Posted on by Reid Spencer

AVONDALE, Ariz. – Joey Logano expected a bump from Kevin Harvick in the two-lap overtime Sunday at Phoenix Raceway, but the bump never came.

Instead, Harvick pulled up beside Logano in the center of Turns 1 and 2 on the final lap of the FanShield 500, but Logano sped away with a hard charge off Turn 2 and cruised to the finish line with a margin of .276 seconds.

RELATED: Race results | Stages recap | Joey Logano gear

With the victory — his second at Phoenix and the 25th of his career — Logano is the first multiple winner of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season, having previously taken the checkered flag at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in the year’s second event.

Logano won Sunday at the 1-mile track in the Sonoran Desert despite snafus that might have thwarted a lesser driver. On Lap 133, Logano’s crew was flagged for an uncontrolled tire, sending the driver of the No. 22 Team Penske Ford to the rear of the field for a restart on Lap 138.

After Logano drove through the field and regained his track position, a broken jack during a yellow-flag pit stop on Lap 268 dropped him to 18th for a Lap 272 restart. By staying on the track while other lead-lap cars pitted under caution on Lap 279, Logano moved up to third in the running order, and on Lap 293, he passed teammate Brad Keselowski for the lead and took control of the race.

“Man, we had a really good car, really good Shell‑Pennzoil Mustang,” said Logano, who won for the second time with new crew chief Paul Wolfe after an offseason personnel shakeup at Team Penske. “We had more things go wrong today. Unfortunate situation with the jack breaking. No one’s fault.

“Had some good restarts, got ourselves back up there, being aggressive, having some tires there towards the end. I knew racing Kevin was going to be hard. I was figuring I was going to get hit, so I throttled up in the corner so much, I thought he was going to give me the bump‑and‑run, which I expected, wouldn’t blame him for.”

With arguably the fastest car, Harvick got bottled up in traffic on the Lap 272 restart and never regained the top spot. Logano controlled the final two restarts, including the overtime, chose the bottom lane and cut the dogleg just beyond the start-finish line to maintain his lead.

“He just had control of the race,” Harvick said. “After we pitted there (on Lap 268), I got stuck behind a couple of cars there, lost five or six spots. He got by and got control of the race. He got to restart where he wanted to.

“Our Jimmy John’s Ford was better, especially when we could put it in front of his. We just didn’t get the control of the race back there, and he was able to get by us on that restart where I got hung up.”

Kyle Busch ran third, as NASCAR’s new low-downforce competition package provided lively action throughout the afternoon.

“There at the end, obviously, making up some good spots on the bottom when everybody would get bottled up there mid-pack… but once you get closer to the front, it’s hard to make up those spots anymore on the bottom anymore like we were,” Busch said. “The guys did a great job. We weren’t very good when we unloaded (on Friday), we made a lot of ground, but still not enough ground as I would have wanted to race with some of the top guys. I felt like we were a fifth- or sixth-place car probably, and we were able to come out with a third. Good for us with that effort. We need some points right now. We have to climb the ladder back and get back where we need to be.”

Kyle Larson ran fourth, followed by Clint Bowyer and Kurt Busch in order. Pole-winner Chase Elliott led a race-high 93 laps, but his No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet was forced to pit road for an unplanned stop under green on Lap 156 because of a loose wheel, and Elliott never recovered. He finished seventh after regaining the lead lap under caution on Lap 195.

Ninth-place finisher Cole Custer was the top Sunoco rookie in the race, posting his first career top 10 in the Cup Series. Aric Almirola and William Byron were eighth and 10th, respective, to round out the top 10.

Harvick won the first stage, and Keselowski was the winner of the second stage.

Overall, Logano led 60 of 316 laps, fourth most behind Elliott, Keselowski (82) and Harvick (67).

“I’m out of breath,” Logano said. “That was a pretty intense last 30 minutes or hour of the race. A lot going on. Couldn’t be more proud of this team. Two wins already in the books. We’ve got to keep this thing rocking.”

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

Monday, March 9
1 a.m., NASCAR Cup Series: FanShield 500 at Phoenix Raceway (re-air), FS1/FOX Sports App
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1/FOX Sports App
7 p.m., NASCAR America, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
7:30 p.m., NASCAR Cup Series: FanShield 500 at Phoenix Raceway (re-air), FS2/FOX Sports App

Tuesday, March 10
5 p.m., NASCAR America, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1/FOX Sports App

On MRN
7 p.m., NASCAR Live

Wednesday,  March 11
5 p.m., Dale Jr. Download, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1/FOX Sports App

On MRN
1 p.m., NASCAR Coast to Coast

Thursday, March 12
5 p.m., NASCAR America, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1/FOX Sports App

Friday, March 13
9:30 a.m., NASCAR Race Classic: 2019 Xfinity Series race at Atlanta (re-air), FS1/FOX Sports App
11:30 a.m., NASCAR Race Classic: 2019 NASCAR Cup Series race at Atlanta (re-air), FS1/FOX Sports App
2:30 p.m., Unrivaled: Earnhardt vs. Gordon (re-air), FS1/FOX Sports App
3:30 p.m., NASCAR Cup Series: 2020 FanShield 500 at Phoenix Raceway (re-air), FS1/FOX Sports App

Saturday, March 14
10 a.m., NASCAR Race Classic: 2019 NASCAR Cup Series race at Atlanta (re-air), FS1/FOX Sports App
1 p.m., NASCAR Presents: This Racing Life (re-air), FS1/FOX Sports App
1:30 p.m., NASCAR Race Classic: 2019 Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series race at Atlanta (re-air), FS1/FOX Sports App
3:30 p.m., NASCAR Presents: Neil Bonnett (re-air), FS1/FOX Sports App
4 p.m., NASCAR Race Classic: 2019 Xfinity Series race at Atlanta (re-air), FS1/FOX Sports App
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Classic: 1998 Daytona 500 (re-air), FS1/FOX Sports App
10:30 p.m., NASCAR Race Classic: 2019 Xfinity Series race at Atlanta (re-air), FS2/FOX Sports App

Sunday, March 15
12:30 p.m., Beyond the Wheel (re-air), FS1/FOX Sports App

Posted on by Staff Report

Brad Keselowski benefitted from a loose wheel for Chase Elliott to take the lead on Lap 156 and cruise to the Stage 2 win in the FanShield 500 on Sunday at Phoenix Raceway. For Keselowski, it was his first stage win of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season and marked quite a comeback from a Stage 1 incident that also involved Denny Hamlin and knocked Ryan Blaney out of the race.

Kevin Harvick, the winner of Stage 1, continued to show speed in Stage 2 by finishing second. Harvick lost the lead on Lap 132 to Elliott because of a slow pit stop, dropping back to sixth place, but he rebounded nicely toward the end of the stage.

RELATED: Stage 2 results

Speaking of comebacks and rebounding, Martin Truex Jr. finished third in Stage 2 after starting the race at the rear for an engine change earlier in the weekend. Truex briefly held the lead in Stage 2 (Laps 138-140) when he passed to the inside of Keselowski and Elliott, who came close to banging doors while battling on the outside for the lead.

Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidate Tyler Reddick continued to impress with a fourth-place showing in Stage 2, while Kyle Busch finished fifth. Aric Almirola, Joey Logano, Clint Bowyer, Kyle Larson and Cole Custer rounded out the top 10.

Finish Driver Team Points
1 Brad Keselowski Team Penske 10
2 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing 9
3 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing 8
4 Tyler Reddick Richard Childress Racing 7
5 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing 6
6 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing 5
7 Joey Logano Team Penske 4
8 Clint Bowyer Stewart-Haas Racing 3
9 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing 2
10 Cole Custer Stewart-Haas Racing 1


Stage 1

Kevin Harvick took the lead from Chase Elliott on pit road and held on to win Stage 1 in Sunday’s FanShield 500 at Phoenix Raceway. The “Cactus King” was back in the lead at a track at which he already has nine NASCAR Cup Series victories.

Harvick jumped in front of Elliott with a fast pit stop after Ricky Stenhouse Jr. brought out the race’s first caution flag on Lap 58 when he spun in Turn 2 and damaged the No. 47 JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet. Harvick won the stage, his first at Phoenix, despite Elliott leading 60 of the first 75 laps.

RELATED: Stage 1 results

Elliott came in second in the stage with Joey Logano third, Matt DiBenedetto fourth and Kyle Busch fifth. Last week’s winner, Alex Bowman, was sixth, followed by Martin Truex Jr., Aric Almirola, Tyler Reddick and Erik Jones to round out the top 10. Truex dropped to the rear at the start because of an engine change earlier in the weekend.

Points leader Ryan Blaney saw his day come to an early end after he collided with Denny Hamlin, who hit Brad Keselowski, coming out of Turn 3 on Lap 64. Blaney, the points leader, was in line to finish 37th while Keselowski and Hamlin remained on the track despite the damage.

Finish Driver Team Points
1 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing 10
2 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports 9
3 Joey Logano Team Penske 8
4 Matt DiBenedetto Wood Brothers Racing 7
5 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing 6
6 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports 5
7 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing 4
8 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing 3
9 Tyler Reddick Richard Childress Racing 2
10 Erik Jones Joe Gibbs Racing 1
Posted on by Staff Report

A multi-car crash damaged three early contenders Sunday at Phoenix Raceway as contact between the cars of Denny Hamlin and Brad Keselowski collected and knocked Ryan Blaney out of the NASCAR Cup Series points lead.

RELATED: Race results

The melee caused the second caution period in the FanShield 500. Hamlin’s No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota and Keselowski’s No. 2 Team Penske Ford made contact as the two entered Turn 3 on Lap 64. Both cars slid out of the groove, gathering up Blaney’s No. 12 Penske Ford.

All three cars swept into the outside retaining wall. Hamlin and Keselowski continued, but Blaney took his damaged car to the garage, ending his day.

“From the car, I couldn’t really see,” Blaney said after an evaluation at the infield care center. “A couple of us were three-wide. I was happy to be on the top. I thought we were going to roll the top pretty good through (Turns) 3 and 4 there. It looks like the 11 tried to send it in there below the 2 and got loose and hit him and then overcorrected and got us. We got up in the dirt, and we just ran right into the fence. Just an innocent bystander there. It sucks to have it end so early like that and have that happen so early in the race.

“I do really hate it for Menards and Tarkett and Ford. We didn’t even have a chance to work on our car. We weren’t great the first run, but we made a big swing at it and we don’t know how that change was. It stinks when you are taken out like that. We will just go on to Atlanta (Motor Speedway) and see what we can do.”

Blaney entered the event atop the Cup Series standings, but he absorbed a 37th-place finish and his first DNF since last October at Dover International Speedway. Hamlin continued at a reduced pace and finished 20th.

Keselowski fared the best, recovering nicely with minor damage and charging back to win Stage 2. He led 82 laps but slipped to an 11th-place result after a series of late restarts gummed up his team’s pit strategy and victory chances.

Posted on by RJ Kraft

It’s Race 4 of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season: the FanShield 500 (Sunday at 3:30 p.m. ET on FOX/FOX Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Chase Elliott scored the Busch Pole Award, but is he worth the start in Fantasy Live? NASCAR.com’s RJ Kraft offers his race-day lineup and bonus picks below.

RJ Kraft race-day lineup for FanShield 500:
1: Kevin Harvick
2: Chase Elliott
3: Aric Almirola
4: Denny Hamlin
5: Brad Keselowski
Garage: Kyle Busch

Just missing the cut: William Byron, Kyle Larson, Kurt Busch, Erik Jones and Matt DiBenedetto.

Cars dropping to the rear: Martin Truex Jr. and John Hunter Nemechek.

MORE: Engine change sends Truex to back of the field

RELATED: Lap averages, practice results, more | Fantasy preview coming into Phoenix

Analysis: Harvick has nine wins at Phoenix, had the best 10-lap average and was one of the best cars on the long run in final practice. I’ve concocted my strategy around heavy Harvick usage early, so I’ll worry about his uses later in the season. Harvick’s Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Almirola is a sneaky play here with four top 10s in his last five starts and the fourth-best 20-lap average in final practice.

Elliott is on the pole, and I have toyed with using him in recent weeks but haven’t pulled the trigger. Entering the week, he and Larson were neck-and-neck for a spot in my lineup, but I like Elliott’s averages a bit more. The Hendrick driver placed in the top two in both practices. Hamlin won here in the fall and had the fourth-best 10-lap average in final practice. I’m a little worried about the drop-off on the averages board over 15- and 20-lap runs, but I’m willing to accept that risk since I have not used him this season. Keselowski gets the fifth spot in my lineup thanks to his leading the 15-, 20-, 25- and 30-lap averages. He’s another driver I’ve yet to use.

I debated the garage pick with a focus on the Busch brothers, Byron and Larson. For now, I’ve settled on Kyle Busch. I know he’s off to a slow start in 2020, but he has been the best driver here over the past three races — also since the 1-mile track was reconfigured. He has finished in the top two in all three of those races. I don’t like that I don’t have any long-run data from him, but I trust in the history.

Bonus picks: I’m taking Elliott to win Stage 1 with Harvick winning Stage 2 and the race. I’m taking Ford for the manufacturer pick.

Posted on by Nick Giffen

The Action Network specializes in providing sports betting insights/analytics and is a content partner with NASCAR. Check out more NASCAR betting analysis here.

Today’s FanShield 500 is the first race at a short, flat track in the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season. Ordinarily, that means we’d look back to the previous year to see how drivers performed, but with NASCAR reverting to a lower downforce aerodynamic package at these tracks, racing and driver ability should match the 2016-2018 seasons better than 2019.

What does it take to win at Phoenix under these conditions? Five of the six Phoenix winners from 2016-2018 displayed these characteristics:

  • A driver rating over the last eight short, flat tracks above 95
  • A driver rating over the last 15 races overall above 99
  • A top-14 speed over 10 consecutive laps in final practice

The lone exception is Ryan Newman, who won the 2017 spring race by staying out under a late-race caution and holding off drivers who took two or four tires. In other words, if we’re going to bet on a long shot, it has to be somebody who can still hang out on the lead lap, and win with strategy.

So which drivers offer the most value for today’s race?

NASCAR FanShield 500 at Phoenix Best Bet Picks

Kevin Harvick +600

Harvick has won seven of the past 15 races at Phoenix, including two of the six during the lower downforce seasons of 2016-2018. He had the fastest 10-lap average in final practice and was behind only Brad Keselowski in 15- to 25-lap averages. He also starts second, giving him clean air early on and one of the prime pit stalls for the race.

Harvick appears to have a better long-run car than Kyle Busch, and won’t have to contend with coming through the field to get to the front or a mediocre pit stall. The two grade out fairly evenly, but Harvick is discounted relative to Busch across the industry.

This line is available at both MGM in Las Vegas and PointsBet. I would bet him down to +550.

[Bet now at PointsBet. NJ only.]

Chase Elliott +1000

Elliott is often listed as the second favorite behind Busch at most books. However at BetMGM in New Jersey (+1000) he’s priced as either the third or fourth favorite. Elliott has been fast all weekend, grabbing the pole position and posting top-two times in single-lap speed in both practice sessions.

In fact, his second-fastest time in the opening practice session came in race trim!

In Elliott’s three incident-free Phoenix races in lower downforce after his rookie year, he had a driver rating of 114.7. That includes two top-three finishes. That is in the same range as Harvick (114.8) and Busch (119.6) in their incident-free races. Considering he’s on the Harvick and Busch level and his excellent car, I’d bet Elliott down to +600.

[Bet now at BetMGM. NJ only.]

Aric Almirola +7000

Almirola doesn’t fit the mold of a winner, but he does have some Newman-like characteristics that could put him in position should late-race strategy come into play. In fact, his resume is better than Newman’s race-winning 2017 resume.

Like Newman, Almirola’s best track type outside of Daytona and Talladega is the short, flat track. He has finishes of fourth, seventh and ninth in his last three low downforce Phoenix races. That ninth-place finish came with Richard Petty Motorsports in 2017.

Almirola also showed plenty of speed to hang out on the lead lap. He was fifth over 10 consecutive laps and third over a single lap. Newman was only 17th and 15th in those metrics. Almirola has plenty of speed in a sprint to the finish.

Almirola is going as low as +2000 at MGM and +2500 at FanDuel. But this +7000 line at Station Casinos is too good to pass up if you are in Las Vegas. He’s also +6000 at BetMGM and +4000 at PointsBet, which is as low as I’d bet him outright.

[Bet now at BetMGM. NJ only.]

Posted on by Pat DeCola

AVONDALE, Ariz. – There was a fight on pit road after Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Phoenix Raceway. Somewhat surprisingly, it wasn’t between Austin Cindric and Ross Chastain.

The two NXS standouts felt glued together at times during the 200-lapper, finishing eighth and ninth, respectively, and swapping plenty of paint along the way.

PHOENIX: Race results | Jones wins | At-track photos

Earlier on in the race, Chastain came up quickly behind Cindric’s No. 22, nudging his left rear to get past him. Cindric later re-paid the favor, and things were dicey between the two until the checkered flag.

While Cindric said the contact was “not personal; not at all, actually,” he was baffled he was being raced so aggressively by the No. 10.

“That’s a great question for Ross,” Cindric told NASCAR.com. “I about got wrecked twice for positions, so that’s cool, I guess. I mean, it’s a one-lane race track, but the first thing you do when you run up on a guy is not left-rear him. Enough people realize that. It’s unfortunate you have to race it. He’s fast and he deserves to be here, but at the same time I’m not sure I deserved that.

“Anyone would be mad. I’d like to hear his point of view for sure. It’s usually just a wave and an ‘Oh, I’m sorry,’ but it’s part of it and it’s racing. It’s not anything to lose some sleep over. It’s not new for him.”

Chastain came to speak with media as Cindric was finishing up his questions, but the two did not speak. The Kaulig Racing driver also brushed off any issues with his Team Penske competitor.

“I’m right here and he didn’t say anything,” Chastain said. “I took fault there in Turn 3 early. He checked up more than I thought, and I got into him and let him catch it. He returned the favor well and good, so, yeah.”

Posted on by Staff Report

AVONDALE, Ariz. – From race-winner Brandon Jones’ standpoint, it’s too bad there wasn’t a bounty on Kyle Busch in Saturday’s LS Tractor 200 at Phoenix Raceway.

Buoyed by a strong run through Turns 3 and 4, Jones shot past Busch into the lead on the frontstretch on Lap 181 and pulled away to win by 3.556 seconds over Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Harrison Burton, who passed Busch on Lap 190 for the NASCAR Xfinity Series’ runner-up position.

RELATED: Race results | Weekend schedule

Next weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway, there will be a $100,000 bounty on Busch in the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series race, courtesy of NASCAR Cup Series veteran Kevin Harvick and Marcus Lemonis, chairman and CEO of Camping World.

On Saturday, Jones had to be content with the satisfaction of beating the career leader in NASCAR Xfinity Series victories, who rolled home third without adding to his 96 wins in the series. Jones was happy to settle for the trip to Victory Lane — after beating Busch and fellow NASCAR Cup Series champion Brad Keselowski, who ran fourth.

“These are two of arguably the best in the business,” Jones said. “We just had a car to beat ’em today. These guys just did an incredible job.”

Crucial to the win was a quick pit stop on Lap 130 that got Jones second off pit road and fourth in the running order for a restart on Lap 134.

“I told (crew chief) Jeff (Meendering) kind of early in the race… I’m like, ‘Man, I’m just lacking track position — that’s the only thing I’m lacking,'” Jones said. “The pit crew did a heck of a job, and they said, ‘There you go. There’s your track position,’ and it paid off at the end.”

The 1-2-3 finish for JGR was the sixth in company history. More important, Jones’ second victory in the series and first at Phoenix was the 500th win for Toyota in NASCAR’s top three national series combined.

Burton’s No. 20 Toyota improved throughout the afternoon, as the 19-year-old driver — fresh from his maiden win at Auto Club Speedway last week — posted his fourth straight top-five finish to start the season.

“Early in the day, we weren’t good enough at all,” Burton said. “We were running ninth, 10th, somewhere back there. We fought really hard and got a lot better by the end. The 19 (Jones) kind of did the same thing.

“We got better and better and better as the race went on, so I’m really proud of that. That was Toyota’s 500th victory, so that’s really cool. Good to have a 1-2-3 when we do it. Proud of our guys. Proud of our effort. Not quite enough, but we’ll be back (at Phoenix in November), hopefully with a chance to win the championship.”

Keselowski recovered from an off-sequence pit stop and a brush with the outside wall to finish fourth, followed by Xfinity regulars Justin Haley, Chase Briscoe, Noah Gragson, Austin Cindric, Ross Chastain (who overcame a power-steering issue that put him a lap down) and Riley Herbst.

Justin Allgaier had perhaps the fastest car in the race, but the driver of the No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet was trapped in a pit-stop zugzwang after staying on the track under caution early in Stage 3. Subsequently, Allgaier pitted for fuel only under the sixth yellow on Lap 139, but he failed to get a timely caution late in the race that would have allowed him to use his final set of new tires. He ultimately finished 13th.

Allgaier, who led 51 laps and won Stage 1, stood by crew chief Jason Burdett’s pit call.

“I’m good with the decision,” Allgaier said. “Obviously, it didn’t work out, and to say that I’m not disappointed would be lying to you. We had a fast, fast Camaro today. I thought we made the right call. I told him (Burdett) multiple times that I thought we made the right call.”

Posted on by Reid Spencer

Ross Chastain is happy to fill in for recuperating Ryan Newman as long as he is needed in the No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing Ford.

On the other hand, Chastain would be just as happy if Newman were able to return to the car sooner rather than later.

Newman has been sidelined since suffering a head injury during a vicious wreck on the final lap of the season-opening Daytona 500 in February. Though he hasn’t been cleared to race medically, Newman is spending the weekend at Phoenix Raceway.

RELATED: Newman makes first track appearance | Blaney catches up with Newman

“Just as guys and as people, it’s just good to see him and see him walking around,” Chastain said after qualifying 24th in Saturday’s NASCAR Cup Series time trials. “As a person it’s just good to see him. He has a lot of information in that noggin of his. He has degrees that I probably can’t even spell. He understands these race cars and has given me a lot of information.”

Chastain has no idea how much longer he’ll be needed in the No. 6 Ford.

“We’re just happy he’s alive,” Chastain said. “I want him in the car tomorrow — if he could get in it. He already told me he could drive it without the (seat) insert. If I wasn’t back in time for practice, he said he would practice it.

“I don’t think they would allow that. I think we all know that. I want him back as soon as possible. It has been a great experience and a lot of learning on my side, but I would love for him to be able to get back in the car right now.”