Ryan Blaney Tag

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Now that the 2018 NASCAR season is complete and the year is drawing to a close, we’ll take this opportunity to take a look back at the year that was. On the docket today is Part One of the 10 most memorable moments of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season. 20 Years Later: Austin Dillon Returns No. 3 to Daytona 500 Victory Lane In 1998, Dale Earnhardt finally broke through with his first win in the Daytona 500 after coming so close for so manyRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor The 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup season will roar to life with a Sunday doubleheader on February 10 at Daytona to signal the start of Speedweeks. Once again this year, Cup Series qualifying and the Advance Auto Parts Clash exhibition race will kick off a week of action leading up to the 61st annual Daytona 500 the following Sunday. On Thursday, the sanctioning body released the eligibility requirements and drivers that have met those requirements for the two-segment, 75-lap event. This year’s eligible drivers will conformRead More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer Veteran Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series crew chief, and team owner, Tommy Baldwin, Jr. will attempt the 2019 Daytona 500. After a little over a one-year hiatus, Tommy Baldwin Racing will return to the Premier Series of NASCAR. TBR competed full-time from 2009 to 2016. In 2017, the team scaled back to part-time competition following the sale of Baldwin’s charter. The team will once again compete part-time, running between five and seven races with the aim of returning to full-time competition in 2020. Crew chief,Read More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor HOMESTEAD, Fla. – Continuing the speed shown earlier in the day, Joey Logano was the fastest once again in final practice for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series at Homestead-Miami Speedway, jumping to the top of the board early on and staying there for the duration of the session. Logano clocked in at 31.450 seconds, 171.701 mph, with fellow championship contender Martin Truex Jr. following close on his heels with the second fastest time in practice. “I think we were pretty good,” Logano said. “I amRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service AVONDALE, Ariz. – Resilient Kevin Harvick bounced back at his best track, winning the pole position for Sunday’s Can-Am 500 at ISM Raceway and putting behind him a penalty that threatened his Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship chances. Harvick, a nine-time Phoenix winner, toured the newly configured one-mile track in 25.386 seconds to run the fastest lap in the three-round knockout qualifying session at 139.340 mph to edge fellow Playoff driver Chase Elliott (139.152 mph) for the top starting spot in Round of 8Read More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor Kevin Harvick’s bid for a second Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship took a detour on Wednesday after the sanctioning body handed down penalties stemming from last Sunday’s race at Texas Motor Speedway. Harvick had locked himself into the Championship 4 at Homestead with his Texas win, which was his eighth victory of the season, but his No. 4 Ford was found to have an illegal spoiler in post-race inspection at the NASCAR R&D Center. Because of the infraction, which violates Section 20.4.12 of the NASCARRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service FORT WORTH, Tex. – This time, there was no late-race glitch to interrupt Kevin Harvick’s domination of a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race. Streaking away from pole winner Ryan Blaney during an overtime restart on Lap 336, Harvick won Sunday’s AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway with the utmost of authority, sweeping the stages and leading a race-high 177 laps on the way to his series-best eighth victory of the season and a guaranteed spot in the Nov. 18 Championship 4 raceRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service FORT WORTH, Tex. – Ryan Blaney may have exited the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, but that doesn’t mean the desire to win has left the driver of the No. 12 Team Penske Ford. Running the fastest lap of the day in the final round of Friday’s knockout qualifying session at Texas Motor Speedway, Blaney sped around the 1.5-mile track in 26.932 seconds (200.505 mph) to earn the top starting spot for Sunday’s AAA Texas 500 (3 p.m. ET on NBCSN, PRN andRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service MARTINSVILLE, Va. – Hoping to reverse the outcome of this year’s spring race at Martinsville Speedway, Kyle Busch took the first step on Saturday afternoon, winning the pole position for Sunday’s First Data 500 (2:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), the first race in the Round of 8 in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. Driving the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, Busch navigated the .526-mile short track in 19.673 seconds (96.254 seconds) in the final round of knockoutRead More

By Brian Eberly, Contributing Writer KANSAS CITY, Kan. – Sunday afternoon’s Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway was the elimination race for the Round of 12, leaving four drivers out of playoff contention upon the completion of 267 laps at the 1.5-mile oval. Despite the playoff drama, the race was fairly uneventful and featured just three caution flags, with the only non-stage break yellow for an expired engine on the No. 24 Chevrolet of William Byron. Chase Elliott earned his third victory in the last 11 races, beating Kyle Busch toRead More