Paul Menard Tag

BROOKLYN, Mich.—From Matt Kenseth’s point of view, the competition package NASCAR used at Michigan International Speedway could well have had a big, bright bow on it. The Coors Light Polesitter for Sunday’s Pure Michigan 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race, Kenseth quickly exhibited his mastery of the high-drag aerodynamic package, leading 146 of 200 laps in winning for the third time this season, the third time at Michigan and the 34th time in his career. The 2003 premier series champion had to survive a restart with 13 laps left, afterRead More

INDIANAPOLIS—With a relentless charge that forced Ryan Blaney into a mistake on the final lap, Kyle Busch grabbed the lead with a half-lap left at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and took the checkered flag in Saturday’s Lilly Diabetes 250 NASCAR XFINITY Series race. Blaney missed his mark in Turn 2 as Busch closed in, and with his momentum broken, the driver of the No. 22 Ford couldn’t stave off Busch’s winning pass on the backstretch. The No. 54 pulled away to win by .421 seconds, as Busch continued his white-hot runRead More

CONCORD, N.C.— Greg Biffle led every lap of the caution-free first 20-lap segment of Friday night’s Sprint Showdown at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Clint Bowyer needed an early caution in the second segment to validate crew chief Brian Pattie’s four-tire call. Though they arrived at the finish line through different routes, Biffle and Bowyer earned the two transfer spots into Saturday night’s NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race (May 16 on FOX Sports 1 at 7 p.m. ET) and will compete for the million-dollar top prize. Ninth-place finisher Danica Patrick also made theRead More

KANSAS CITY, Kan. – Thanks to a brief but wild Kansas spring storm and the long delay it produced, Jimmie Johnson on Sunday became the first Sprint Cup driver to win a race on Mother’s Day since 2007. Johnson, who is pursuing a record-tying seventh NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship this season, held off Kevin Harvick over the final six laps to win Sunday morning’s SpongeBob SquarePants 400 at Kansas Speedway. Johnson’s victory – which was recorded just after midnight local time because of a delay of 2 hours andRead More

FORT WORTH, Texas – Entering Texas Motor Speedway for Saturday night’s Duck Commander 500, the season has seen a rise of unlikely faces at the top of the Sprint Cup championship standings. The relatively quiet and forgotten man at Richard Childress Racing that has been the one leading the banner this year is none other than Paul Menard. Heading into Saturday night’s race Menard was sixth in the standings, with his best finish this season coming at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California. The Wisconsin native qualified a solid eighth,Read More

FONTANA, Calif.—After Sunday’s Auto Club 400, there may be a warrant issued for Brad Keselowski. After all, the driver of the No. 2 Team Penske Ford committed his own version of “Grand Theft Auto” at Auto Club Speedway—he stole an entire race. Benefitting from a four-tire call on the last lap of regulation and two opportune cautions that extended the event nine laps beyond its scheduled distance, Keselowski passed polesitter Kurt Busch on the final lap (209) and pulled away to win his first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race ofRead More

HAMPTON, Ga.—If you had to pick one driver to knock Joey Logano off his pedestal at Atlanta Motor Speedway, you couldn’t make a better choice than Kevin Harvick. Holding off Logano after a restart on Lap 140 of 163, Harvick won Saturday’s Hisense 250 NASCAR XFINITY Series race, ending a success streak that saw Logano beat Harvick for the win in the Daytona 500 and edge Harvick for the Coors Light Pole for Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 (1 p.m. ET on FOX) at AMS.Read More

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.—Matt Kenseth did what he couldn’t do all of last year — win a race. And Martin Truex Jr., runner-up in Saturday night’s 75-lap Sprint Unlimited exhibition race at Daytona International Speedway, did what he could do only once in 2014 — lead a lap. Coming to the finish line on the last lap, Kenseth blocked Truex’s move off Turn 4 and crossed the finish line in his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota .219 seconds ahead of Truex, who led four times for 28 laps after leadingRead More

HOMESTEAD, Fla. – Kevin Harvick can now call himself a Sprint Cup Series champion after passing fellow title rival Denny Hamlin to win the Ford EcoBoost 400 Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The 38-year-old from Bakersfield, California fought and battled for 13 seasons, falling short of winning the grandest prize in NASCAR each time until now. He also becomes the fourth champion in as many years, the first under the advanced Chase format. The new champion also joins an elite class, alongside Brad Keselowski and Bobby Labonte as the only driversRead More