Posted on by Staff Report

In honor of Memorial Day, NASCAR Cup Series drivers and accompanying on-track vehicles in Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 (6 p.m. ET, FOX, PRN, SiriusXM) will carry the name of a fallen military member on their cars.

For some drivers and teams, it’s an extra personal connection. Read on to see some of the stories.

MORE: Every fallen servicemember honored

Chip Ganassi Racing

Kurt Busch and the No. 1 Chevrolet will honor Construction Electrician Petty Officer Second Class (US Navy) Phil Grieser on the No. 1 GEARWRENCH Chevrolet. Grieser served with the father of Doug Newell; Doug is an electrician tech at Ganassi. Grieser was killed from injuries suffered by a rocket attack near the camp of Seabee team 1013 on May 18, 1969, in Vietnam

Doug, through his father, had been in contact with the brother of Phil Grieser, Mark Grieser, who lives in Ohio. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, NASCAR races currently are running without fans. Knowing they could not attend the prestigious Coca-Cola 600 as fans, Grieser, his wife Ann and their family drove down to the Chip Ganassi Racing shop to see the car in front of the shop — and, specifically, to see Phil’s name on the car.

Embed Car Ganassi Unveil

Gaunt Brothers Racing

Daniel Suarez and his GBR brethren will honor the memory of U.S. Army SPC Ronald David Rennison of Dubuque, Iowa, who was killed in action Feb. 25, 1991, along with 27 other individuals by a Scud missile strike in Dhahran in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. There is a personal connection between SPC Rennison, who was 22 at the time of his death, and the GBR Toyota team. Rennison’s younger brother, Randy, was a high school friend of GBR road crew mechanic Barry Boeckenstedt. Randy Rennison served in the U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps and was stationed in Korea at the time of his brother’s death. — Courtesy Gaunt Brothers

Stewart-Haas Racing

The windshield header of Clint Bowyer’s No. 14 Ford Mustang will carry the name of Private First Class Andy Krippner of Garland, Texas, who lost his life in Kunar Province, Afghanistan in 2011. Krippner spent just six weeks in Afghanistan and celebrated his 20th birthday days before his death. He lost his life when the Army vehicle he was in hit an improvised explosive device. The other soldiers killed in the attack included SSGT Kristofferson B. Lorenzo, 33, of Chula Vista, California; PFC William S. Blevins, 21, of Sardinia, Ohio; and PVT Thomas C. Allers of Plainwell, Mich. The soldiers were part of the 2nd Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, based at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii.

Bowyer’s SHR teammates Kevin Harvick and Aric Almirola will honor Lorenzo and Blevins on their Ford Mustangs Sunday.

SHR fabricator Matthew Ridgway joined that battalion after the incident and said he “knows them as well as you could know someone you’ve never met based on the stories from fellow soldiers (I) served with.” — Courtesy SHR

Richard Petty Motorsports

Fallen Tuskegee Airman, Capt. Lawrence E. Dickson will have his name displayed above the windshield of driver Bubba Wallace’s No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet. as part of NASCAR’s Coca Cola 600 Memorial Day tribute at the Charlotte Motor Speedway, May 25, 2020. The car will also be painted to resemble the iconic A-10 Thunderbolt II, right down to the tiger shark teeth on the grill.

The Tuskegee Airmen were the first black military aviators in the U.S. Army Air Corps, a precursor of the U.S. Air Force. Pilots, navigators, maintainers, bombardiers, instructors and support staff all trained at the Tuskegee Army Air Field in Alabama. The Tuskegee Airmen flew more than 15,000 sorties during World War II in Europe and North Africa.

Dickson, who was assigned to the 100th Fighter Squadron, flew 68 missions during WWII. On December 23, 1944, he was returning from a reconnaissance mission when his Mustang P-51 experienced engine failure. His plane crashed along the Italy-Austria border, according to the Pentagon. Searches of the crash site were unsuccessful, and in 1949, the military declared his remains non-recoverable. — Courtesy U.S. Air Force

Team Penske

No. 2 Team Penske driver Brad Keselowski will compete with SSGT Michael Donovan Reep’s name atop his windshield in Sunday night’s 600-mile event. Reep, a member of the 27th SOCES (Special Operations Civil Engineer Squadron) out of Cannon Air Force Base, lost his life in Columbia, South Carolina in 2015.

In the tweet below, Keselowski had the honor of giving Reep’s family the chance to be the first to see the Ford Mustang with his name on it via a video call.

Posted on by Terrin Waack

Kyle Busch is the reason Chase Elliott crashed out of Wednesday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Darlington Raceway. Busch, admittedly so, inadvertently spun Elliott while battling toward the front and sent the No. 9 Chevrolet into the wall. Busch went on to finish second, while Elliott landed 38th in the final results, coming eight laps short of completing the 208-lap, rain-shortened event.

The two-time NMPA Most Popular Driver will forgive, but he won’t forget.

“I don’t think he did it on purpose,” Elliott said Friday on a Zoom teleconference with reporters. “Again, I hate that I was on the wrong end of a rare mistake on his end. For a guy that doesn’t make many, hate that it was me that took the blow.”

RELATED: Kyle Busch says he and Chase Elliott hashed things out

Here’s a refresher on what happened: With 28 scheduled laps to go in the Toyota 500, Elliott was running second behind leader and eventual race-winner Denny Hamlin. Busch was inside next to Elliott, and when Busch tried to get back in line up top, he misjudged the spacing between him and Elliott. Busch’s No. 18 Toyota clipped Elliott’s left rear enough to fully turn the car and send it nose-first into the inside frontstretch wall heading into into Turn 1. The ensuing rain that followed under caution made that the end of the race.

And you cannot forget how Elliott then got out and gave Busch a middle-finger salute as he came back around the track.

“No regrets,” Elliott said. “I thought it was warranted, and I thought he was deserving.”

RELATED: Hamlin weighs in on Busch-Elliott dustup

Busch immediately owned up to his mistake afterward — more than once, too. It was a big enough error, especially for a two-time champion, that the sincerity behind Busch’s apology was questioned, along with whether the move was intentional.

“I really think it depends on the person — how much respect you either had or didn’t have for that person prior to that moment,” Elliott said. “In Kyle’s situation, Kyle and I have gotten along for many years. I feel like I’ve raced him with a lot of respect because I respect him. … To hear that from a champion and a guy who we had raced really hard and clean together over the years, I think goes further than someone I don’t care for as much or somebody who I don’t get along with as well or someone who doesn’t race with that kind of respect or that kind of integrity on track.”

RELATED: Kyle Busch wrecks Chase Elliott | Kyle Busch admits to mistake

The two will be back on track together in Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600, the NASCAR Cup Series’ longest race of the season (6 p.m. ET on FOX, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). They’ll then both be in Tuesday’s North Carolina Education Lottery 200 with the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Series event (8 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). And remember the bounty? It may still be a thing, which gives Elliott yet another reason to want to beat Busch — competitive revenge and prize money.

Don’t expect any type of physical post-race altercation after either event, though, considering all of the COVID-19 safety precautions.

“It’d be kind of hard to fight when you have to stay six feet apart,” Elliott said. “My arms aren’t long enough.”

Posted on by Staff Report

NASCAR penalized two Xfinity Series teams for lug-nut violations in Thursday’s Toyota 200 at Darlington Raceway. Both the race-winning No. 98 Ford of Chase Briscoe and the No. 22 Ford of Austin Cindric had one lug nut not safe and secure in post-race inspection.

As as result of violating Section 10.9.10.4 in the NASCAR Rule Book, each crew chief — Richard Boswell and Brian Wilson, respectively — was fined $5,000.

Posted on by Staff Report

In what’s been a most unusual season, NASCAR returned to some semblance of tradition with events at Charlotte Motor Speedway around Memorial Day this week.

Brad Keselowski won the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday, and now the Alsco Uniforms 500 is on tap for Thursday, May 28 (7 p.m. ET, FS1, PRN, SiriusXM). As with the two events at Darlington and the Coca-Cola 600, fans will not be in attendance Thursday, and only essential personnel will be permitted on site as NASCAR eases back into competition after the COVID-19 shutdown.

Here’s a primer with helpful information for tonight’s race.

RELATED: How to follow the races | Coca-Cola 600 entry List 

TRACK DETAILS

Charlotte Motor Speedway is a 1.5-mile track that opened to host its first NASCAR event in 1960. The venue’s most recent repave was completed in 2006.

The track features a D-shaped layout, with a dogleg on the 1,980-foot frontstretch. All four turns are banked 24 degrees. Both the frontstretch and the 1,500-foot back straightaway have 5-degree banking.

Tonight’s race will be the 122nd for NASCAR’s top division on the 1.5-mile speedway. The facility has also hosted two races on a combination oval and road course layout.

Joe Lee Johnson won NASCAR’s first 600-mile race in the track’s debut, notching the last of his two career wins. He prevailed by a margin of four laps in a race that took five hours, 34 minutes to complete.

RELATED: Patriotic honors for 600

STAGE LENGTHS

Sunday, May 24: Stage 1 is set to end at Lap 100, Stage 2 at Lap 200, Stage 3 at Lap 300, and the final stage slated to conclude on Lap 400.

Thursday, May 28: Stage 1 is set to end at Lap 55, Stage 2 on Lap 115, with the full distance set for Lap 208.

STARTING LINEUPS

Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 was held without practice, but same-day Busch Pole Qualifying took place with Kurt Busch winning the pole.

Neither practice nor qualifying will be held for Thursday’s 500-kilometer event as NASCAR tries to minimize exposure for on-site personnel in the interest of public health. Thursday’s lineup was determined by an inversion of the first 20 finishers from the Coca-Cola 600, then 21st on back in order. See full lineup.

See the full breakdown here detailing lineup procedures for all three NASCAR national series under the condensed race-day procedures.

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.

MORE: Full Charlotte schedule

GOODYEAR TIRES

Each team will get one set of Goodyear Eagle Speedway Radials for Coca-Cola 600 qualifying and 12 sets for the race. The qualifying set can also be transferred over to the race for a 13th set. For the Alsco Uniforms 500, each team will get seven sets.

“While Charlotte is not necessarily considered a high tire wear track, it is one of the most temperature sensitive tracks we race on,” said Greg Stucker, Goodyear’s director of racing. “The Coca-Cola 600 starts during the day and ends at night under the lights, combined with the fact that teams have a large number of sets of tires to go the 400 laps, making this event one that truly highlights the team aspect of our sport.”

Since 2010, for one weekend per NASCAR season, Goodyear has changed the branding on the sidewall of its racing tires in a show of support for the United States military and fallen heroes.  This being the 11th year of that program, the official tire supplier to NASCAR’s top three series will work with the “Honor and Remember” organization for the second straight year.  The standard “Eagle” on the tires’ sidewall will be replaced by the Honor and Remember logo on all Cup and Xfinity tires at Charlotte Motor Speedway this May.

STATS TO KNOW

— Kevin Harvick, a two-time Coca-Cola 600 winner, emerged from the Darlington Raceway twin bill with his first victory of the season and a third-place finish. He entered Charlotte Motor Speedway’s pair of events as the only driver to net six top-10 results in all six Cup Series races this year, a consistency that has earned him the circuit’s points lead. (UPDATE: That streak continued with a fifth-place finish in the Coca-Cola 600.)

— Toyota drivers have won four of the last five 600-milers at Charlotte. Martin Truex Jr. has a pair of those victories (2016, 2019) and Carl Edwards (2015) and Kyle Busch (2018) have the others. (UPDATE: Keselowski won in a Ford on Sunday night, ending a long streak for that manufacturer, as detailed below.)

— NASCAR Hall of Famer Darrell Waltrip heads the Coca-Cola 600’s all-time win list with a record five victories (1978-79, 1985, 1988-89). Among active drivers, seven-time series champion Jimmie Johnson leads with four 600 wins (2003-05, 2014).

— Joe Gibbs Racing has the most wins since the start of the 2019 season with 21. Denny Hamlin leads JGR over that span with eight victories, including Wednesday’s win at Darlington.

Source: NASCAR statistics, Racing Insights 

LIVE COVERAGE

Tune in to television coverage from Charlotte Motor Speedway on FOX (Sunday, 6 p.m. ET), FS1 (Thursday, 8 p.m. ET) and the FOX Sports App both days. For full radio coverage, listen in to PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio on-air. 

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

Martin Truex Jr. closed out the 600-mile endurance challenge with a bold four-wide pass in the 396th of 400 laps to net his second win in the Memorial Day classic. Truex recovered from a scrape of the Turn 4 wall late in Stage 1, then held off Joey Logano at the checkered flag by .330 seconds.

RELATED: 2019 Coca-Cola 600 recap

The Charlotte track’s Thursday race is a first-time event on the Cup Series schedule.

ACTIVE CHARLOTTE WINNERS
(oval track only)

Jimmie Johnson (eight); Martin Truex Jr., Kevin Harvick (three each); Matt Kenseth, Brad Keselowski (two); Clint Bowyer, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Austin Dillon, Joey Logano, (one each).

Posted on by Staff Report

Memorial Day weekend marks a very special time in the NASCAR community, especially with the annual running of the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

In honor of Memorial Day, NASCAR Cup Series drivers and accompanying on-track vehicles in Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 (6 p.m. ET, FOX, PRN, SiriusXM) will carry the name of a fallen military member on their cars.

Read more about the heroes who gave their lives defending the United States of America.

StarCom Racing No. 00: Nicholas G. Xiarhos
Rank: Corporal
Military Branch: Marine Corps
Base Name: Camp Lejune, North Carolina
Unit Name: 2nd Battalion 8th Marine Regiment “America’s Battalion”
DOB: 2/12/88
DOD:  7/23/09
Hometown: Yarmouth, Massachusetts
Location of Death: The Garmsir District of Helmand Province in Southern Afghanistan

Chip Ganassi Racing No. 1: Philip Lee Grieser
Rank: CE2
Military Branch: United States Navy
Base Name: Not listed
Unit Name: The Seabrees
DOB: 1/17/1946
DOD: 5/18/1969
Hometown: St. Paris, Ohio
Location of Death: Long Khanh

Team Penske No. 2: Michael Donovan Reep
Rank: SSGT
Military Branch: United States Air Force
Base Name: Cannon Air Force Base
Unit Name: 27th SOCES (Special Operations Civil Engineer Squadron)
DOB: 05/22/1992
DOD: 08/08/2015
Hometown: Not listed
Location of Death: Columbia, South Carolina

Richard Childress Racing No. 3: Eric Shellenberger
Rank: Chief Special Warfare Operator (SEAL)
Military Branch: Navy SEAL
Base Name: NAB Coronado and Naval Station Pearl Harbor
Unit Name: SEAL Team One and SEAL Delivery Team One
DOB: 11/19/1972
DOD: 5/7/2009
Hometown: Tampa, Florida
Location of Death: Bremerton, Washington

Stewart-Haas Racing No. 4: Kristofferson B. Lorenzo
Rank: Army Staff SGT
Military Branch: United States Army
Base Name: Schofield Barracks, Hawaii
Unit Name: 2-27, Wolfhounds
DOB: 11/8/1977
DOD: 5/23/2011
Hometown: Chula Vista, California
Location of Death: Forward Operating Base Bostick, Kunar Province, Afghanistan

Roush Fenway Racing No. 6: Nathan Bruckenthal
Rank: Damage Controlman Third Class/E-4
Military Branch: United States Coast Guard
Base Name: Tactical Law Enforcement Detachment South, Miami, FL
Unit Name: Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment 403
DOB: 7/17/1979
DOD: 4/24/2004
Hometown: Stony Brook, New York
Location of Death: Al Basra Oil Terminal, Iraq

Tommy Baldwin Racing No. 7: Charles H. Keating IV 
Rank: Chief Special Warfare Operator (SEAL)
Military Branch: United States Navy
Base Name:NAB Coronado, CA
Unit Name:SEAL Team 1
DOB: 2/26/1985
DOD: 5/3/2016
Hometown: Phoenix, Arizona
Location of Death: Arbil, Iraq

Richard Childress Racing No. 8: Norman L. Tollett
Rank: Sergeant (SGT)
Military Branch: United States Army
Base Name: Fort Bragg, North Carolina
Unit Name: 1st Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division
DOB: 5/6/1976
DOD: 4/28/2007
Hometown: Elyria, Ohio
Location of Death:  Baghdad, Iraq

Hendrick Motorsports No. 9: Stephen Matthew Mills
Rank: Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer
Military Branch: United States Navy SEAL
Base Name: Dam Neck
Unit Name: SEAL Team 6
DOB: 10/25/1975
DOD: 08/06/2011
Hometown: Arlington, Texas
Location of Death: Kabul, Afghanistan

Stewart-Haas Racing No. 10: William S. Blevins
Rank: Army SPC
Military Branch: United States Army
Base Name: Schofield Barracks, Hawaii
Unit Name: 2-27, Wolfhounds
DOB: 12/22/1989
DOD: 5/23/2011
Hometown: Sardina, Ohio
Location of Death: Forward Operating Base Bostick, Kunar Province, Afghanistan

Joe Gibbs Racing No. 11: Russell Bell
Rank: First Sergeant
Military Branch: United States Army
Base Name: Fort Bragg, North Carolina
Unit Name: 1st Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division
DOB: 1/20/1975
DOD: 8/12/2012
Hometown: Tyler, Texas
Location of Death: Afghanistan

Team Penske No. 12: Donald R. Cioffi
Rank: Lieutenant
Military Branch: United States Navy
Base Name: Cecil Field, Jacksonville, Florida
Unit Name: Squadron VS-24, USS Stennis
DOB: 12/28/1966
DOD: 3/1/1996
Hometown: Freehold, New Jersey
Location of Death: Atlantic Ocean

Germain Racing No. 13: Richard C. Emmons III
Military Branch: United States Army
Base Name: Not included
Unit Name: 4/10 MTN DIV, 2-30 INF BN
DOB: 7/8/1988
DOD: 5/31/2011
Hometown: North Granby, Connecticut
Location of Death: Logar Province, Afghanistan

Stewart-Haas Racing No. 14 Andrew M. Krippner
Rank: Army PFC
Military Branch: United States Army
Base Name: Schofield Barracks, Hawaii
Unit Name: 2-27, Wolfhounds
DOB: 4/22/1991
DOD: 5/23/2011
Hometown: Garland, Texas
Location of Death: Forward Operating Base Bostick, Kunar Province, Afghanistan

Premium Motorsports No. 15 Nathan Ross Chapman
Rank: SFC
Military Branch: United States Army
Base Name: Joint Base Lewis-McChord
Unit Name: 1st Special Forces Group
DOB: 4/23/1970
DOD: 1/4/2002
Hometown: San Antonio, Texas
Location of Death: Afghanistan

Roush Fenway Racing No. 17: Anthony D. Kinslow
Rank: Specialist
Military Branch: United States Army
Base Name: Fort Carson, Colorado
Unit Name: 2nd Battalion, 17th Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division
DOB: Not listed
DOD: 6/13/2005
Hometown: Westerville, Ohio
Location of Death: Ramadi, Iraq

Joe Gibbs Racing No. 18: Jonathan Richard Clement
Rank: Naval Aircrewman (Helicopter) 1st Class
Military Branch: United States Navy
Base Name: Naval Air Station North Island
Unit Name: HSC-85 (Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron)
DOB: 6/10/1987
DOD: 7/31/2018
Hometown: Vero Beach, Florida
Location of Death: San Diego, California

Joe Gibbs Racing No. 19: John A. Chapman
Rank: Technical Sergeant
Military Branch: United States Air Force
Base Name: Pope Field, North Carolina
Unit Name: 24th Special Tactics Squadron
DOB: 7/14/1965
DOD: 3/4/2002
Hometown: Windsor Locks, Connecticut
Location of Death: Afghanistan

Joe Gibbs Racing No. 20: Leslie D. Jackson
Rank: Private First Class
Military Branch: United States Army
Base Name: Fort Hood, Texas
Unit Name: A Company, 115th Forward Support Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division
DOB: 10/28/1985
DOD: 5/20/2004
Hometown: Richmond, Virginia
Location of Death: Iraq

Wood Brothers Racing No. 21: Lucas Gruenther
Rank: Major
Military Branch: United States Air Force
Base Name: Aviano Air Base
Unit Name: 31st Fighter Wing
DOB: 12/29/1980
DOD: 1/28/2013
Hometown: Twain Harte, California
Location of Death: Adriatic Sea

Team Penske No. 22: Jason Omar Bradley Hickman
Rank: E-7
Military Branch: United States Army
Base Name: Fort Richardson, Alaska
Unit Name: 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division
DOB: 2/5/1974
DOD: 1/7/2010
Hometown: Kingsport, Texas
Location of Death: Afghanistan

Hendrick Motorsports No. 24: Robert J. Billings
Rank: Sergeant (SGT)
Military Branch: United States Army
Base Name: Lewis-McChord, Washington
Unit Name: 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division
DOB: 4/22/1982
DOD: 10/13/2012
Location of Death: Spin Boldak, Afghanistan

Rick Ware Racing No. 27: Adam G. Herold
Rank: Specialist
Military Branch: Not listed
Base Name: Fort Richardson, Arkansas
Unit Name: 2nd Battalion, 377th Parachute Field Artillery Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division
DOB: 5/5/1984
DOD: 6/10/2007
Hometown: Omaha, Nebraska
Location of Death: Lutifiyah, Iraq

Go Fas Racing No. 32: Brandon S Mullins
Rank: Specialist
Military Branch: United States Army
Base Name: Fort Wainwright
Unit Name: 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division
DOB: 1/24/90
DOD: 8/25/11
Hometown: Owensboro, Kentucky
Location of Death: Kandahar Province

Front Row Motorsports No. 34: John Jarrell
Rank: Sergeant First Class (SFC)
Military Branch: United States Army
Base Name: Fort Campbell, Kentucky
Unit Name: 1st Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault)
DOB: 12/24/1977
DOD: 7/15/2019
Hometown: Brunson, South Carolina
Location of Death: Afghanistan

JTG-Daugherty Racing No. 37: Kyle R. Schneider
Rank: Corporal
Military Branch: United States Marine Corps
Base Name: Camp Lejeune, North Carolina
Unit Name: 2nd Battalion, 8th Marines, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force
DOB: 1/8/1988
DOD: 6/30/2011
Hometown: Phoenix, New York
Location of Death: Helmand Province, Afghanistan

Front Row Motorsports No. 38: Nicholas Ray Carnes
Rank: SSG
Military Branch: US Army, KY National Guard
Base Name: Carollton Armory
Unit Name: 138th Fires BDE, B Battery
DOB: 02/01/1982
DOD: 08/26/2007
Hometown: Dayton, Kentucky
Location of Death: Ghazni Province, Afghanistan

Stewart-Haas Racing No. 41: Dillon Baldridge
Rank: Sergeant
Military Branch: United States Army
Base Name: Ft. Campbell, Kentucky
Unit Name: 1-187 Rakassans, 101st Airborne Division
DOB: 7/18/1994
DOD: 6/10/2017
Hometown: Youngsville, North Carolina
Location of Death: Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan

Chip Ganassi Racing No. 42: Rachel K. Bosveld
Rank: Private First Class
Military Branch: United States Army
Base Name: Giesen, Germany
Unit Name: 527th Military Police Company, V Corps
DOB: 11/7/1983
DOD: 10/26/2003
Hometown: Waupun, Wisconsin
Location of Death: Iraq

Richard Petty Motorsports No. 43: Lawrence Dickinson
Rank: Captain- O-3
Military Branch: Army Air Corp-Tuskegee Airman
Base Name: 332nd Fighter Group
Unit Name: 100th Fighter Squadron
DOB: 5/31/1920
DOD: 12/23/1944
Hometown: Bronx, New York
Location of Death: Austria

JTG-Daugherty Racing No. 47: Barrett L. Austin
Rank: Private First Class
Military Branch: United States Army
Base Name: Fort Stewart, Georgia
Unit Name: 4th Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division
DOB: 11/10/92
DOD: 4/21/13
Hometown: Easley, South Carolina
Location of Death: Landstuhl, Landkreis Kaiserslautern, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany

Hendrick Motorsports No. 48: Patrick D Deans
Rank: CPL
Military Branch: United States Army
Base Name: Fort Campbell, Kentucky
Unit Name: 101st Airborne
DOB: 12/4/87
DOD: 12/12/10
Hometown: Orlando, Florida
Location of Death: Diwar, Afghanistan

Rick Ware Racing No. 51: Darius T. Jennings
Rank: Specialist
Military Branch: Not listed
Base Name: Fort Carson, Colorado
Unit Name: 2nd Squadron, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment
DOB: 11/13/1980
DOD: 11/2/2003
Hometown: Orangeburg, South Carolina
Location of Death: Fallujah, Iraq

Rick Ware Racing No. 53: Paul J. Johnson
Rank: Staff Sergeant
Military Branch: Not listed
Base Name: Fort Bragg, North Carolina
Unit Name: 1st Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division
DOB: 11/4/1973
DOD: 10/20/2003
Hometown: Not listed
Location of Death: Fallujah, Iraq

MBM Motorsports No. 66: James Johnston
Rank: SGT
Military Branch: United States Army Special Forces
Base Name: Fort Hood
Unit Name: 79th Ordinance Battalion, 71st Ordnake Group, 48th Chemical Brigade
DOB: 9/16/1994
DOD: 6/25/2019
Hometown: Trumansburg, New York
Location of Death: Afghanistan

Spire Motorsports No. 77: Christopher Rodgers
Rank: Lance Corporal
Military Branch: United States Marine Corps
Base Name: Camp Lejeune, North Carolina
Unit Name: 1st Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force
DOB: 5/4/1990
DOD: 9/1/2010
Hometown: Griffin, Georgia
Location of Death: Afghanistan

B.J. McLeod Motorsports No. 78: James S. Ochsner
Rank: Sergeant 1st Class
Unit Name: 2nd Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne)
Base Name: Fort Bragg, North Carolina
DOB: 5/8/69
DOD: 11/15/05

Hendrick Motorsports No. 88: Scott W. Brunkhorst
Rank: Staff Sergeant
Military Branch: United States Army
Base Name: Fort Bragg, North Carolina
Unit Name: 2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division
DOB: 11/24/1984
DOD: 3/30/2010
Hometown: Fayetteville, North Carolina
Location of Death: Afghanistan

Leavine Family Racing No. 95: Jerry L Ganey Jr.
Rank: Sergeant
Military Branch: United States Army, GA National Guard
Base Name: Statesboro, Georgia
Unit Name: 648th Engineer Battalion, 48th Infantry Brigade
DOB: 11/11/1975
DOD: 8/3/2005
Hometown: Folkston, Georgia
Location of Death: Iraq

Gaunt Brothers Racing No. 96: Ronald David Rennison
Rank: Specialist
Military Branch: United States Army
Base Name: Dhahran
Unit Name: 475th Quartermaster
DOB: 7/3/69
DOD: 2/25/91
Hometown: Dubuque, Iowa
Location of Death: Saudi Arabia

Posted on by RJ Kraft

NASCAR Finish Line, a free-to-play gaming app from Penn National Gaming, is back with the resumption of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season. Each week, there will be six groups of five drivers for the upcoming race. Users will predict which driver will finish first among each of the six groups and then the overall race winner and second-place finisher for a chance to win $25,000 if all eight scenarios are correctly selected.

RELATED: Download NASCAR Finish Line

The first of six groups for Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 race at Charlotte Motor Speedway (6 p.m. ET on FOX/FOX Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) consists of four past NASCAR Cup Series champions — Martin Truex Jr., Kevin Harvick, Joey Logano, Jimmie Johnson — and the reigning Cup champion in Kyle Busch. Each of these drivers has won at the 1.5-mile layout. The Coca-Cola 600 is the longest race by mileage on the circuit each year.

The group remains the same for Thursday’s 208-lap race at Charlotte (7 p.m. ET on FS1/FOX Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) except Chase Elliott takes Johnson’s spot. Elliott has yet to win at Charlotte on the track’s oval layout.

RELATED: Stage lengths for NASCAR’s first races back

For a stats look, NASCAR.com has compiled the average finish of the last two races on the Charlotte oval layout, this year’s results at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (the lone 1.5-mile track run), the average finish from the two races just held at Darlington Raceway and the drivers’ overall average finish for their career on the Charlotte oval to see who is the best play to make in Group 1. We have included all Group 1 drivers (for both races) to help you prepare for the events.

A points system has been assigned to each year, starting with one point for the best finisher and counting up to six points for the worst finisher. Those numbers were then added up. The lowest total signifies the strongest driver (green), and the highest total represents the weakest driver (red) — in recent years.

Driver Last 2 Charlotte races‘1 Career Charlotte
avg. finish		 2020 Las Vegas
 Both 2020 Darlington races
 Total
Kyle Busch Avg. finish: 2.0 (2) Avg. finish: 14.6 (4) Finished 15th (4) Avg. finish: 14.0 (4) 14
Chase Elliott* Avg. finish: 7.5 (4) Avg. finish: 16.3 (6) Finished 26th (6) Avg. finish: 21.0 (5) 21
Kevin Harvick Avg. finish: 25.0 (6) Avg. finish: 15.4 (5) Finished 8th (3) Avg. finish: 2.0 (1) 15
Jimmie Johnson* Avg. finish: 6.5 (3) Avg. finish: 12.2 (1) Finished 5th (2) Avg. finish: 23.0 (6) 12
Joey Logano Avg. finish: 12.0 (5) Avg. finish: 12.5 (2) Finished 1st (1) Avg. finish: 12.0 (3) 11
Martin Truex Jr. Avg. finish: 1.5 (1) Avg. finish: 14.1 (3) Finished 20th (5) Avg. finish: 8.0 (2) 11

* Means Elliott is in Group 1 for Thursday’s race only; Johnson is in Group 1 for Sunday’s race only.

The data indicates Logano and Truex are the ones to be eying in Group 1, which is interesting in that Busch and Harvick are sure to be the popular picks in the group. If you value recent Charlotte history in combination with the recent Darlington results, Truex is the choice to make. If you want to just zero in on the results from the lone 1.5-mile race to date, Logano is the pick.

Posted on by Data Skrive

Brett Moffitt finished 11th in the Toyota 200 at Darlington Raceway on Thursday.

Moffitt did not add to his season point total as he declares points for the Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series.

Moffitt started in 22nd position. The fourth-year driver has one top-10 finish in his career.

Thursday was Moffitt’s first career start at Darlington Raceway.

The Grimes, Iowa native began the race eight spots behind his career mark of 14.5, but finished two places ahead of his career average of 12.8.

Moffitt’s 11th-place finish came against a field of 39 drivers. The race endured five cautions and 28 caution laps. There were 11 lead changes.

Chase Briscoe brought home the win in the race, and Kyle Busch followed in second. Justin Allgaier crossed the finish line third, Austin Cindric took fourth, and Noah Gragson rounded out the top five.

After Gragson won the first stage, Busch drove the No. 54 car to victory in Stage 2.

Brett Moffitt Driver Page | Get Moffitt Gear | Race Center

Posted on by Data Skrive

Harrison Burton finished ninth in the Toyota 200 at Darlington Raceway on Thursday.

The top 10 finish for Burton, his fifth of the year, added 28 points to his season total.

Burton started in 12th position. The second-year driver has one career victory, with five top-five finishes and nine results inside the top 10.

Thursday was Burton’s career start at Darlington Raceway.

The Huntersville, North Carolina native began the race five spots behind his career mark of 7.4, but finished one place ahead of his career average of 9.6.

Burton took on a field of 39 drivers on the way to his ninth-place finish. The race endured five cautions and 28 caution laps. There were 11 lead changes.

Chase Briscoe took the checkered flag in the race, and Kyle Busch followed in second. Justin Allgaier placed third, Austin Cindric took fourth, and Noah Gragson rounded out the top five.

After Gragson won the first stage, Busch drove the No. 54 car to victory in Stage 2.

Harrison Burton Driver Page | Get Burton Gear | Race Center

Posted on by Data Skrive

Daniel Hemric finished sixth in the Toyota 200 at Darlington Raceway on Thursday.

The top 10 finish for Hemric, his second of the year, added 40 points to his season total.

Hemric started in 23rd position. The third-year driver has picked up 23 top-five and 40 top-10 finishes in his career.

Thursday was Hemric’s second career start at Darlington Raceway. Though he’s completed two of those races, he has never managed to crack the top 10 at the track.

The Kannapolis, North Carolina native began the race 14 spots behind his career mark of 9.4, but finished nine places ahead of his career average of 15.4.

Hemric took on a field of 39 drivers on the way to his sixth-place finish. The race endured five cautions and 28 caution laps. There were 11 lead changes.

Chase Briscoe took the checkered flag in the race, and Kyle Busch followed in second. Justin Allgaier placed third, Austin Cindric took fourth, and Noah Gragson grabbed the No. 5 spot.

After Gragson won the first stage, Busch drove the No. 54 car to victory in Stage 2.

Daniel Hemric Driver Page | Get Hemric Gear | Race Center