Posted on by Staff Report

The Triple Truck Challenge returned to the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series for the 2020 season after a successful debut in 2019.

This year’s program kicked off at the Daytona International Speedway Road Course on Aug. 16 with Sheldon Creed taking home the $50,000 prize. The second race was held at Dover International Speedway on Aug. 21 and saw Zane Smith score the $50,000 prize. The third and final race took place on Aug. 30 at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway, where Creed picked up his second Triple Truck Challenge prize with his third victory of the season.

RELATED: 2020 Gander Trucks schedule

Like last year, drivers competed for cash prizes, as follows: a $50,000 bonus for the race winner of any of the three events; win two of the three events and they are awarded an extra $50K, totaling $150,000; win all three events and take home an additional $300,000 for a total of $500,000 in prize money.

Greg Biffle came out of retirement to win the first Triple Truck Challenge event in 2019 at Texas Motor Speedway, driving for Kyle Busch Motorsports. Other winners were Brett Moffitt at Iowa Speedway and Ross Chastain at Gateway.

This year’s Triple Truck Challenge, nicknamed “The Trip,” was originally scheduled to take place April 18 at Richmond Raceway, May 1 at Dover and May 15 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, but it was rescheduled because of the COVID-19 outbreak.

Posted on by Holly Cain

Sheldon Creed won his second NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series race in the last three weeks, holding off former series champion Brett Moffitt by a mere .881-seconds to take the trophy in Sunday afternoon’s CarShield 200 Presented by CK Power at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway.

It was the 22-year-old Californian’s third career win and, notably, his second victory in the season’s three-race Triple Truck Challenge just this month, which earned him a total of $150,000 in bonuses.

Sunday’s victory did not come without controversy, however, as Creed’s No. 2 GMS Racing Chevrolet collided with the race’s most dominant driver, Todd Gilliland, racing hard with just under 40 laps remaining. The contact got Gilliland’s race-leading No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford out of shape and forced him into an unscheduled pit stop. And Gilliland, who had already won both Stage 1 and Stage 2 and led a race best 76 of the 160 laps, ultimately finished 24th.

“(The win) feels great, but I want to start by apologizing to the 38 (Gilliland),” Creed said. “It’s so hard to pass here and I got down into his inside and just was really loose getting in. He was really close to my door. They were having such a good day and me and Todd are buddies. I hate doing that to him. They are a strong team. He owes me one.

RELATED: Race results | Sheldon Creed expects payback

“But hats off to my guys. They made great adjustments all day. Came from 17th and had my work cut out for me.”

Championship points leader Austin Hill finished third, followed by 17-year-old Sam Mayer, who led an impressive 24 laps before getting beaten by Creed on a restart with 13 laps remaining. Stewart Friesen, rounded out the top five, his third straight top-five finish in what’s been a largely inconsistent season for the Canadian driver.

Rookies Raphael Lessard and Zane Smith finished sixth and seventh. Grant Enfinger, a two-race winner this season, rallied to an eighth-place finish. Rookies Ty Majeski and Tanner Gray rounded out the top 10.

“I was just trying to play games on the restart and it didn’t work out in my favor obviously,” said Mayer, who was making just his fifth series start. “That’s what I get for playing games. I was a sitting duck really. I am proud of my GMS guys today.”

The vast majority of the race stayed green and early on, especially, looked to be Gilliland’s for the taking. His stage wins were the first for the 20-year-old in two seasons, and a victory would have automatically meant a position in the 10-driver Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series Playoffs, which begin Sept. 25 in Las Vegas.

“I think he (Creed) knows what happened and I know what happened,” an obviously frustrated Gilliland said after the race. “He just drove in there over his head and got us. That’s racing. I just hate it.

“Had such a good truck there from the beginning going from sixth to first under green,” he continued, “Then to win both stages, gosh, I feel like it was such a good day and it was one of the more dominant truck races I’ve ever run. We just have to keep this up.”

Despite the frustrating result, Gilliland’s two stage wins earned him enough points to keep him inside that 10-driver Playoff cutoff. He is ranked 10th, 13 points ahead of 11th-place Derek Kraus, who finished 13th on Sunday.

The series moves to historic Darlington Raceway for the South Carolina Education Lottery 200 next Sunday afternoon (2 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). It’s the first time since 2011 the Gander Trucks will compete on the egg-shaped track.

Posted on by Terrin Waack

Jimmie Johnson’s #Chasing8 was scratched long ago — before the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series schedule even started actually — but the possibility of an eighth championship for “Seven-Time” truly came to an end Saturday at Daytona International Speedway.

With two laps to go in regulation of the regular-season finale, Johnson got caught up in an 11-car wreck. His Hendrick Motorsports crew was able to nurse the damaged No. 48 Chevrolet back to life for a 17th-place result. But Johnson’s chances of making the NASCAR Playoffs in his final full-time season came to an end when teammate William Byron took the checkered flag and Wood Brothers Racing’s Matt DiBenedetto finished 12th. Those two claimed the final two spots in the 16-driver field, with Johnson as the first driver out.

“After a couple of beers and a flight home,” Johnson said, “I’m going to get a good night’s rest and try to shake it off tomorrow and just focus on the next race.”

RELATED: Official Daytona results | Who’s in, who’s out

This marks the second season in a row Johnson has not made the postseason battle. Otherwise, he qualified every single year – the format was installed in 2004.

Byron’s No. 24 crew chief, Chad Knaus, called out commands in Johnson’s ear during his 15-year playoff run, which included the seven titles. Knaus stayed within the organization but switched teams prior to the 2019 season.

The Coke Zero Sugar 400 marked Byron’s first career victory and Knaus’ first triumph with a driver other than Johnson. So, after the checkered flag fell, Johnson went out of his way to drive past his teammate and former crew chief’s pit box — a sign of respect in a moment that could have easily been full of defeat.

“I hate it for Jimmie,” Knaus said. “He’s one of my best friends. He was the first guy that came by pit road and looked up at me, revved up the engine, gave me a thumbs up. He means the world to me. He’s a great man and brother of mine.”

Johnson ended up just six points below the cutline, even after the crash chaos. He and Byron entered the event with a four-point difference — Bryon with the advantage. DiBenedetto was nine points to the good, so not out of reach. Clint Bowyer, meanwhile, had a 57-point buffer and punched his ticket at the end of Stage 1.

“I knew the position we were in,” Johnson said. “So it’s not like this is a shock or a surprise. My emotions are what I would have expected. Definitely disappointed. We’ve been running well and running good.”

It’s not the end, though. There are still 10 races left before Johnson hangs up his gear. That means there are still 10 opportunities for Johnson to snap his current 120-winless streak.

Johnson may no longer be #Chasing8. But 2020 is still his #OneFinalTime.

“Guys were really bummed out there on pit lane as I was getting out of the car — my team members were,” Johnson said. “But we all know there’s still 10 more races to try to win. That’s what everybody’s focus is: to try to send me out with a trophy.”

Posted on by Staff Report

WINCHESTER, N.H. — John McKennedy picked up his second Mayhew Tools Dominator Pole Award in the last three races Sunday as the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour returned to Monadnock Speedway.

McKennedy drove the No. 7 Ultra Wheel Chevrolet to the top qualifying spot on the quarter-mile with a lap of 17.781 seconds. It is McKennedy’s third career pole on the tour.

Championship points leader Justin Bonsignore, the last car to take time, came up just short of knocking McKennedy off the top spot. Bonsignore qualified second at 12.810.

RELATED: Qualifying Results

The Advanced Gas Distributors 200 Wade Cole Memorial is scheduled for 4 p.m. and will stream live on TrackPass on NBC Gold.

Ron Silk, fastest in practice, qualified third at 12.842. Matt Hirschman and fourth and Patrick Emerling fifth.

Last week’s race winner Craig Lutz qualified sixth, followed by Doug Coby, Tommy Catalano, Dave Sapienza and Chris Pasteryak.

Posted on by Staff Report

WINCHESTER, N.H. — The weekend off may have paid off for Ron Silk.

The 2011 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion opted to skip last weekend’s event at Pennsylvania’s Jennerstown Speedway after a pair of subpar runs at White Mountain Motorsports Park in New Hampshire. He returned to the tour Sunday, and paced practice at Monadnock Speedway in the one-hour session prior to the Advanced Gas Distributors Inc. 200 Wade Cole Memorial.

Silk piloted the No. 85 Stuart’s Automotive Chevrolet around the banked quarter-mile in 12.805 seconds (70.285 mph).

RELATED: Practice Results

Chris Pasteryak was second fastest at 12.833 (70.132), followed by Matt Hirschman at 12.834 (70.126).

Doug Coby, Justin Bonsignore and Craig Lutz were fourth through sixth, respectively. Bonsignore leads the championship points after four events by 10 over Coby and 17 over Lutz.

Sam Rameau was seventh in practice, followed by Woody Pitkat, Matt Swanson and Tyler Rypkema.

Qualifying for the Advanced Gas Distributors Inc. 200 Wade Cole Memorial is scheduled for 1:30 p.m., with the race taking the green flag at 4 p.m. live on TrackPass on NBC Gold.

Posted on by Staff Report

WINCHESTER, N.H. — That didn’t take long.

After a pair of races out of Victory Lane, Justin Bonsignore found himself right back on familiar ground as he executed a late pass on Ron Silk to capture the Advanced Gas Distributors Inc. 200 Wade Cole Memorial Sunday afternoon at Monadnock Speedway.

It was Bonsignore’s third win in five races on the season and his sixth in the last 10 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour events dating back to last Aug. 31.

To cap his 29th career win, he wheeled the No. 51 Phoenix Communications Inc. Chevrolet in a slide across the finish line — 1.085 seconds ahead of Silk.

Jon McKennedy won the Mayhew Tools Dominator Pole Award in qualifying and led the first 61 laps before Silk, who was fastest in practice and qualified third, got past him. Bonsignore tracked him down and the two swapped the top spot before Bonsignore took it for good with 25 laps remaining.

Bonsignore’s 29th career tour win moved him back into a tie with six-time champion Doug Coby, who finished third, for sixth on the all-time wins list.

More importantly, it bumped Bonsignore’s championship points lead back up to 16 over Coby. After winning the first two races of the season, back-to-back fifth-place runs had chipped away at the Long Island driver’s lead.

Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, which significantly altered the 2020 Whelen Modified schedule, Monadnock was a late addition. But the return to the quarter-mile for the first time since 2016 was a welcome addition for Bonsignore, who won there in 2013 and ’14.

RELATED: Complete Results | Justin Bonsignore Career Wins

The Advanced Gas Distributors Inc. 200 Wade Cole Memorial, which streamed live on TrackPass on NBC Gold, was postponed from Saturday to Sunday by weather.

Anthony Nocella finished fourth and Ronnie Williams fifth.

Matt Hirschman, Woody Pitkat, Sam Rameau, McKennedy and Craig Lutz completed the top 10. Lutz and McKennedy are tied for third in points, 30 points back of Bonsignore.

The tour will have a quick turnaround, racing at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park in Connecticut on Wednesday, Sept. 2.

Race action during the Advanced Gas Distributors 200 Wade Cole Memorial for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour at Monadnock Speedway in Winchester, New Hampshire on August 30, 2020. (Kathryn Riley/NASCAR)

Posted on by Staff Report

The 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs field was set Saturday at Daytona International Speedway in the regular-season finale.

Thirteen of 16 spots had been clinched in advance of the Coke Zero Sugar 400, meaning three spots were available. William Byron (win), Clint Bowyer (points) and Matt DiBenedetto (points) earned them.

RELATED: Race results

Hendrick Motorsports teammates Byron and Jimmie Johnson entered the day separated by four points, with all other drivers below the cutline essentially needing to win to get in. Johnson was caught up in a wreck late, while Byron went on to win his first career NASCAR Cup Series race — two very different outcomes for the eldest and youngest Hendrick drivers.

Below is the unofficial seeding and points entering the Round of 16. This story will be updated when seeding is made official.

NASCAR CUP SERIES PLAYOFFS FIELD

1. Kevin Harvick, Stewart-Haas Racing: 2,057 points
2. Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing: 2,047 points
3. Brad Keselowski, Team Penske: 2,029 points
4. Joey Logano, Team Penske: 2,022 points
5. Chase Elliott, Hendrick Motorsports: 2,020 points
6. Martin Truex Jr., Joe Gibbs Racing: 2,014 points
7. Ryan Blaney, Team Penske: 2,013 points
8. Alex Bowman, Hendrick Motorsports: 2,009 points
9. William Byron, Hendrick Motorsports: 2,007 points
10. Austin Dillon, Richard Childress Racing: 2,005 points
11. Cole Custer, Stewart-Haas Racing: 2,005 points
12. Aric Almirola, Stewart-Haas Racing: 2,005 points
13. Clint Bowyer, Stewart-Haas Racing, 2,004 points
14. Kyle Busch, Joe Gibbs Racing: 2,003 points
15. Kurt Busch, Chip Ganassi Racing: 2,001 points 
16. Matt DiBenedetto, Wood Brothers Racing: 2,000 points

Inset00 R16 Ncs Grid

CHAMP OUT: Seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Johnson will not have a chance at one final title. The No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet was involved in a multicar wreck with two laps to go. At the time, Johnson was on the right side of the cutline. His 17th-place finish, though, pushed him out of the playoff picture. Johnson is set to retire at the end of the 2020 season.

CHAMP IS HERE: Kevin Harvick won the regular-season championship for the first time in his career by virtue of having the most points during the 26-race regular season. He clinched the title last week at Dover International Speedway. His reward? Besides the prestige and a pretty sweet trophy, that’s worth 15 playoff points that carry over into the postseason. Harvick was dominant throughout the regular season, and nobody came particularly close to challenging his lead atop the standings, finishing with a cushion of 10 points. He’ll enter as the man to beat.

TOP SEED: Harvick was dominant throughout the regular season, and nobody came particularly close to challenging his lead atop the standings, finishing with a cushion of 115 points over Denny Hamlin. He’ll enter as the man to beat.

NEXT UP: The NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs begin next Sunday, Sept. 6, at Darlington Raceway with the Cook Out Southern 500 (6 p.m. ET, NBCSN/NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Posted on by Holly Cain

With his NASCAR Cup Series Playoff hopes on the line, Hendrick Motorsports’ driver William Byron earned his first career victory Saturday night at Daytona International Speedway in the Coke Zero Sugar 400 regular season finale.

The victory was an automatic berth into the playoffs for the 22-year old Byron – a hard-fought trophy in a typically full-contact, high-emotion contest on NASCAR’s famed Daytona high-banks to settle the playoff field.

RELATED: Race results | Who is in the playoff field?

The only two playoff positions still up for grabs on the night were filled by Byron and Matt DiBenedetto, who earned the 16th and final Playoff position with a 12th place effort – a mere six points better than seven-time series champion Jimmie Johnson who nursed a badly-damaged car home to a 17th-place finish.

“We made it,” DiBenedetto said. “I don’t care how we did it. All my goal was, was to come in here and make it. 

“I wanted it so bad for this team,” he continued, with a nod to the longtime Wood Brothers Racing operation he drives for this year.

Johnson – who is retiring from full-time competition at the end of the season – was obviously disappointed in the outcome, but emboldened by the effort of his team. The 83-race NASCAR Cup Series winner had a tough path to earn a playoff berth. He missed a race due to a COVID-19 diagnosis and had points taken away from a runner-up effort earlier in the season due to a disqualification. He was in contention to move into his final playoffs opportunity until being caught up in an 11-car accident with only two laps left in regulation.

“First and foremost, congratulations to my teammate for getting his first Cup win like that,” Johnson said. “This setting and the drama that goes into it, that’s a big win for [crew chief] Chad Knaus and William Byron, really happy for those guys.

“I really feel like we had a way to transfer to win or point our way in the way it went the first two stages and things just got ugly in Turn 1. Unfortunate, but that’s plate racing.

“We had a really good car and last couple months we’ve been really getting our act together and running well. Really disappointed to not be in the Playoffs. That was the number one goal to start the year.”

RELATED: Johnson: ‘We did all we could’ 

Byron took the lead from this year’s Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin on an overtime restart with two laps to go and with cars spinning out behind him, ultimately was able to hold off his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Chase Elliott by a blink-of-the-eye .119-second. 

Hamlin finished third, followed by his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Martin Truex Jr. Richard Petty Motorsports’ driver Bubba Wallace turned in a season-best fifth-place finish. Ryan Blaney, Alex Bowman, Brendan Gaughan, Chris Buescher and Brad Keselowski rounded out the top-10.

Kyle Busch led 31 laps but with only eight laps remaining in what had been a largely incident-free race, Busch, the reigning NASCAR Cup Series champion, was collected in the first of two mega-accidents. 10 cars suffered damage in the incident and a red flag flew for more than 10 minutes.

WATCH: See how Reddick’s block of Busch leads to wreck

The race restarted with five laps remaining but another incident at the front of the field involved 11 cars – including Johnson’s No. 48 Chevrolet and Joey Logano’s No. 22 Team Penske Ford which had won the race’s first two stages.

Byron was part of that close-quarter contact racing and the race leader when the caution came out. During the ensuing short red flag period, Byron’s team worried if his car had suffered damage in the melee –  if Byron should stay out for the restart instead of pitting. He stayed out and the gamble paid off with Byron’s first NASCAR Cup Series win and a berth in the playoffs.

“I’m just extremely blessed and this is incredible,” said Byron, who drives the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. “It’s been a hard couple of years in the Cup Series and trying to get my first win and gel with this team. These guys did an awesome job today and got us in the Playoffs and it’s amazing.

“This is probably the hardest track to points-race,” said Byron who only had a four-point advantage over Johnson for the final playoff transfer position entering the race.

“We had a great Stage 2 and kind of got back in the pack and got shuffled when everyone went single file. I thought my hope were up there. And we were racing around the No. 21 (DiBenedetto) and the No. 48 (Johnson) in the final stage and I was like, ‘man, I’ve to really make something happen. Luckily, I was able to push the No. 43 (Wallace) and he and the No. 22 (Logano) made some contact and opened up a hole for me and I wasn’t going to lift.

“It was awesome.”

The 10-race NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs begin next Sunday with the Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway (6 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Seven-race winner Kevin Harvick, the regular season champion, is the top seed and takes a 10-point advantage into the playoffs over six-race winner Denny Hamlin. With his win, Byron moved up to a ninth-place seeding. DiBenedetto starts his first ever playoffs seeded 16th.

Posted on by Staff Report

Which channels have NASCAR programming this week? We answer that and give the weekly NASCAR television listings here in the NASCAR TV schedule.

Note: All times are ET.

MORE: How to find NBCSN | Get the NBC Sports App | How to find FS1 | Get FOX Sports App

RELATED: How to follow races on NASCAR.com | NASCAR Live Stream

Monday, August 31
3 p.m., NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour (tape delayed), NBCSN/NBC Sports App
4 p.m., ARCA Menards Series West Eneos 150 (tape delayed), NBCSN/NBC Sports App
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1/FOX Sports App

Tuesday, September 1
5 p.m., IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship-Michelin GT Challenge at Virginia International Raceway (re-air), NBCSN/NBC Sports App
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1/FOX Sports App

On MRN:
7 p.m., NASCAR Live

Wednesday, September 2
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1/FOX Sports App
6 p.m., Dale Jr. Download, NBCSN/NBC Sports App

Thursday, September 3
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1/FOX Sports App
6 p.m., NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour (tape delayed), NBCSN/NBC Sports App
7 p.m., NASCAR Race Classics: 1994 Coca-Cola 600 (re-air), FS1/FOX Sports App

Saturday, September 5
8:30 a.m., IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA: Virginia International Raceway, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
9:30 a.m., IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Lamborghini Super Trofeo: Virginia International Raceway, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
10:30 a.m., IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Prototype Challenge: Virginia International Raceway, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
11:30 a.m., IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Grand Prix at Road Atlanta (re-air), NBCSN/NBC Sports App
Noon, Countdown to Green: NASCAR Xfinity Series, NBC/NBC Sports App
12:30 p.m., Sport Clips Haircuts VFW 200 at Darlington Raceway, NBC/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN5)
2:30 p.m., IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Grand Prix at Road Atlanta (re-air), NBCSN/NBC Sports App

On MRN:
Noon, NASCAR Xfinity Series Sports Clips Haircuts VFW 200 at Darlington Raceway

Sunday, September 6
1 p.m., 100,000 Cameras: The Return of NASCAR, FS1/FOX Sports App
1:30 p.m., NASCAR RaceDay: NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series at Darlington, FS1/FOX Sports App
2 p.m., South Carolina Education Lottery 200 at Darlington Raceway, FS1/FOX Sports App
5 p.m., NASCAR America, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
5:30 p.m., Countdown to Green: NASCAR Cup Series, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
6 p.m., Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN5)
10 p.m., NASCAR Cup Series Post-Race Show, NBCSN/NBC Sports App

On MRN:
1:30 p.m., NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series South Carolina Education Lottery 200 at Darlington Raceway
5 p.m., NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway

Posted on by Staff Report

Stewart-Haas Racing driver Kevin Harvick was officially crowned the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Regular Season Champion on Saturday night before the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway.

NASCAR President Steve Phelps was on hand to virtually present the trophy to the former series champion, along with Coca-Cola executives.

RELATED: Regular Season champ gear

The No. 4 Ford Mustang driver claimed the distinction just past the midway point of Stage 2 in last Sunday’s Drydene 311 at Dover International Speedway — a race he went on to win.

Clinching the regular-season title hands Harvick a 15-point bonus heading into the 10-race NASCAR Playoffs, which begins Sept. 6 with the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. The top-10 finishers in the regular-season standings receive bonus points on a sliding scale, starting with 15 for first and ending with one playoff point for 10th.

RELATED: Harvick’s career highlights | Harvick’s career victories

Harvick has been consistently excellent throughout 2020. His lowest position in the points standings was third, which he held through the first three races before he jumped to the top spot. The driver of the No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford has been first ever since.

With seven victories, paired with seven stages wins, Harvick already has 42 playoff points in the bank through Dover.

Kyle Busch earned the past two regular-season championships. Martin Truex Jr. scored the 2017 honor, the first year of inception. In two of the past three seasons, the regular-season champ has gone on to win the playoff title — Truex in 2017 and Busch in 2019.