session that provided validation that the cream rises to the top, Kyle Busch earned his first pole position of the season, as seven Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoff drivers claimed the top seven positions on the grid. Navigating one-mile ISM Raceway in a blistering 25.693 seconds 140.116 mph, Busch edged Joey Logano (139.752 mph) by .067 seconds for Sunday’s Bluegreen Vacations 500 (2:30 p.m. ET on NBC, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), the race that willRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service AVONDALE, Ariz. – Stewart Friesen thought he had led the first lap of Friday night’s Lucas Oil 150 at ISM Raceway in Phoenix. He was wrong. After suffering a penalty for jumping the start of the race, however, Friesen rallied to lead the lap that counted most—the last one— and secured a spot in next weekend’s Championship 4 race with the second NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series victory of the season and his career. “We’ve got a badass piece for next week, too,” promisedRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service FORT WORTH, Tex. – For Kevin Harvick, Texas is the new Phoenix. Overcoming a pit road penalty for a tire placed in his pit box too early, Harvick took control of the AAA Texas 500 as the sun set on Texas Motor Speedway and won his third straight Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoff race at the 1.5-mile track in Cowtown. Locked into the Championship 4 race two weeks hence at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Harvick can now breathe easy heading into the final Round ofRead More