The Action Network: Best bets for Miami

Posted on June 14, 2020June 14, 2020 by PJ Walsh

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After 500 laps around the half-mile Martinsville Speedway on Wednesday night, the NASCAR Cup Series is back in action at the Homestead-Miami Speedway on Sunday.

Not having practice since NASCAR’s return from the COVID-19 pandemic has made handicapping race winners more difficult than normal, but the return to a 1.5-mile racetrack provides us more recent data to lean on.

Last weekend, the Cup Series raced at Atlanta Motor Speedway, a high tire-wear 1.5-mile circuit just like Miami, so this is an important race to analyze.

In addition, we’ll also look at performances in The Real Heroes 500 at Darlington Raceway back on May 17 because that track also wears out tires quickly and, more importantly, the tire combination used in that event will be the same combination used on Sunday at Miami.

I’m specifically interested in data from The Real Heroes 500 as opposed to the Toyota 500, which took place three days later at Darlington, as the first event was run in the heat of the day, while the Wednesday race ran at night on a cooler racetrack.

Sunday’s Dixie Vodka 400 is also a day race, so I want to know which cars were best on a hot, slick track at Darlington as that will be much more similar to what the drivers experience at Miami.

After looking at historical Miami data, as well as recent results from Atlanta and Darlington, here are two drivers I’m betting for the Dixie Vodka 400.

Be sure to follow me on Twitter (@PJWalsh24) for any additional bets I make for Miami.

NASCAR at Miami Odds, Betting Picks

Odds as of Sunday at 7:30 a.m. ET and via DraftKings. Get up to a $1,000 sign-up bonus at DraftKings today or see more offers and reviews for the best online sportsbooks.

Kevin Harvick (+500) to win at Miami

With Tyler Reddick already in tow at 70-1, I’m passing on the mid-tier and going right for my two favorites to win the race — the first of which is Kevin Harvick.

Here are Harvick’s stats from the two day races run at high tire-wear tracks since NASCAR’s return: two wins, best driver rating, best average running position, most laps led and most fast laps run.

And here are Harvick’s finishes at Miami since joining Stewart-Haas Racing in 2014: first, second, third, fourth, third and fourth.

Martin Truex Jr. (+500) to win at Miami

While Harvick was the best driver in the heat of the day at Darlington and Atlanta, Truex was clearly the second-best performer.

Over those two races, Truex is tied for the second-best average finish, has run the second-most fast laps, has led the third-most laps and posted the second-best driver rating.

Just like Harvick, Truex has also been a rocket ship at Miami, including finishes of first, second and second over his last three races with the most fast laps run in last year’s event, which is significant because it’s the same aero package the Cup Series will run Sunday.

And finally, since Truex won Wednesday night at Martinsville he’ll have the best pit stall at Miami, which will only help his cause.

Posted on June 13, 2020June 13, 2020 by Staff Report

NASCAR officials penalized the Stewart-Haas Racing No. 98 Ford team after Saturday’s Xfinity Series race at Homestead-Miami Speedway, issuing four-race suspensions for three team members.

RELATED: Race results | Xfinity Series standings

Chase Briscoe drove the No. 98 Ford to a seventh-place finish in Saturday’s Hooters 250, but the car dropped ballast during pace laps, delaying the start and forcing Briscoe to lose several laps for repairs. The safety violation falls under Section 12.5.2.7.4.d of the NASCAR Rule Book.

The infraction means four-race bans for No. 98 crew chief Richard Boswell, car chief Nick Hutchins and engineer DJ Vanderley.

With the Xfinity Series set to resume Sunday as part of a weekend doubleheader for the tour, the suspensions are to take effect starting with Sunday’s Contender Boats 250 (noon ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM).

Posted on June 13, 2020June 13, 2020 by Holly Cain

It almost appeared that Kyle Busch having to start last – and going a lap down – in Saturday night’s Baptist Health 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway was akin to the NASCAR Gander & RV Outdoors Truck Series all-time winningest driver giving everyone a head-start.

But even that challenge wasn’t enough to keep Busch from victory. He added to his record series win total – extending that mark of excellence to 58 trophies, taking the checkered flag 2.847 seconds ahead of Tyler Ankrum, then Ross Chastain, Chase Elliott and Johnny Sauter in a dramatic final restart with six laps remaining.

Todd Gilliland, Austin Hill, Christian Eckes, Matt Crafton and Ty Majeski completed the top 10.

RELATED: Official race results

As the race played out, with a caution coming out with 12 laps to go, some drivers were able to pit for brand-new tires and others – such as Busch – put on a barely-worn set, making for a suspenseful final restart that did not disappoint. Busch was able to hold off the field – prevailing in a three-wide fight for the lead – and earn his third career win at the Homestead 1.5-miler.

“You’re always concerned about tires being better and having the opportunity to out-show you, but I felt like six laps was just the right amount, any more than that and it probably would have been a different outcome,” said Busch, who drove the No. 51 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota.

“I knew the Cessna Beechcraft Toyota Tundra here was going to be awesome. Thanks to TRD and Rowdy Energy, everybody that helps us here and makes us so fast and want to say thanks to Big Machine Hand Sanitizer as well, they were on the quarter panel the last two weeks and we didn’t win and now they’re not here and we won.”

Busch was originally penalized for failing inspection – forced to start last in the 38-truck field then take a “drive through” penalty through the pits on the first lap. While he was starting to make his way up through the field, the defending Homestead winner and Saturday night’s pole-sitter Austin Hill took control of the race.

Hill, Florida native Ross Chastain and Grant Enfinger fought for the early-race advantage and Chastain earned the opening stage victory. Busch was ninth on the ensuing restart and moved to second place in only one lap, ultimately taking the lead for the first time on Lap 39 of the 134-lap race.

MORE: Homestead-Miami weekend schedule

Chastain won the opening stage, and Busch rallied from his early race deficit to win the second stage.

Busch held the point easily through caution periods and challenges – leading Hill by 3.5 seconds with 40 laps remaining. When a final caution came out for Jordan Anderson’s truck with 12 to go – most of the leaders pitted for tires and those such as Ankrum and Elliott, who had brand-new sets made up a lot of ground and earned top-five finishes.

Busch collects his 211th NASCAR national series victory — most all-time. It was also Kyle Busch Motorsports’ sixth series win at Homestead-Miami Speedway and Toyota’s 11th series win at the 1.5-mile track.

Hill extended his points lead to 44 points over Eckes and 48 points up on two-time 2020 winner Enfinger in third.

The series will next be in action on June 27 at Pocono Raceway for the Pocono Organics 150 to benefit Farm Aid (12:30 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). This will be the sixth race of the 2020 season.

Note: The No. 44 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet of Chastain was missing one lug nut in a post-race check.

Contributing: Staff reports

Posted on June 13, 2020June 13, 2020 by Zack Albert

Dale Earnhardt Jr. admitted to carrying a bundle of nerves in the days leading up to his lone NASCAR Xfinity Series race of the season, saying that the mix of anticipation and anxiety made him “difficult to be around.” Saturday at Homestead-Miami Speedway, he made the most of this year’s one shot, then contemplated how many more he might have.

Earnhardt finished fifth in Saturday’s Hooters 250, completing a competitive drive in a two-lap dash to the end in the JR Motorsports No. 8 Chevrolet. He led four laps and stayed entrenched among the top five and top 10 for the majority of the sweltering day at the 1.5-mile Florida track.

The 45-year-old driver retired from full-time competition with his final NASCAR Cup Series start at Homestead back in 2017. But since then, he’s stayed involved through ownership of his JR Motorsports operation, which has fielded cars for Earnhardt once a year as a driver-owner.

The results have been staggeringly consistent — fourth at Richmond in 2018, fifth at Darlington last year and Saturday’s fifth-place run. But Earnhardt wondered aloud how many more of these might be on his schedule, as he balances team ownership with his roles as an NBC Sports broadcaster and a husband and father of two.

“I think right now it’s just going to stay the same,” Earnhardt said. “I don’t want to do any more, that’s for sure. I can say that with confidence. I don’t know how many more of these I’ll do. This might be the last one, and this ain’t no tease or anything like that. I’m not trying to be annoying about that. It’s a lot of a commitment, and I just … I don’t know. It’s getting to the point to where I’ve got to decide whether I’m helping things or I’m not helping the team, how can I help the team in other ways. I don’t know.

“I really enjoy it. I really do, but I think there’s got to be a point to where I decide to make the change to broadcasting entirely. With that said, being in the car today, I certainly learned a ton that’s going to help me in the (broadcast) booth. I’ve just got to think about it, and I certainly don’t want to run more. One is plenty and it’s a great series. We’ll just see how it goes. I guess it’s a tough question to answer.”

Earnhardt showed little signs of rust in his first race since last August, even without practice or qualifying with COVID-19 protocols still in place for essential personnel. The feeling of anticipation didn’t fully fade until he rolled off in pace laps and settled into a rhythm. That groove had him poised to finish as high as second until a late caution shuffled the order.

“I thought I knew what the drivers’ mindset might be in these type of situations over the last several weeks with no laps, no practice, just a lot of pressure,” Earnhardt said. “But I really underestimated it. It’s harder than I thought. It’s more anxiety than I imagined, so I was a little difficult to be around the last couple days, just having the anxiety of it. Leading up to getting in the car, I started feeling better, I guess, once they fired the motor and starting messing with things in the car. … I really started feeling comfortable at that point, but I worked myself up for the last 72 hours.”

The next 72 hours for Earnhardt will wind up with finding out whether he’ll be included in the NASCAR Hall of Fame’s Class of 2021. Earnhardt indicated he plans to record his “Dale Jr. Download” podcast Tuesday, reacting in real time to the release of the results at 5 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

“Whether we are chosen to go into the Hall of Fame or not, I’m already honored and I think it’ll be a fun experience to sort of document through our podcast,” Earnhardt said. “I’ve said this from the start and I really feel it in my heart that everybody on that list belongs in there, and it doesn’t seem like at this point that there’s one more deserving than the other. To that respect, I’m young enough to wait my turn, and there’s a lot of names that are not on that list that need to be on that list, and we’re all going to argue that every year. But I’m just honored already.”

Posted on June 13, 2020June 13, 2020 by Holly Cain

Harrison Burton prevailed in a three-wide, frantic push to the checkered flag to win Saturday’s Hooters 250 on a restart with only two laps remaining in the first event of a NASCAR Xfinity Series doubleheader weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

The 19-year old series rookie Burton edged Austin Cindric and Noah Gragson by .379-seconds – leading only the final two laps on the day – to earn his second career victory of the season and become the track’s youngest series race winner.

“I’m so excited, that’s so awesome,” said Burton, who drives the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. “I gave away the lead in the first restart in the same position and I didn’t really want to do that again. I knew the nine (Gragson) was going to drive in real deep and slide up so I felt good about that.

“I’m proud of my guys, we worked on this thing so hard every day, every run I should say and made it better and better. What a day to get this Dex Imaging Toyota Supra in Victory Lane. They can keep on doubting us and we’re going to keep on coming back.”

“What a race, man. This track is so much fun and really puts it in the driver’s hands, especially at the end there. I’m just ready to go again tomorrow, to be honest with you. I’m ready to get two.”

Anthony Alfredo finished fourth, followed by Dale Earnhardt Jr., who was making his first NASCAR Xfinity Series start since Aug. 31 of last year at Darlington Raceway. Michael Annett finished sixth and Chase Briscoe turned in a valiant seventh-place effort after going down six laps at the race start. Burton’s JGR teammate Brandon Jones, Ross Chastain and another JGR rookie, Riley Herbst, rounded out the top 10.

It was an especially rough outcome for Gragson, who led the most laps on the day – 83 of 167- and held a five-second lead on the field before the caution came out with only five laps remaining.

“It was tough,” Gragson said. “The No. 9 guys at JR Motorsports had really great pit stops all day. Restarts were just the biggest struggle. I was really proud of my restarts here last year here, but just couldn’t get them going [today].

“I thought we were going to be able to come home with the win today running the top. That was so much fun.”

It was certainly an exciting race in the hot Florida afternoon sun with 23 lead changes – often multiple cars involved in a single lap. Gragson, Cindric, Florida native Ross Chastain and fan-favorite Earnhardt – who hadn’t raced in the Xfinity Series at Homestead since 2008 – led laps at various times in a thrilling highlycompetitive day.

Briscoe, who led the championship standings coming into the race, had a mechanical problem before the green flag and sat in the pits for the opening six laps. Disappointing, for sure, but it made for a dramatic and impressive comeback for the Stewart-Haas Racing driver who made up all but one lap by the start of Stage 2. He stayed out as long as possible during the final stage, running with 20-lap older tires than the race leaders. He was sixth with 20 laps remaining hoping for a caution flag that would have let them pit and stay on the lead lap. But he was ultimately forced to come in for fresh rubber with 17 laps remaining and still raced to a top 10. He finished seventh and dropped to 18-points behind new leader Gragson in the championship standings.

Ryan Sieg earned his second career stage win, taking the opening stage victory by pitting four fresh tires on a caution period and sprinting by the race leaders who did not pit at that point. Gragson won the second stage.

The series will race again Sunday at noon in the Contender Boats 250 (12 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR) in a Dash 4 Cash incentivized race with $100,000 up for grabs among last week’s Atlanta winner A.J. Allmendinger, Gragson, Justin Haley and Daniel Hemric. The top four drivers from Sunday’s race will be eligible for $100,000 bonus on June 20 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway.

Note: The Nos. 19 (Brandon Jones, finished eighth), 11 (Justin Haley, finished 13th) and 26 (Colin Garrett, finished 21st) each had one lug nut not safe and secure.

Posted on June 13, 2020 by Staff Report

NASCAR announced Saturday morning the Cup Series will no longer hold practice at Talladega Superspeedway before the GEICO 500 on June 21.

The original weekend schedule included a practice June 20, the Saturday prior to Sunday’s main event. That will no longer be the case, as NASCAR officials think the current format with no qualifying or practice is working well and has still created competitive racing.

NASCAR has been hosting one-day events since it returned to racing after the COVID-19 outbreak paused the three national series’ 2020 schedules. The sport postponed all events starting in March and began making them up in May.

The GEICO 500 will be a 188-lap, 500-mile race June 21 at 3 p.m. ET (FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Posted on June 12, 2020 by Terrin Waack

As he recalled a story, Bubba Wallace struggled to remember what day he received a text message he wanted to share with the group. It came sometime after the NASCAR Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway, he knew that for sure. Whether it was Wednesday or Thursday, though, he went back and forth.

The race was Wednesday night. The text was Thursday morning.

“My days are running together,” Wallace said Friday on a Zoom teleconference. “You can see how mentally taxing this is.”

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

As the only African American driver currently in the NASCAR Cup Series, the 26-year-old is a leader within the racing community amid ongoing discussions about social injustice. He called for the sanctioning body to ban confederate flags at events and properties, which it followed through on within days. He drove a #BlackLivesMatter paint scheme this week in Virginia, where he finished a career-best 11th at the Virginia short track. And he wore a “I CAN’T BREATHE” T-shirt in honor of George Floyd on national TV during pre-race ceremonies, paired with an American flag face mask due to COVID-19 precautions.

Wallace put himself in the spotlight and it has admittedly placed a lot of weight on his shoulders – one he’s willing to bear.

“It’s part of the pedestal you sign up for,” Wallace said. “It doesn’t say that on the front page of the book of being an athlete or an icon in the sport. It doesn’t say that on the front page of what you have to go through. It’s just part of it. It’s in the fine print, the underline print there that you have to go through.

“When you sign up to become something, you’re signing up to become something larger than yourself. Represent something more than yourself.”

So now Wallace feels like he is balancing two jobs: race-car driver and social-injustice voice.

“I would say off the track is a lot busier, a lot more hectic,” said Wallace, driver of the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet. “Thankful for no practice or the three-day shows we’re used to because I’d be wiped out by practice time. So it’s good to kind of just stay focused on this throughout the week, but you definitely have to do a quick shift – a mind shift – going into the race. It’s challenging, but I’m learning every step of the way.”

Wallace is actually having his best season to date so far.

Through 11 races, Wallace is averaging a 20.1 finish, highlighted by two top-10 finishes. At this point last year, his finishing average was a 26.9. His rookie season saw a 20.6 average finish in the same amount of time, which albeit is close to his current stat line but featured a runner-up finish in the Daytona 500 for padding.

Wallace has only had three finishes worse than 21st in 2020. At the same point in the season, he had nine in 2019 and five in 2018.

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

“As much as we talk about racing, you kind of get lost in the translation of what’s going on today, so it’s nice to talk about it a little bit,” Wallace said. “My guys have done a really good job. Everybody at Richard Petty Motorsports, ever since we were allowed back into the shops, they’ve been busting their tails to get our Camaros competitive and fast. … I’m proud of the efforts we’re doing on the race track, and I’m super thankful for what they’re doing off the race track to support me. From Richard Petty to Andy Murstein, everybody at RPM is standing behind me and believing in me on track and also following me through this journey off track and letting me find my way and find my voice in standing up for what’s right.”

Wallace is exhausted. Physically, the NASCAR Cup Series is facing its most demanding schedule as it makes up the eight races postponed during the COVID-19 outbreak with midweek events. Mentally, he’s speaking out more than ever to anyone who wants to talk about the current real-world issues. It’s, quite frankly, a lot for one person.

All it takes, though, is remembering why he feels the way he does to keep going.

“There’s a poster of a little girl that says, ‘Yes, we said Black Lives Matter. No, we did not say only black lives matter. We know that all lives matter,’ ” Wallace said. “But we’re trying to make (everyone) understand that black lives matter, too. Too. T-O-O. It’s the three letters left off people don’t understand. Black lives matter, too.”

Posted on June 12, 2020 by Staff Report

The NASCAR Cup Series heads to Miami for the first time since the COVID-19 shutdown postponed its original scheduled date in March. Homestead-Miami Speedway will play host to Sunday’s Dixie Vodka 400 (3:30 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Although fans will be prohibited from attending like other events held since NASCAR returned to action after the coronavirus outbreak, the 400.5-mile race will host up to 1,000 South Florida service members, while only a limited amount of essential personnel will be permitted on the track’s grounds. It will mark the eighth Cup Series race in NASCAR’s return and the 12th race overall this season.

Here’s everything you need to know with helpful information for Sunday.

TRACK DETAILS

Homestead-Miami Speedway is a 1.5-mile oval that held its first NASCAR Cup Series event on November 14, 1999, won by Tony Stewart during his rookie NASCAR Cup Series season.

The turns feature 18-20 degrees of progressive banking, while the straightaways have three degrees of banking. Both the frontstretch and backstretch are 1,760 feet in length.

Sunday’s 267-lap race will be the 22nd race for NASCAR’s top division at the South Florida track.

STAGE LENGTHS

Stage 1 is set to end at Lap 80, Stage 2 at Lap 160, and the final stage is slated to conclude on Lap 267.

STARTING LINEUP

Sunday’s Dixie Vodka 400 will be held without practice and qualifying as NASCAR tries to limit exposure for on-site personnel to control the spread of coronavirus. The lineup was determined by a random draw among groups in the team owner standings:

Positions 1-12: Random draw from charter teams in those positions in owner points
Positions 13-24: Random draw from charter teams in those positions in owner points
Positions 25-36: Random draw from charter teams in those positions in owner points
Positions 37-38: Open teams in order of owners points

Denny Hamlin will start on the pole in the No. 11 Toyota Camry alongside Joey Logano in the No. 22 Team Penske Ford Mustang.

MORE: Starting lineup for Homestead-Miami

Pit-stall selection was ordered based on finishing positions from the NASCAR Cup Series’ previous race — Wednesday night’s Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway — followed by new entries in order of points.

For more information about starting-lineup procedures for national-series races scheduled without qualifying, click here.

RULES PACKAGE

The 2020 NASCAR rules package for intermediate-sized tracks will be in effect with a tapered spacer used to set a target of 550 horsepower. The cars will use aero ducts in addition to other aerodynamic devices to increase downforce.

GOODYEAR TIRES

Heat, humidity and high wear: Since its return in mid-May, NASCAR has run at several high tire wear race tracks, and Homestead-Miami Speedway ranks right near the top of that list. Homestead has come to be known for being one of the most competitive race tracks on the circuit, with its progressive banking, multiple racing grooves and its abrasive surface are part of that. High tire wear puts an emphasis on tire management, with drivers who are easier on their tires early in a run suffering less tire fall-off and making up a lot of track position later in that run. That scenario creates a lot of “comers” and “goers” over the course of a full fuel run, all leading to exciting and entertaining racing for the fans.

“Over the past several seasons we have had some great races at Homestead,” said Greg Stucker, Goodyear’s director of racing. “It has also turned into one of our most high wear tracks, and that is something that both fans and drivers seem to like. For the drivers, it puts a lot of focus on being smooth and managing their tires. Over a long run, lap times will fall off over two seconds from the beginning to the end of the run, so drivers who are able to save their tires early in a run will benefit from that later on. One other nice thing about this tire setup is that these teams just ran it at Darlington a few weeks ago, and at Homestead last fall, so they should have a good notebook from which to work.”

The NASCAR Cup Series, Xfinity Series and Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series will all run the same tire combination this weekend in South Florida.

STATS TO KNOW

— The last four races at Homestead-Miami Speedway have been won by four different drivers — Kyle Busch (2019), Joey Logano (2018), Martin Truex Jr. (2017), Jimmie Johnson (2016).

— The race winner has started in the top-five positions in six of the last seven races.

— Joe Gibbs Racing has won three of the last seven Miami races, while the organization’s former affiliate Furniture Row Racing also won one of those seven races with Truex Jr.

— Kevin Harvick has 12 straight top 10s at Miami, including six straight top fives all coming with Stewart-Haas Racing. Harvick is also the all-time leader at Miami in these categories: 11 top fives, 17 top 10s, 6.4 average finish. He also owns an average running position of 4.0 or better in six straight Miami races.

— Kyle Busch has recorded five consecutive finishes of sixth or better, including two wins, all coming with crew chief Adam Stevens. Busch is also the only repeat winner in the last 10 Miami races.

— Ryan Blaney finished second at Martinsville Speedway, but it’ll be a little more of a challenge at Homestead-Miami if he wants to replicate that result. The 1.5-mile track is one of only three places where Blaney has yet to score a top-10 finish, including Darlington Raceway and Richmond Raceway. His best finish at Miami is 11th in 2019.

Source: NASCAR statistics, Racing Insights

LIVE COVERAGE

Tune in Sunday at at 3:30 p.m. ET to television coverage from Homestead-Miami Speedway on FOX and the FOX Sports App. For full radio coverage, listen to MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

RELATED: Ways to follow the races

For a more interactive experience, head over to NASCAR.com or the NASCAR app to check out an enhanced Race Center, live Lap-by-Lap coverage, the customizable live leaderboard with Scanner (which is FREE for both races), and the return of Drive (featuring in-car cameras).

Be sure to set your lineup in Fantasy Live and make your picks in the NASCAR Finish Line App.

2019 RACE WINNER

Kyle Busch, who has yet to win so far in 2020, took his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry to Victory Lane in last year’s season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway to win the 2019 NASCAR Cup Series championship. Busch led 120 of the 267 total laps and finished with a 4.578-second margin of victory over Championship 4 contender and teammate Martin Truex Jr. Busch also won at Miami in 2015 for his first career title.

RELATED: 2019 Ford EcoBoost 400 recap

ACTIVE HOMESTEAD-MIAMI WINNERS

Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin (two each); Kurt Busch, Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth, Joey Logano, Martin Truex Jr. (one each).

Posted on June 12, 2020 by Staff Report

Want to ride along with Dale Earnhardt Jr.? Well, on Saturday, you’ll have your chance.

NASCAR will feature Earnhardt’s live in-car camera as the 15-time Most Popular Driver makes his lone start of the 2020 NASCAR Xfinity Series season in the Hooters 250 at Homestead-Miami Speedway (3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN, Sirius XM NASCAR Radio).

Earnhardt is set to pilot the No. 8 JR Motorsports Chevrolet, his third NASCAR Xfinity Series start after his retirement from full-time competition at the end of the 2017 season. In his two prior starts, Earnhardt finished fifth at Darlington Raceway in 2019 and fourth at Richmond Raceway in 2018.

Saturday’s race is a part of a doubleheader for the NASCAR Xfinity Series at the 1.5-mile Florida track. The second race will be held Sunday with the Contender Boats 250 at noon ET on FS1, prior to the NASCAR Cup Series’ Dixie Vodka 400 at 3:30 p.m. ET on FOX.

Posted on June 12, 2020June 12, 2020 by Staff Report

NASCAR officials handed down an L1-level penalty and a pair of lug-nut penalties following Wednesday night’s Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 for the NASCAR Cup Series at Martinsville Speedway.

Alan Gustafson, crew chief for the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports team of Chase Elliott, and Adam Stevens, crew chief for the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing team of Kyle Busch, were each fined $10,000 after their cars were found to have one lug nut not safe and secure during post-race inspection at the .526-mile Virginia short track. Elliott finished fifth, while Busch finished 19th.

The No. 51 Petty Ware Racing team of Joey Gase received an L1 penalty after failing pre-race inspection five times. Gase started at the rear of the field and served a drive-through penalty after the initial green flag. Additionally, crew chief Lee Leslie was fined $25,000 and the team assessed a loss of 10 owner points. Gase finished the race in 36th place.

The NASCAR Cup Series returns on Sunday for the Dixie Vodka 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway (3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN, Sirius XM NASCAR Radio).