RELATED: See the races at New Hampshire
LOUDON, N.H. — Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series teams descended upon New Hampshire Motor Speedway for organizational testing at the 1-mile oval on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Chip Ganassi Racing driver Kyle Larson had the three fastest laps of the seven-hour opening day of testing with a best speed of 125.6 mph. He followed it up on Wednesday, again posting the fastest lap at 125.1 mph.
Testing included a plethora of heavy-hitters, including five former “Magic Mile” winners in Kyle Busch (Joe Gibbs Racing), Brad Keselowski (Team Penske), Clint Bowyer (Stewart-Haas Racing), Kasey Kahne (Hendrick Motorsports) and Ryan Newman (Richard Childress Racing).
Twelve drivers in total were at the test, representing nine different Monster Energy Series teams. Three drivers specifically tested for NASCAR’s three manufacturers.
Teams are prepping and collecting data for the upcoming New Hampshire 301 (July 16, 3 p.m. ET, NBCSN, PRN, Sirius XM NASCAR Radio) and the Sept. 24 New England 300 (2 p.m. ET, NBCSN, PRN, Sirius XM NASCAR Radio.)
Joe Gibbs Racing drivers (Busch in 2015, Matt Kenseth in 2016) have won the past two July NHMS races.
The session was interrupted briefly early Tuesday afternoon as rain spit from the cloudy skies above the race track embedded in the Granite State woodlands. As a result, the test was extended thirty minutes to 7:30 p.m. ET. The Wednesday session was delayed approximately three hours due to morning showers.
A pair of drivers looking for more consistent seat time (i.e. a full-time ride) in Alex Bowman and Drew Herring were also on hand to test for Chevrolet and Toyota, respectively.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. recently mentioned Bowman would be a suitable replacement for him in the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet next season after he hangs up the fire suit. Bowman filled in for Earnhardt last year on a part-time basis during the latter’s recovery from concussion-related symptoms.
RELATED: Junior endorses Bowman for No. 88
See the table below for each driver’s best speeds from each day.
Tuesday
| Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Speed (mph) |
| 1. Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 125.6 |
| 2. Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 125.2 |
| 3. Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 124.8 |
| 4. Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 124.5 |
| 5. Ryan Blaney | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 124.4 |
| 6. Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 124.3 |
| 7. Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 124.2 |
| 8. Trevor Bayne | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 123.4 |
| 9. Drew Herring | Toyota Wheelforce | Toyota | 123.3 |
| 10. Alex Bowman | Chevrolet Wheelforce | Chevrolet | 122.7 |
| 11. Ty Dillon | Germain Racing | Chevrolet | 122.3 |
| 12. David Ragan | Ford Wheelforce | Ford | 121.5 |
Wednesday
| Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Speed (mph) |
| 1. Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 125.1 |
| 2. Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 125.0 |
| 3. Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 124.8 |
| t-4. Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 124.3 |
| t-4. Ryan Blaney | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 124.3 |
| 6. Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 124.2 |
| 7. Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing | Ford | 123.6 |
| 8. Ty Dillon | Germain Racing | Chevrolet | 123.4 |
| 9. Alex Bowman | Chevrolet Wheelforce | Chevrolet | 123.0 |
| 10. Drew Herring | Toyota Wheelforce | Toyota | 122.8 |
| 11. Trevor Bayne | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 122.6 |
| 12. David Ragan | Ford Wheelforce | Ford | 121.3 |