Steve Phelps encouraged by positive signs at end of first season as NASCAR President

Posted on November 17, 2019December 3, 2019 by Reid Spencer

HOMESTEAD, Fla. — The racing on intermediate tracks has never been better; ratings are up, bucking a trend among other major sports; and collaboration between stakeholders is at an all-time high.

That was the assessment of NASCAR President Steve Phelps, who took questions from the media on Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway before the Ford EcoBoost 400, the race that would decide the 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion.

“If you look at the results — I start with the competition always — our competition right now on the intermediate tracks and the superspeedways, I believe, is the best racing we’ve ever seen. I’ll start with myself as a fan. I love watching and am super excited when we get to the intermediate tracks and superspeedways, the type of racing we are going to see.”

Phelps also shared that the quality of competition has had a positive effect on the viewership.

RELATED: Full Homestead-Miami schedule

“The results from the competition side are working from a consumption standpoint,” he said. “If you look at the fans, what the fans are doing, how they’re responding to it, if you look apples to apples, our ratings are up 4% this year. All of sports is down 9%; we’re plus 4%.

“Importantly our share is plus 9, so there are fewer people watching television in all sports, obviously, but fewer people watching television overall. So when they were watching, not only did they watch more NASCAR, from a ratings standpoint, but when they were tuned in, they were watching more NASCAR. We were taking share from someone else, which is important. That’s television.”

Phelps also extolled the unprecedented level of communication and cooperation across the stock car racing industry.

“I’ve been teased a little bit about using the word ‘collaboration’ too much,” Phelps said. “I don’t think you can use that word too much, frankly. It’s building. The collaboration of this industry is better than it’s ever been. Really excited about where that is.”

That doesn’t mean, however, that there isn’t room for improvement in the product. Phelps acknowledged that NASCAR will work during the offseason to enhance the quality of racing on tracks of one mile and shorter.

That’s particularly important, given that ISM Raceway in Phoenix is set to host next year’s Championship 4 race.

“Do I think we need to work with our industry, Goodyear, our race teams, our OEM (original equipment manufacturer) partners to improve what we’re seeing on the short tracks?” Phelps asked. “I do. We’re going to do that in the offseason, for sure.”

As his first full season at NASCAR’s helm concludes, Phelps indicated there has been strong interest from other car makers in joining Ford, Chevrolet and Toyota as competing brands in the sport.

“We had some folks out in Phoenix (last week) that were interested in coming into the sport,” Phelps said. “It’s important for us. We are working hard to try to determine kind of the timing of that, what that looks like, and what that partnership would look like moving forward bringing someone in.

“The world is a lot different than it was. We’re trying to make it as easy as possible to have an OEM come in, plug in, and start to compete on the race track.”

Phelps also said that some form of electrification would be part of NASCAR’s engine architecture in the future and that the ability to attract new OEMs to the sport would be dependent on running engines that maintained relevance to those in production cars.

“This engine is going to sound significantly the same as whatever the current engine is,” Phelps said. “We’re not going to have a bunch of electric cars going around. That’s not what this is about. It’s about having a relevant engine to our OE partners, both the existing Ford, Chevy and Toyota, as well as whoever the new OEs that we’re looking at.”

With Monster Energy currently in its final year as sponsor of NASCAR’s premier series, Phelps said NASCAR anticipates announcements with respect to its new sponsorship model when the industry celebrates the new Cup champion in Nashville in early December.

Posted on November 17, 2019November 17, 2019 by PJ Walsh

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This is it. The 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship will be settled today at Homestead-Miami Speedway with Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Martin Truex Jr. and Denny Hamlin all vying for the title.

Harvick (2014), Busch (2015) and Truex (2017) each have a past championship under their belts, while Hamlin is searching for that elusive first title.

While the battle for the championship will dominate the coverage of today’s Ford EcoBoost 400, there is still a full 40-car field with non-playoff drivers racing for the best finishes possible.

As a result, we still have an opportunity to put together a winning betting card that includes non-playoff drivers.

After analyzing historical results at Homestead, as well as this weekend’s on-track activity, here are two bets I’m making for today’s MENCS 2019 season finale.

NASCAR at Homestead Best Bet Picks

*Odds via the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook at 9 a.m. ET Sunday

Kyle Larson (12-1) to Win

I wrote extensively about why I like Larson earlier in the week, and all of those points still stand. In fact, I’m surprised to see him float to 12-1 considering his track record at Homestead.

Larson was solid in practice, running the fifth-fastest 10-lap average, but his style at this race track really won’t show up until the race. Kyle can run the wall better than anyone else, but because that line is dangerous, there’s really no reason to mess around with it in practice.

As a result, we likely didn’t see the best of what Larson has to offer, and won’t until today’s race.

Ryan Blaney (60-1)

In all honesty, I’m surprised that I like Blaney so much today. He wasn’t on my radar earlier in the week, but his speed in practice can’t be ignored.

Blaney ranked in the top five in five-, 10-, 15- and 20-lap averages in final practice.

At 60-1, I’m willing to take a shot that he’s a borderline top-five car and give our betting card a longshot with the speed to mix it up with the favorites.

Be sure to follow me on Twitter as I continue adding to my betting card for today’s Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead.

Posted on November 17, 2019November 17, 2019 by Staff Report

Today, we crown a champion.

Through 35 points-paying races, plenty of triumphs and, yes, some tribulations and heartache as well, four of the top drivers in the sport will compete today for the 2019 Monster Energy Series Championship.

Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick and Martin Truex Jr. take center stage at Homestead-Miami Speedway in today’s Ford EcoBoost 400 (3 p.m. ET, NBC, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Before we drop the green flag, read through our comprehensive coverage to get fully up-to-speed for Championship Sunday.

The story lines

• Denny Hamlin enters the title race with plenty of momentum. It’s a far cry from last year, when he went winless. New crew chief Chris Gabehart and team owner Joe Gibbs helped rebuild the driver’s confidence. | Read more

• Kevin Harvick vs. Joe Gibbs Racing? Well, yes. Kind of. Harvick going against three Joe Gibbs Racing drivers today isn’t quite as simple as it seems. | Read more

• Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick have had a frosty relationship at times. “Rowdy” details the history between the two, and then explains how things eventually got better. | Watch video

• It’s no secret Martin Truex Jr. and crew Cole Pearn have a tremendous relationship. We dive into what makes them tick — together. | Read more

• Tony Stewart and Joe Gibbs share a long history together. Before they battle for the title — as team owners — they shared stories, and laughs, in a pre-race availability. | Read more

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

The breakdown

• Rain altered the schedule, leading to just one practice. See how each driver fared, their top lap and what they said. | Read more

• Our friends at Racing Insights took 16 statistical categories — representative of the 16 drivers in the playoffs — and ranked the Championship 4 drivers in each. The result? A no-bias view of who the favorite is. | Read more

• Denny Hamlin is the only driver in the title field to never win a championship. We rank the best NASCAR drivers to never win a title. | Read more

• While Hamlin goes for his first crown, Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr. and Kyle Busch all go for their second. They’d join a prestigious list of multi-time champions. | Read more

• In the elimination-style format, the eventual Cup Series champion has won the title race every year. There have been plenty of other clutch moments in these playoffs, too. | Read more

The stats

• Rain meant there was just one practice, and it was Kyle Busch who was fastest. See the entire speed chart. | Read more

• Canceled qualifying means Denny Hamlin, who came into the weekend as the top seed due to Round of 8 performance, starts from the pole position. | See the full lineup

• Kyle Busch seems to have good short-run speed. The longer the cars ran, though, the faster Martin Truex Jr. got. Check out our full breakdown of lap averages. | Read more

The picks

• Time to race. Each member of the NASCAR.com editorial staff makes his or her pick for the 2019 Monster Energy Series champion. | Read more

• Two Joe Gibbs Racing drivers opened as favorites in the Vegas books — catch up on the latest movement here. | Read more

• Championships can be won in Fantasy Live, too — or at the very least, bragging rights are on the line. Get the scoop on our recommended drivers to play and avoid. | Read more

Posted on November 16, 2019 by Staff Report

The NASCAR season boils down to one final Monster Energy Series challenge with four drivers competing for the title in Sunday’s Ford EcoBoost 400 (3 p.m. ET, NBC/NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

The home office has opinions aplenty. So here are NASCAR.com’s staff predictions for the Championship 4 showdown:

Staff	Champion pick	The lowdown
Zack Albert	Kevin Harvick	There’s something to be said for having the resources of a whole organization behind a single driver, a push that should help the most recent winner at a 1.5-mile track cash in with a second premier-series crown.
Pat DeCola	Kyle Busch	Busch has been my pick from Day 1 and throughout the season, so I might as well keep it now that he’s here. Everyone seems to be counting him out — and look, I get it, that winless stretch is concerning — but if there’s one thing I’ve learned in this business it’s to never overlook driver No. 18. Rowdy will rise.
Marissa Fuller	Denny Hamlin	Denny Hamlin has proven himself time and time again — all season long — winning clutch races and having dominant performances. With crew chief Chris Gabehart in his corner, momentum coming off a huge win at Phoenix and a pole position to start, Hamlin’s hunt for redemption will land the No. 11 in Victory Lane.
RJ Kraft	Kevin Harvick	I picked Harvick at the start of the playoffs and I’m not backing away from statistically the best of the Championship 4 at Miami. Plus, the “Game 7” moments and “us vs. the world/JGR” mentality are things he feeds off of and thrives.
Jonathan Merryman	Denny Hamlin	Hamlin finally gets over the hump thanks to a spectacular relationship with Chris Gabehart and a brand-new outlook established early in 2019.
Brad Norman	Martin Truex Jr.	Give me a somehow-under-the-radar Cole Pearn calling the shots atop the pit box and the cool, steady hands of veteran Martin Truex Jr. to get it done when the stakes are highest.
Terrin Waack	Denny Hamlin	Picked Hamlin before the NASCAR Playoffs began and sticking with him now. Hamlin needed to win the Round of 8 elimination race, and he did just that to make the Championship 4. This is now the next race he needs to win, and watch it happen.
Alex Weaver	Denny Hamlin	The No. 11 team has J.D. Gibbs pulling them toward the checkered and the hopes of redemption for Denny. With things clicking on all cylinders, it’s no longer a “no championship” label for Hamlin after Sunday.
Chase Wilhelm	Martin Truex Jr.	Truex and crew chief Cole Pearn have proven time after time they’re the best when it comes to races that transition from day to night, and they seem to be the most relaxed this weekend. They’ll hoist their second championship trophy Sunday night.
George Winkler	Denny Hamlin	He could have folded after a 28th-place finish at Texas, but he got the clutch win at ISM Raceway to keep the dream alive and this is his year to get it done.

Posted on November 16, 2019November 16, 2019 by Chase Wilhelm

HOMESTEAD, Fla. – As Tyler Reddick celebrated a second consecutive NASCAR Xfinity Series championship Saturday night in South Florida, the other three Championship 4 contenders were wondering what could have been.

The 200-lap season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway saw a handful of mistakes that ultimately hurt contenders Justin Allgaier, Christopher Bell and Cole Custer.

RELATED: Official race results

The problems began with Custer when he reported a loose wheel on his No. 00 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford at Lap 58 and was forced to pit two laps later. Custer was able to use fresh Goodyear tires to earn his lap back, passing leader Austin Cindric on the final lap of Stage 2.

Custer was able to rally back in the final stage, taking the lead from Reddick under the final green-flag pit cycle with less than 40 laps remaining. The battle between the two drivers intensified in the closing laps. Reddick used his prowess to run against the wall, retake the lead from Custer and run away with the championship.

Despite bitter defeat, Custer was able to keep the positives in mind after finishing second in points in his final full-time Xfinity Series run before transitioning to the No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford for the 2020 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season.

“It was a cool race,” Custer said. “The three of us were really close there for a while. I could match Tyler’s lap time up there, but he made a good move up there with a slide job and I just couldn’t get him back.

“I just started pushing harder to try to close the gap somehow and I just got in the fence a little bit. It sucks, but at the same time, we can move on from it and we had a good day.”

For Bell, an attempt to make his final green-flag pit stop with 41 laps remaining served as the dagger for his title chances after missing pit road. The No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing driver led 37 laps prior to the miscue.

Although Bell was able to retake the lead with the time he gained with fresh tires while Custer and Reddick made stops, he wasn’t able to keep the duo at bay. Bell had to settle for a fifth-place finish in the race and third in the final standings before he moves up to the Monster Energy Series to pilot the No. 95 Leavine Family Racing Toyota in 2020.

“It was just a miscommunication,” Bell said. “I don’t know if my spotter didn’t get told what our cue word was, but I told got the cue word to pit and then all of a sudden, I started pitting and he said, not now, not now. But that didn’t matter whenever you get beat by 17 seconds.”

As for Allgaier, he admitted the No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet lacked the necessary speed from the beginning of the race weekend in order to be competitive. Allgaier was never able to jump ahead of the other three title contenders, and scrapping the wall with less than 20 laps remaining was the final straw, finishing 14th.

“It was disappointing because we felt like yesterday in practice, the seven laps that we got, that our balance was pretty good,” Allgaier said. “We were excited about tonight because the things we worked on yesterday and in the shop and try to make better for our program, we had done.

“Unfortunately, tonight we were just way too loose and way too loose to really push at the speed those guys were running.”

Posted on November 16, 2019November 16, 2019 by Reid Spencer

HOMESTEAD, Fla. — With his girlfriend expecting a baby, Tyler Reddick confessed on Thursday that he had practiced changing diapers on a pet cat.

Now, after winning Saturday’s Ford EcoBoost 300 and his second straight NASCAR Xfinity Series championship at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Reddick gets to name the baby.

RELATED: Official race results

Finishing 1.038 seconds ahead of hard-charging Cole Custer, Reddick is the only driver to win consecutive titles in the series for two different car owners. The 23-year-old from Corning, California, won his first championship for JR Motorsports last year.

After switching rides to Richard Childress Racing, Reddick celebrated the organizations 50th anniversary by delivering his second straight title to team owner Richard Childress — the crowning achievement of a season in which Reddick collected a career-best six victories.

“It’s about this race team, man, and I was just honored to pilot this Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet,” Reddick said. “I’m losing my breath — I’m that excited. This one means so much more. It was just a lot better year, and it was really cool to go back-to-back.”

In winning for the second time at Homestead-Miami, Reddick was once again the quintessential rim rider, running within inches of the fence as he, Custer and fifth-place finisher Christopher Bell battled for the lead early in the final 79-lap green-flag run.

And now he can name his yet-to-be-born son “Beau,” under an agreement he made with girlfriend Alexa De Leon before the championship weekend. De Leon had another name in mind but agreed to let Reddick have his choice if he won the title.

Reddick had been so successful running the top lane in 2018 that Custer studied his in-car video before the race — but to no avail.

“Tyler — he can rip the top here,” Custer acknowledged after the race. “That’s about all you can say about it.”

After the top two drivers separated from Bell on Lap 167, Reddick closed on Custer until he reached his rear bumper. On Lap 182, Reddick dived to the inside into Turn 1 and slid up in front of Custer’s No. 00 Ford. Custer got the lead back briefly into Turn 3 on the same lap, but Reddick crossed over and cleared Custer for good off Turn 4.

In trying to catch the No. 2 Chevrolet, Custer scraped the wall in the closing laps.

“I could kind of match his lap time there and studied his in-car all the way coming here trying to figure out how to run the top better,” Custer said. “I got close. I tried to find a way to close the gap when I was behind and tried too hard and got into the fence.

“It sucks to come home second two years in a row. We’ll take it. We were a lot closer this year.”

Reddick, Custer and Bell all will graduate to the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series next year — Reddick with RCR, Custer with Stewart-Haas Racing and Bell with Leavine Family Racing. But Reddick is the only one who will do so with an Xfinity title.

Chase Briscoe and Noah Gragson ran third and fourth, respectively, ahead of Bell, who claimed third place in the final standings behind the race winner and runner-up.

Despite missing pit road on his first attempt at a green-flag pit stop on Lap 159, Bell grabbed the lead on new tires by pitting three laps before Reddick and Custer. But the two chasers soon ran him down in a thrilling three-way battle for the top spot.

By the time Reddick took the checkered flag, Bell was 17 seconds in arrears.

“We just had great pit stops,” said Bell, who came to Homestead last year as the championship favorite and finished fourth. “Our pit stops would allow us to get up front, and then we would maintain until we started falling off, and then they would drive by me. For some reason, just can’t hit on what I need to, to be able to get around this place for a 30- or 40-lap run.”

A late brush with the wall and resulting flat tire relegated Championship 4 contender Justin Allgaier to a 14th-place finish.

Posted on November 16, 2019November 16, 2019 by Holly Cain

HOMESTEAD, Fla. – From the season’s beginning on the Daytona high banks to Saturday night’s very final laps of racing at Homestead-Miami Speedway the 2019 Xfinity Series championship battle was intense; ultimately coming down to a contest of speed, skill and bravado among a familiar lineup of drivers who combined to win 22 of the season’s 33 races.

And for the second consecutive year, it was Californian Tyler Reddick who hoisted a hard-earned Homestead race trophy and celebrated his second straight Xfinity Series championship. He led a race best 84 of the 200 laps Saturday and ultimately prevailed in a good ole NASCAR “slingshot” move that decided an exciting nail-biting lap-by-lap duel in the closing minutes with title challenger Cole Custer.

Reddick took the lead for good with 19 laps remaining and the checkered flag 1.038-seconds ahead of Stewart-Haas Racing teammates Custer and rookie Chase Briscoe. The other two championship eligible drivers — eight race-winner Christopher Bell and Justin Allgaier finished fifth and 14th, respectively.

Reddick, 23, becomes only the seventh driver to win back-to-back Xfinity Series championships — a list that includes some of the sport’s greatest names such as Sam Ard, Larry Pearson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. And Reddick is the first driver to earn the consecutive titles since Ricky Stenhouse Jr. in 2011-12.

What also distinguishes Reddick in championship lore is that he is the only driver to earn Xfinity Series titles in back-to-back seasons for two different teams. He earned this season’s championship driving the No. 2 Richard Childress Chevrolet. Last year he drove for JR Motorsports.

The joy Reddick showed celebrating this impressive accomplishment was honest and exuberant. And it was hard-earned. This year Reddick, Bell and Custer combined for 21 wins. The veteran Allgaier won last week at Phoenix to secure his chance to chase a championship.

Last year Reddick’s championship win was considered by many to be an underdog triumph. Although he had been consistent enough to earn a shot in the Championship 4, he had only two career Xfinity wins when he arrived in South Florida last November. This year — even after switching race teams — Reddick quickly re-established himself as a championship favorite.

His winning performances didn’t take anyone by surprise.

While Bell, who drives the No. 20 Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing, quickly showed himself to be a dominant driver again this year, Custer answered the ante all year himself winning seven times. And Reddick came into Homestead with five wins and the regular-season championship — his 23 top-five and 26 top-10 finishes were most on the season.

“It was perfect, it came down to us three,” Reddick said of his fellow championship contenders. “And that Stage 3 before the caution (flag) we were battling like we have all year long.

“It was just awesome we were able to come out on top of the deal. It’s been a lot of fun racing them and I’m looking forward to racing them and a lot of other talented drivers on Sunday.”

PHOTOS: 2019 Championship celebrations in Victory Lane | All-time Xfinity Series champions

That the season finale featured the same kind of competitive zeal that characterized such an ultra-competitive championship run.

“It was on us to give the guy the equipment to contend with,” said his crew chief Randall Burnett. “He can elevate a car from third or fifth to a win or at least a pretty good shot at it.”

And that’s exactly what happened Saturday night.

The win seems the perfect send-off for Reddick, who will move up into the NASCAR Cup Series driving Childress’ No. 8 Chevrolet. He will join both Custer (No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford) and Bell (No. 95 Leavine Family Racing Toyota) in what will surely be one of the most talented rookie classes.

RELATED: Key players in Silly Season

“I think as a driver I learned a lot about myself,” Reddick said of the 2019 season.

It was the fifth series championship for team owner Richard Childress tying Joe Gibbs Racing for the most season titles in Xfinity Series history.

“He’s an amazing talent and I saw that before he won his first championship, his first race,” his team owner Richard Childress said. “We’re so excited. I just felt if we could get here we had a great shot at winning the championship and the talent he has I’m excited for next year as I’ve been in a long time.”

Posted on November 16, 2019 by Staff Report

HOMESTEAD, Fla. – The Chevrolet camp boasts the only active driver who has won more than one championship in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.

In fact, Jimmie Johnson owns a record-tying seven Cup titles, and in the process accomplished the record feat of winning five in a row from 2006 through 2010.

Both Johnson and Chevrolet, however, have fallen on hard times of late. Johnson has been stuck on 83 victories at NASCAR’s highest level since the spring Dover race of 2017. His winless streak has reached 94 races.

For the third straight season, no Chevy driver has qualified for the Championship 4 event at Homestead-Miami Speedway, but that’s an issue the manufacturer already has begun to address. Rather than wait for the next generation of Cup car in 2021, Chevrolet will race a new model—the Camaro ZL1 1LE — in 2020.

“In the production side of our world, that’s our highest performing production car,” said Jim Campbell, U.S. vice president of performance and motorsports for Chevrolet. “Similar to the ZL1 (the current Chevrolet race car), but it has kind of higher performance elements to it from aero to chassis, and so we’ve incorporated those into the 2020 car …

“ … Listen, we’re a performance sport, so there’s no excuses here. We’ve got to do better. We expect to do better. If you look at the history of Chevrolet, 39 manufacturer’s championships, 31 driver’s (championships), but that’s all history. We’re interested in the next chapter, and that’s what we’re focused on.”

Campbell also pointed out that drivers in the next generation of Chevrolet stars are still learning the ropes in NASCAR’s premier series.

“If you look at the drivers, we’ve had some amazing young drivers that turned into winning drivers that turned into championship drivers that then retired, and so we have a younger crew,” Campbell said. “If you take Jimmie Johnson and Kurt Busch out of the average age, our average age is like 26 years old.

“So what’s exciting is at one point Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart and Dale Earnhardt Jr. were the young guys. We’ve got the young guys now. It’s an amazing thing to watch how they’re progressing. Some of the drivers have been to these tracks one, two, three times, four times. So every time they go, they’re learning a lot more.”

SUCCESS HAS BEEN THE HALLMARK OF TOYOTA’S BANNER 2019 SEASON

With 43 victories in NASCAR’s three major series—including a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series-best 18—Toyota Motorsports has certainly had a season for the ages. Toyota drivers qualified for all three championship races this weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway including three – Joe Gibbs Racing’s Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin – in Sunday’s Ford EcoBoost 400 season finale.

“Obviously this has been a fantastic season for us across all three series,” said Ed Laukes, Group Vice President of Marketing for Toyota Motor North America. “We’re really excited about, first of all, Christopher (Bell) running today, but this whole thing started in Daytona, as you all know.

“In the spirit of what happened at the Joe Gibbs organization, having J.D. [Gibbs] pass and then having the three Gibbs drivers win in Daytona really started off what we would say, was a magical season for us. And hopefully we’ll be able to finish it off next year.”

With Ford and Chevrolet motorsports executives sitting alongside him for their annual meeting with motorsports media on the eve of the Homestead-Miami season finale, Laukes praised his teams and talked about the group’s motivation going forward. There are only seven Toyota cars in Sunday’s race field – compared to 16 for Ford and 17 for Chevrolet. But the numbers are clearly in Toyota’s favor from the sheer number of race victories in 2019 to having three members of the Championship 4.

After snapping a 12-year Chevrolet win streak in 2016, Toyota wrapped up its third manufacturer title in the last four years with Hamlin’s victory at Phoenix’s ISM Raceway last week.

“In reflection, I started in this job in 2007 and we were looking through some of the statistics and in 2007, Chevy won 26 races and Rick Hendrick’s team won 18, so for us to even get to that point from 2007 to 2019, where we not only can match [the Cup win total] but potentially pass the pinnacle of Hall of Fame Rick Hendrick and the legacy that he has within NASCAR is really special.

“The manufacturer’s championship is obviously a piece of personal pride for us that we push all the time, so whether it’s in any one of the three series, it’s a big deal for us, so we’re pretty excited.

CUSTER IS EMBLEMATIC OF FORD’S DRIVER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

Cole Custer’s performance on the race track—specifically, seven victories this year in the NASCAR Xfinity Series—helped earn the 21-year-old from Ladera Ranch, California, a full-time ride in the NASCAR Cup Series with Stewart-Haas Racing next year.

But Custer also has been learning a great deal in an environment fans can’t see, as part of the driver development program conducted by Ford Performance.

“We have started putting a lot of focus on our driver development over the last several years,” said Mark Rushbrook, global director of Ford Performance Motorsports. “A lot of the things that we can bring to the party is simulator time, which gives them extra time not just to practice driving the car and getting familiar with different tracks but to also practice and be more effective at their communication or evaluation skills, what do they feel in the car, how do they communicate that back to the crew chief and then make changes.

“So you can go through all of that in the simulator to try to advance and prepare them.”

That sort of training already has added to Custer’s body of knowledge.

“Some of the other things that we’re doing over the last two years have been using our IMSA program with the Mustang GT4 cars to put our truck drivers and our Xfinity drivers into getting them more seat time, first of all, getting them more road course time and more data analysis, again, more feedback, more training, more communication, and specifically for Cole Custer, he’s been doing that for the last two years, as well. So that helps develop him as an individual.

“We’ve seen Cole … for a lot of reasons beyond those, Cole has matured and grown a lot over these last two years, and we’re excited to see him taking that step up to Cup next year.”

Posted on November 16, 2019November 16, 2019 by RJ Kraft

The Championship 4 will start in spots one through four for Sunday’s Ford EcoBoost 400 (3 p.m. ET, NBC/NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). The race will crown a champion in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. Which playoff drivers should you use? Do you garage a non-playoff driver since the Championship 4 won’t get stage points? How should you navigate the playoff game format? We’ve dissected the numbers to offer a suggested lineup worthy of your Fantasy Live consideration.

PLAY NOW: Set your lineup | How the game works | Tips to set your lineup

RJ Kraft’s Fantasy Live lineup for race day at Miami
Playoff driver 1: Martin Truex Jr.
Playoff driver 2: Denny Hamlin
Non-playoff driver 1: Brad Keselowski
Non-playoff driver 2: Kyle Larson
Garage: Kevin Harvick

RELATED: Odds for Miami | Lap averages | Weekend preview

Analysis: This one is a little tricky in that we have one practice to go off of. That said, the 19 car of Truex looks to be the class of the field in practice and is a must-start for me. In addition, day to night races are right in the wheelhouse of crew chief Cole Pearn. Hamlin has solid lap averages and a strong Miami history.

On the non-playoff side, I like the combination of Keselowski’s recent Miami results with five top-seven finishes in the last six races there. I’m also taking Larson because he is one of the best here and will be ripping the high line in no time.

The garage is a really interesting consideration. Do you go for a playoff play or a non-playoff play? I’m inclined to think this way: If I am trying to protect a lead, I’d like the playoff insurance. If I’m trying to gain ground, I’m inclined to go after more stage points with a non-playoff driver. With that said, I have been big on Kevin Harvick entering this weekend and while he wasn’t as strong as I expected in practice, I still think when the lights are bright the 4 will come to play. I am hesitant to go with Kyle Busch given the inconsistency he has had all postseason. If I went the non-playoff route, Ryan Blaney’s and William Byron’s lap averages are particularly intriguing.

For the bonus picks, I’m going with Hamlin in Stage 1 and then Truex the rest of the way for Stage 2 and the race win with Toyota as the manufacturer.

Each week in this space, we’ll also highlight two Props Challenge items for players.

MORE: Play the Props Challenge today

1. Will the Championship 4 all finish in the top seven: Yes or No? This has happened the last two years with all four Championship 4 drivers placing 1-4 in the 2018 title race and I believe it will happen again. The cream always seem to rise to the top, and I expect all four title contending drivers to be in the top seven at night’s end.

2. The race winner will lead O/U 70.5. The first three title races saw the winner and champion lead under this mark. The last two have seen the winner and champion go over that mark. Maybe its recency bias, but I like that trend especially since I expect Truex to get a Stage 2 win and win the race and that will likely see him lead a significant volume of laps.

Posted on November 16, 2019June 17, 2021 by Chase Wilhelm

HOMESTEAD, Fla. — Martin Truex Jr. and crew chief Cole Pearn have been a lethal combination since their first season together in 2015.

Following a championship-winning tenure with Furniture Row Racing, even a massive move from Colorado to North Carolina as they transitioned to Joe Gibbs Racing for the 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season didn’t stop them. The pair earned seven victories, including three in the playoffs leading up to Sunday’s Championship 4 finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway (3 p.m. ET on NBC/NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

So, what makes them such a dynamic duo?

“Between him (Truex) and Cole, I think they’ve got a great relationship going, and I think they’re awful good,” team owner Joe Gibbs said. “You can’t shake him up. … Some of them (drivers) get out of the car and you can read them, extremely upset, all the things ‑‑ that Martin, in our meetings, very calculated, smart.”

Gibbs feels the champion driver-crew chief pairing has been able to bring many positives to the table for the entire organization. The proof is in the pudding as they prepare to battle against Joe Gibbs Racing counterparts Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin, along with Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick, for a coveted second championship on Sunday night in South Florida.

Three JGR machines in the Championship 4 isn’t just happenstance. Gibbs insists hard work as one collective effort and the Truex-Pearn combination have played significant roles in the results.

“Having him come in with Cole has really meant a lot to our race team because what you’re trying to do during the week is solve problems,” Gibbs said. “Four teams work together.

“What I love about our sport, then you go to the racetrack and you’ve got four individual efforts going after it, and that’s hard to do, put all that together,” he added. “But I think they’ve been a big part of what’s happened this year, and they’ve added a lot.”

After the Busch Pole qualifying session on Saturday was canceled in lieu of a 50-minute practice session due to Friday’s heavy rain, Truex is set to take off from the third starting position on Sunday afternoon, directly behind Hamlin on the pole, while Busch flanks him in fourth.

While finding the front won’t be an issue since they start there, it’s staying there throughout the entire 267-lap title bout at the 1.5-mile oval that’s the tall task. But Truex and Pearn have proven time and time again they are the best when it comes to races that experience transitions from daytime to nighttime.

A pair of Coca-Cola 600 victories, a Southern 500 win and their 2017 championship victory in Miami are proof.

Truex agrees it has always been a strength for Pearn and him.

“I think it’s because we plan ahead, go off past history, have a good understanding of that, and confidence in our decisions,” Truex said. “We can live with ourselves if we’re off a little bit maybe in the daytime, kind of understanding what it’s going to do. It’s hard to do that, say we’re going to be off a little bit, but how much? Cole does a good job of being confident in himself. I follow suit.”

It’s that impeccable confidence they have in each other that will make them extremely tough to beat. What’s even scarier is Truex’s relaxed approach as he looks to elevate his legacy in the sport.

“… It’s still a race,” Truex said. “Just like last week was a race. You want to be the best. Everybody wants to win.”

While JGR has used synergy to achieve their success this season, don’t think Truex and Pearn will shy away from taking their own path in order to steal the glory from their teammates.

“Yeah, we build cars together, we go through the week and crew chief and engineer say, I want to go down this road. The other one says, I want to go here,” Truex said. “You end up at different places. Your decisions throughout the weekend take you different places. That’s all open information. It’s going to continue to be that way.”