NASCAR Tag

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service AVONDALE, Ariz. – Last year at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Jimmie Johnson won his seventh Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship with a serendipitous victory in the Championship 4 race. This year, Johnson will need more than serendipity. He’ll need what amounts to a miracle just to earn a shot at a record eighth title. Johnson comes to Phoenix Raceway eighth in the series standings, last among the drivers trying to survive the Playoff’s Round of 8. With one berth available in the Championship 4, theRead More

Listen to “Drafting The Circuits November 09, 2017” on Spreaker. Frank Santorski and the Drafting the Circuits gang – Gray Warren, Richard Youden and Seth Eggert – weighs in on NASCAR at Texas, makes predictions for the final spot in the championship four, has a healthy discussion about the economics of the sport, and looks at the open F1 seat at Williams for 2018. Credits: Host – Frank Santoroski DTC Panel – Seth Eggert, Gray Warren, & Richard Youden Producers – Anthony Arnold & Keith Hayes Special thanks to Whoobazoo for hosting the DTC Podcast.Read More

By NASCAR Wire Service Almirola, who currently drives the No. 43 for Richard Petty Motorsports, takes over a ride that has been piloted by Danica Patrick for each of the last five full seasons. “I’ve known Aric since 2004 and have always been impressed with him on the racetrack,” said Tony Stewart, co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing with Haas Automation founder Gene Haas. “I’ve raced with him and seen him mature into a really good racecar driver. He can compete for wins here at Stewart-Haas Racing and help our other driversRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief FORT WORTH, Texas – Jimmie Johnson saw his quest for a record eighth Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series title take a major hit with a 27th-place finish in Sunday’s AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. The 42-year-old Californian started ninth and looked to be an early favorite, having entered with seven victories at the 1.5-mile in his career. However, on Lap 65 of 334, following the first sequence of green flag pit stops, Johnson brought the car down pit road for a reported vibration andRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service FORT WORTH, Tex. – Denny Hamlin did almost everything right on Sunday afternoon. Despite his best efforts, however, the driver of the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota left Texas Motor Speedway in a good-sized hole. Hamlin started Sunday’s AAA Texas 500 from the front row beside pole winner Kurt Busch. He led the first 46 laps, 65 overall. Hamlin was in the top spot for the final restart on Lap 289 and rolled home in third place behind winner Kevin Harvick and runner-upRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief FORT WORTH, Texas – It wasn’t the ideal outcome, but Ryan Blaney put in a solid sixth-place finish to keep himself in the championship mix in the AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. The 23-year-old Ohio native started eighth, but managed to climb into the top three before losing the rear of the car while defending his position entering Turn 2 on Lap 258 and fading quickly the  of the backend top 10. From there, Blaney struggled to regain the lost track position, but quietlyRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief FORT WORTH, Texas – Brad Keselowski kept his championship hopes alive after salvaging a fifth-place finish in Sunday’s AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. The 33-year-old Michigan native nearly saw his chances evaporate moments after the drop of the green when Kyle Busch’s No. 18 M&M’s Caramel Toyota Camry washed up the track going into Turn 1 and cut the left rear tire of Keselowski’s No. 2 Wurth Ford Fusion. The incident hurt both drivers as they came down pit road and fell behind theRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service FORT WORTH, Tex. – A driver without a signed contract for 2018 won the pole position for Sunday’s AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway (2 p.m. ET on NBCSN) with a record lap — giving a timely birthday present to his crew chief. In the final round of Friday’s knockout qualifying session, Kurt Busch covered the 1.5-mile distance in 26.877 seconds (200.915 mph) to top the previous record lap of 200.111 mph posted by Tony Stewart in 2014. In a third round thatRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service With full-time driver Darrell “Bubba” Wallace Jr. behind the wheel, Richard Petty Motorsports will have a new sponsor on the vaunted No. 43 car in the 2018 Daytona 500 and at least two other events next year. Click n’ Close, a division of Texas-based Mid America Mortgage has entered a partnership agreement with RPM as well as signing on as the “Official Mortgage Provider of NASCAR.” “I’m excited to run in my first Daytona 500,” Wallace said. “And I think most of you guysRead More

Listen to “Drafting The Circuits November 2, 2017” on Spreaker. Frank Santoroski and the Drafting the Circuit crew – Gray Warren, Richard Youden and Seth Eggert – breaks down the Martinsville round of the NASCAR playoffs and it’s championship implications, and discusses Lewis Hamilton’s place in F1 history after he clinches his fourth World Driving title in Mexico. Credits: Host – Frank Santoroski DTC Panel – Seth Eggert, Gray Warren, & Richard Youden Producers – Anthony Arnold & Keith Hayes Special thanks to Whoobazoo for hosting the DTC Podcast. Social Media: Follow DTC on Facebook FollowRead More