Posted on by Staff Report

NASCAR penalized the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing team after a tungsten weight came loose from the vehicle before the start of Sunday night’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

As a result of the safety violation, which is detailed in section 12.5.2.7.4.d of the NASCAR rule book, crew chief Chris Gabehart, car chief Brandon Griffeth and engineer Scott Simmons will miss the next four Cup Series points races through June 10.

It was announced Tuesday that Samuel Mcaulay will serve as the interim crew chief for the No. 11 team until Gabehart’s return.

RELATED: Denny Hamlin has early trouble in Coca-Cola 600

Denny Hamlin was scheduled to start 13th in the Coca-Cola 600 when the incident happened, forcing him to come down pit road just before the green flag. Hamlin, who has won two races this season including the Daytona 500, finished 29th on Sunday at Charlotte.

 

Posted on by Data Skrive

Austin Dillon finished 14th in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Sunday.

Dillon’s result added 33 points to his season total.

Dillon qualified in sixth position at 180.741 mph. The 10th-year driver has collected two career victories, with 12 top-five finishes and 41 results inside the top 10.

Victory Lane at Charlotte Motor Speedway is a familiar place for Dillon, who has one career win at the track. Over the course of his career at Charlotte, Dillon has also put together one top-five finish and two top 10s.

The Welcome, North Carolina native’s starting and finishing positions compared favorably to his career averages, starting 13 spots higher than his career mark of 19.2 and completing the race six places ahead of his 20.1 career average finish.

Dillon’s 14th-place finish came against a field of 40 drivers. The race endured eight cautions and 52 caution laps. Prior to the checkered flag there were 20 lead changes.

Brad Keselowski took the checkered flag in the race, and Chase Elliott finished second. Ryan Blaney placed third, Kyle Busch took fourth, and Kevin Harvick finished off the top five.

Alex Bowman grabbed victories in each of the race’s first two stages before Joey Logano took control for a Stage 3 victory.

Austin Dillon Driver Page | Get Dillon Gear | Race Center

Posted on by Data Skrive

Cole Custer finished 12th in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Sunday after heading into the race with an average finish position of 22.7.

Custer’s result added 25 points to his season total.

Custer qualified in 28th position at 178.018 mph. The second-year driver has one top-10 finish in his career.

Sunday was Custer’s career start at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

The Ladera Ranch, California native began the race eight spots behind his career mark of 19.6, but finished 12 places ahead of his career average of 24.2.

Custer’s 12th-place finish came against a field of 40 drivers. The race endured eight cautions and 52 caution laps. There were 20 lead changes.

Brad Keselowski took the checkered flag in the race, and Chase Elliott followed in second. Ryan Blaney placed third, Kyle Busch took fourth, and Kevin Harvick finished off the top five.

Alex Bowman grabbed victories in each of the race’s first two stages before Joey Logano took control for a Stage 3 victory.

Cole Custer Driver Page | Get Custer Gear | Race Center

Posted on by Data Skrive

Chris Buescher rounded out the top 10 in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Sunday.

The top 10 finish for Buescher, his second of the year, added 27 points to his season total.

Buescher qualified in 19th position at 179.515 mph. The sixth-year driver has one career victory, with five top-five finishes and 13 results inside the top 10.

The tenth-place result on Sunday was the first time Buescher has cracked the top 10 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

The Prosper, Texas native’s starting and finishing positions compared favorably to his career averages, starting six spots higher than his career mark of 25.5 and completing the race 12 places ahead of his 21.8 career average finish.

Buescher’s 10th-place finish came against a field of 40 drivers. The race endured eight cautions and 52 caution laps. There were 20 lead changes.

Brad Keselowski earned the checkered flag in the race, and Chase Elliott finished second. Ryan Blaney placed third, Kyle Busch took fourth, and Kevin Harvick finished off the top five.

Alex Bowman grabbed victories in each of the race’s first two stages before Joey Logano took control for a Stage 3 victory.

Chris Buescher Driver Page | Get Buescher Gear | Race Center

Posted on by Data Skrive

Christopher Bell finished ninth in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Sunday.

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

Bell qualified in 15th position at 179.748 mph. The first-year driver does not have a top-10 finish in his career.

Sunday was Bell’s career start at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

The Norman, Oklahoma native’s starting and finishing positions compared favorably to his career averages, starting six spots higher than his career mark of 21.3 and completing the race 16 places ahead of his 25.2 career average finish.

Bell battled against a field of 40 drivers on the way to his ninth-place finish. The race endured eight cautions and 52 caution laps. There were 20 lead changes.

Brad Keselowski secured the victory in the race, and Chase Elliott finished second. Ryan Blaney placed third, Kyle Busch secured fourth, and Kevin Harvick finished off the top five.

Alex Bowman grabbed victories in each of the race’s first two stages before Joey Logano took control for a Stage 3 victory.

Christopher Bell Driver Page | Get Bell Gear | Race Center

Posted on by Data Skrive

Tyler Reddick finished eighth in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Sunday.

The top 10 finish for Reddick, his second of the year, added 37 points to his season total.

Reddick qualified in fifth position at 180.905 mph. The second-year driver has two top-10 finishes in his career.

Sunday was Reddick’s career start at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

The Corning, California native’s starting and finishing positions compared favorably to his career averages, starting 21 spots higher than his career mark of 26.5 and completing the race 10 places ahead of his 18.2 career average finish.

Reddick’s eighth-place finish came against a field of 40 drivers. The race endured eight cautions and 52 caution laps. There were 20 lead changes.

Brad Keselowski secured the victory in the race, and Chase Elliott finished second. Ryan Blaney placed third, Kyle Busch brought home fourth, and Kevin Harvick grabbed the No. 5 spot.

Alex Bowman grabbed victories in each of the race’s first two stages before Joey Logano took control for a Stage 3 victory.

Tyler Reddick Driver Page | Get Reddick Gear | Race Center

Posted on by Staff Report

Based on the finishing results from Sunday night’s NASCAR Cup Series Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, we have a starting lineup for Thursday night’s Alsco Uniforms 500 at the 1.5-mile North Carolina oval.

RELATED: Official Coca-Cola 600 results

The starting lineup for the next Cup Series event on May 28 (7 p.m. ET on FS1, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) will use the finishing order from May 24 as the basis for the lineup with one inversion:

  • Starting positions 1-20: The top 20 finishers from the May 24 event will be inverted for the start of the May 28 race
  • Starting positions 21-40: The bottom 20 finishers from the May 24 event will start from their finishing positions for the start of the May 28 race; any new entries will be placed at the tail of the field. Any teams that have driver changes will see those cars drop to the rear. Those drivers are noted by an asterisk (*).

William Byron will start on pole in the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. Teammate Alex Bowman will start alongside him on the front row in the No. 88 HMS Chevrolet.

After winning his first career Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday night, Brad Keselowski will start 20th in the No. 2 Team Penske Ford.

Starting spot Driver Car # Team
1 William Byron 24 Hendrick Motorsports
2 Alex Bowman 88 Hendrick Motorsports
3 Michael McDowell 34 Front Row Motorsports
4 Matt DiBenedetto 21 Wood Brothers Racing
5 John Hunter Nemechek 38 Front Row Motorsports
6 Aric Almirola 10 Stewart-Haas Racing
7 Austin Dillon 3 Richard Childress Racing
8 Joey Logano 22 Team Penske
9 Cole Custer 41 Stewart-Haas Racing
10 Erik Jones 20 Joe Gibbs Racing
11 Chris Buescher 17 Roush Fenway Racing
12 Christopher Bell 95 Leavine Family Racing
13 Tyler Reddick 8 Richard Childress Racing
14 Kurt Busch 1 Chip Ganassi Racing
15 Martin Truex Jr. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing
16 Kevin Harvick 4 Stewart-Haas Racing
17 Kyle Busch 18 Joe Gibbs Racing
18 Ryan Blaney 12 Team Penske
19 Chase Elliott 9 Hendrick Motorsports
20 Brad Keselowski 2 Team Penske
21 Reed Sorenson* 77 Spire Motorsports
22 Ryan Preece 37 JTG Daugherty Racing
23 Corey LaJoie 32 Go Fas Racing
24 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 47 JTG Daugherty Racing
25 Ty Dillon 13 Germain Racing
26 Matt Kenseth 42 Chip Ganassi Racing
27 Ryan Newman 6 Roush Fenway Racing
28 Daniel Suarez 96 Gaunt Brothers Racing
29 Denny Hamlin 11 Joe Gibbs Racing
30 Brennan Poole 15 Premium Motorsports
31 JJ Yeley* 27 Rick Ware Racing
32 B.J. McLeod 78 B.J. McLeod Motorsports
33 Garrett Smithley 53 Rick Ware Racing
34 Timmy Hill 66 MBM Motorsports
35 Quin Houff 00 StarCom Racing
36 Joey Gase 51 Petty Ware Racing
37 Josh Bilicki* 7 Tommy Baldwin Racing
38 Bubba Wallace 43 Richard Petty Motorsports
39 Clint Bowyer 14 Stewart-Haas Racing
40 Jimmie Johnson 48 Hendrick Motorsports

 

Posted on by Staff Report

The No. 2 Team Penske Ford of Brad Keselowski passed post-race technical inspection Sunday after winning the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Keselowski’s race-winning car was found to be compliant with the 2020 NASCAR Rule Book after the 405-lap event at the 1.5-mile track.

RELATED: Official results

Jimmie Johnson’s No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet failed the post-race check and therefore was disqualified. He had finished runner-up, but will be scored in last place — 40th.

All other cars cleared tech. There were no lug-nut issues. With post-race teardown complete, the race results are official.

This is the second year of a post-race process to bring a more timely approach to inspection for all three NASCAR national series. Competition officials announced before the 2019 season that thorough post-race inspections would take place shortly after the checkered flag at the track instead of midweek at the NASCAR Research & Development Center. Those inspections come with a stiffer deterrence structure that includes disqualification for significant rules infractions.

NASCAR will still inspect cars at the R&D Center as needed to monitor trends and parts compliance.

Posted on by Staff Report

NASCAR officials disqualified the Hendrick Motorsports No. 48 Chevrolet after post-race inspection at Charlotte Motor Speedway, striking Jimmie Johnson from a second-place finish in Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600.

RELATED: Race results | Charlotte race week schedule

Cup Series director Jay Fabian said that the No. 48 car’s rear alignment failed in the Optical Scanning Station (OSS) portion of technical inspection after Sunday’s race. Johnson and the team were relegated to a last-place finish in the 40-car field.

All other drivers who took the checkered flag behind Johnson were moved up one position in the finishing order. Johnson also forfeits the 11 stage points he had earned in Sunday’s event.

No. 48 crew chief Cliff Daniels speculated early Monday morning when the penalty was announced that something may have broken on the car and that the team would investigate.

Fabian said the No. 48 team had a right to appeal the penalty. He did not specify how far out of tolerance the car was in post-race inspection.

“The 48 ran strong tonight all night.  I hate it for them.  They had a good car, performed well,” Fabian said. “But yeah, the allowance is built in for parts that move.  There’s an allowance for that. But if parts break, you know, the number is the number. There is no real parameter outside of that. There’s parts in the past that have been designed to failure break. Certainly not suggesting that’s the case here. But that’s what’s gotten us to this hard line of this is a post‑race number and there is a fair tolerance from pre‑race numbers to post.”

Posted on by Zack Albert

A fateful caution period pegged the meter on Chase Elliott’s radio as the laps wound down in Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600.

“I’ve never in my life, man,” Elliott lamented after a late spin by teammate William Byron brought out a yellow flag that erased his lead, transforming his bid for a signature NASCAR Cup Series victory from a virtual sure thing to an unraveling thread.

Elliott’s No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet crew opted to pit for four tires before the final restart, dropping him from the top spot to 11th place as the field lined up for overtime. He rallied for a second-place finish behind race-winner Brad Keselowski in the two-lap scramble to the end at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Elliott had finished third, but Jimmie Johnson’s disqualification for failing post-race inspection moved him in the finishing order.

RELATED: Race results | Charlotte race week schedule

“You just make the best decision you can based on the information you have,” said Elliott, who led 38 laps before surrendering the lead in the last of eight caution flags. “When you are leading the race like that, people behind you are going to do the exact opposite of what you do. That was the situation we were put in. Alan (Gustafson) made the decision, we stuck with it, and it didn’t work out.”

It was the second straight race ending in heartbreak for the 24-year-old driver, who crashed out of second place after a run-in with Kyle Busch last Wednesday at Darlington Raceway. Busch was among the first to approach him post-race, and Elliott said “he just felt bad for us.”

Elliott’s bid for victory contention bloomed late in a race that was dominated early by Hendrick teammate Alex Bowman. He passed Keselowski on the 363rd lap of a scheduled 400 and stretched his advantage as the laps ticked down.

Byron’s skid to the apron erased that edge and forced a pit-strategy decision for overtime. No. 9 crew chief Alan Gustafson chose a four-tire stop, while Keselowski was the first driver among those who stayed on the track, handing him a lead he would not relinquish.

“I remember the saying somebody told me when I was younger — damned if you do, damned if you don’t,” Keselowski said of Elliott’s pit-road fate. “It’s just a tough spot to be in. I’ve been in that spot, I’ve lost races that way. It stinks. It hurts, but it comes the other way. It’s taken a lot of years for it to come that way for me, and finally today it did.”