Chase Elliott finishes 13th at Richmond Raceway

Posted on September 23, 2019 by Data Skrive

Chase Elliott finished 13th in the Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond Raceway, adding 31 points to his season total.

Elliott now sits at No. 7 in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series playoff standings with 2088 points. He’s posted nine top-five finishes in 2019.

Martin Truex Jr. took the checkered flag in the race, with Kyle Busch finishing second, and Denny Hamlin placing third. Brad Keselowski took fourth place, followed by Ryan Newman to round out the top five.

Truex came away victorious in Stage 1, and Busch took Stage 2.

Elliott qualified in third position at 126.174 mph. The fifth-year driver has earned five career victories, 42 top-five finishes and has placed in the top 10 in 71 races.

Elliott battled 37 other cars in the field and the race saw five cautions and 32 caution laps. There were six lead changes before the checkered flag.

With Truex finishing out front in Joe Gibbs Racing’s Camry, Toyota added 40 points to its season totals. Overall, Toyota ranks No. 1 with 1028 points, followed by Ford in the No. 2 spot with 991. Chevrolet sits at No. 3 with 947 points on the season.

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Posted on September 23, 2019 by Data Skrive

Joey Logano placed 11th in the Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond Raceway, adding 26 points to his season total.

Logano now sits at No. 6 in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series playoff standings with 2101 points. He’s posted 10 top-five finishes in 2019.

Martin Truex Jr. took the checkered flag in the race, with Kyle Busch finishing second, and Denny Hamlin crossing the finish line third. Brad Keselowski took fourth place, followed by Ryan Newman to round out the top five.

Truex came away victorious in Stage 1, and Busch took Stage 2.

Logano qualified in 28th position at 123.310 mph. The 12th-year driver has tallied 23 career victories, 114 top-five finishes and has placed in the top 10 in 195 races.

There were 38 cars in the field, and the race endured five cautions and 32 caution laps. Prior to the checkered flag there were six lead changes.

With Truex driving to victory in Joe Gibbs Racing’s Camry, Toyota added 40 points to its season totals. Overall, Toyota ranks No. 1 with 1028 points, followed by Ford in the No. 2 spot with 991. Chevrolet sits at No. 3 with 947 points on the season.

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Posted on September 23, 2019 by Data Skrive

Kevin Harvick finished seventh in the Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond Raceway, adding 41 points to his season total.

Harvick now sits at No. 2 in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series playoff standings with 2120 points. He’s posted 10 top-five finishes in 2019.

Martin Truex Jr. came away with the victory in the race, with Kyle Busch taking second, and Denny Hamlin placing third. Brad Keselowski took fourth place, followed by Ryan Newman in the No. 5 spot.

Truex came away victorious in Stage 1, and Busch took Stage 2.

Harvick qualified in second position at 126.559 mph. The 19th-year driver has piled up 48 career victories, 201 top-five finishes and has placed in the top 10 in 355 races.

There were 38 cars in the field, and the race endured five cautions and 32 caution laps. Prior to the checkered flag there were six lead changes.

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Posted on September 23, 2019 by Data Skrive

Kyle Larson placed sixth in the Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond Raceway, adding 32 points to his season total.

Larson now sits at No. 8 in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series playoff standings with 2076 points. He’s collected six top-five finishes in 2019.

Martin Truex Jr. earned the checkered flag in the race, with Kyle Busch taking second, and Denny Hamlin placing third. Brad Keselowski brought home fourth place, followed by Ryan Newman in the No. 5 spot.

Truex came away victorious in Stage 1, and Busch took Stage 2.

Larson qualified in 13th position at 124.971 mph. The seventh-year driver has tallied five career victories, 53 top-five finishes and has placed in the top 10 in 95 races.

There were 38 cars in the field, and the race endured five cautions and 32 caution laps. Prior to the checkered flag there were six lead changes.

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Posted on September 23, 2019 by Data Skrive

Brad Keselowski placed fourth in the Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond Raceway, adding 48 points to his season total.

Keselowski now sits at No. 4 in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series playoff standings with 2106 points. He’s posted 11 top-five finishes in 2019.

Martin Truex Jr took the checkered flag in the race, with Kyle Busch finishing second, and Denny Hamlin placing third. Ryan Newman followed in fifth.

Truex came away victorious in Stage 1, and Busch took Stage 2.

Keselowski qualified in the pole position at 127.185 mph. The 12th-year driver has tallied 30 career victories, 113 top-five finishes and has placed in the top 10 in 183 races.

Keselowski battled 37 other cars in the field and the race endured five cautions and 32 caution laps. There were six lead changes before the checkered flag.

Brad Keselowski Driver Page | Get Brad Keselowski Gear | Race Center

Posted on September 23, 2019 by Data Skrive

Denny Hamlin finished third in the Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond Raceway, adding 49 points to his season total.

Hamlin now sits at No. 5 in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series playoff standings with 2105 points. He’s collected 14 top-five finishes in 2019.

Martin Truex Jr secured the win in the race, with Kyle Busch taking second. Brad Keselowski brought home fourth place, followed by Ryan Newman to round out the top five.

Truex came away victorious in Stage 1, and Busch took Stage 2.

Hamlin qualified in sixth position at 125.921 mph. The 15th-year driver has collected 35 career victories, 156 top-five finishes and has placed in the top 10 in 253 races.

There were 38 cars in the field, and the race endured five cautions and 32 caution laps. Prior to the checkered flag there were six lead changes.

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Posted on September 23, 2019 by Staff Report

During a visit to NASCAR headquarters in Charlotte, North Carolina, Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs driver William Byron spent some time on NASCAR Reddit for an AMA session.

Byron currently sits 12th in the postseason points standings heading into Sunday’s Round of 16 finale at the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course (2:30 p.m. ET on NBC/NBC Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), just two points ahead of Hendrick Motorsports teammate Alex Bowman on the cutline.

But before he hits the track to keep his championship hopes alive, the No. 24 driver answered a variety of questions. From taco toppings to his thoughts on crew chief Chad Knaus, here are a few of our favorites.

What does Byron’s perfect taco look like?

Speaking of food … what does Byron like to eat before and after a grueling race?

Starstruck by team owner Rick Hendrick?

Thoughts on working with seven-time championship crew chief Chad Knaus?

And finally … 🤢?

Posted on September 23, 2019September 24, 2019 by Zack Albert

RICHMOND, Va. — These are not the close bonds that teammates would hope to have.

Hendrick Motorsports teammates Alex Bowman and William Byron placed a close 23rd and 24th, respectively, in the Federated Auto Parts 400, both four laps down after disheartening runs Saturday night at Richmond Raceway. The result also made them tightly connected on the Monster Energy Series Playoffs cut-off line — Byron two points to the good; Bowman two points in arrears with one race left in the postseason’s opening round.

RELATED: Full race results

Neither driver quite had the proper pace to recover from first-half trouble. Byron’s finish matched his worst of the season; Bowman hadn’t been that far back on the results sheet since Phoenix in March. To compound the day, Bowman’s issues came with a side dish of drama after a tit-for-tat battle of bumpers with fellow Chevrolet driver Austin Dillon.

“He just races dumb, but it’s Richmond. It’s hard to race not dumb here sometimes,” Bowman said. “I don’t know. He drove me all the way to the inside wall on the restart and then drove off into (turn) three and just cleaned us out, so frustrating, but that’s short-track racing and you’ll have it.”

They did, with a little extra edge. Bowman and Dillon raced hard shortly after the restart to begin Stage 2, with Byron also catching some of the contact in a Turn 1 battle. Dillon, taking offense to the two cars touching, returned the favor with gusto in Turn 3, sending Bowman’s No. 88 Chevrolet sideways.

Dillon quickly vacated the .75-mile track post-race, but crew chief Danny Stockman Jr. said that team owner Richard Childress had recently urged his driver and grandson to take no guff.

“I don’t know where he was going on that restart and he chopped us, got in our left-rear and caught our left-rear tire there,” Stockman told NASCAR.com. “To be quite honest, I know RC’s been getting on Austin about retaliating with these guys. He ain’t gonna get pushed around. It’s as simple as it was way too early in the race to try to be chopping us in the left-rear and we should’ve wrecked. We just can’t be dealing with that stuff.”

Both Hendrick drivers continued, but neither was able to keep pace with the four-car armada of Joe Gibbs Racing, which led laps at a dominant clip. By the time the second stage ended at the halfway mark, Bowman and Byron were both two laps down.

“We were really off,” Byron said. “I don’t know. It seemed like it would hold on OK for the first 40 laps of a run and then I was just sideways all around the track, turning to the right.”

The Hendrick duo will need a turnaround in their back yard for next weekend’s Round of 16 finale at the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course/oval combo. But under the post-race glare of bringing up the caboose among playoff drivers under Saturday night’s lights, the Richmond moment still stung.

“We really did it to ourselves,” Bowman said. “Just really bad since we unloaded and never got a handle on it. It’s not for a lack of effort. All the guys worked really hard and we came here wanting to have a race car that turned really well all day and we got that. Just had no drive from the time we unloaded to the checkered flag there, so it’s really frustrating. Just a crappy day, didn’t execute well to top it off, but we’ll go to the Roval and our road-course cars are really good. We were good there last year. Hopefully, we’ll be alright.”

Posted on September 23, 2019 by Terrin Waack

Martin Truex Jr. went back-to-back for the first time in his career this season, first winning at Las Vegas Motor Speedway two weeks ago and then again at Richmond Raceway last weekend. Those trips to Victory Lane also just happened to come in the first two postseason races. What a way to start the 2019 NASCAR playoffs.

RELATED: Las Vegas results | Richmond results

At Las Vegas, Truex led 32 of the 267 laps. Then, at Richmond, he was out front for 109 of the 400 laps – and overcame a late spin to still win. The wins marked his second at both tracks in 16 years of racing in the Monster Energy Series.

Through 28 starts in 2019, Truex has notched six victories, 12 top fives and 17 top 10s, giving him an average finish of 10.5. He’s currently on top of the standings with 2,141 points and a 21-point cushion over second-ranked Kevin Harvick.

The Round of 16 will conclude Sunday with the Bank of America ROVAL 400 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course (2:30 p.m. ET, NBC/NBC Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), and there are 9 spots available in the Round of 12 with Truex and his ‘Big 3’ counterparts Kyle Busch and Harvick locked in.

Only three other drivers have won the first two postseason races since the playoff format was implemented in 2004: Greg Biffle, Tony Stewart and Matt Kenseth. One of them went on to win another playoff race and ultimately score the championship title. The others peaked early and ended up falling short by the finale.

———

Greg Biffle, 2008

Biffle’s wins at New Hampshire Motor Speedway (Sept. 19, 2008) and Dover International Speedway (Sept. 25, 2008) to open the 2008 NASCAR Playoffs were his only victories that season. None before. None after.

At New Hampshire, Biffle led 58 of the 300 laps. Then, at Dover, Biffle was out front for 29 of the 400 laps. The wins marked his first at New Hampshire and second at Dover in 15 years of racing in the Monster Energy Series.

Through his 36 starts in 2008, Biffle had 12 top fives and 17 top 10s, good for an average 12.9 finish. He ultimately closed out the season ranked third, 276 points behind champion Jimmie Johnson.

———

Tony Stewart, 2011

Stewart’s wins at Chicagoland Speedway (Sept. 19, 2011) and New Hampshire (Sept. 25, 2011) were just the start of a strong 2011 NASCAR Playoffs run. En route to his third and final championship, Stewart won three more postseason races (Martinsville Speedway, Texas Motor Speedway and Homestead-Miami Speedway). Those were all his victories that season.

At Chicagoland, Stewart led 35 of the 267 laps. Then, at New Hampshire, Stewart was out front for just two of the 300 laps. The wins marked his third at both tracks in 18 years of racing in the Monster Energy Series.

Through his 36 starts in 2011, Stewart had nine top fives and 19 top 10s, resulting in an average finish of 12.0. He won the championships, thanks to the Miami victory, but actually ended up tied with second-place Carl Edwards at 2,403 points when all was said and done.

———

Matt Kenseth, 2013

Kenseth’s wins at Chicagoland (Sept. 15, 2013) and New Hampshire (Sept. 22, 2013) were his only during the 2013 NASCAR playoffs but sixth and seventh overall that season. Though he didn’t claim the championship, Kenseth did have the most victories that season. The next best was six total.

At Chicagoland, Kenseth led 89 of the 267 laps. Then, at New Hampshire, he was out front for 106 of the 300 laps. The wins marked his first at Chicagoland and first of three at New Hampshire in 21 years of racing in the Monster Energy Series.

Through his 36 starts in 2013, Kenseth had 12 top fives and 20 top 10s, bringing him to an average 12.1 finish. He ultimately ended the season in second, 19 points behind Johnson in first.

Posted on September 23, 2019September 24, 2019 by Staff Report

The No. 20 of Erik Jones failed post-race inspection at Richmond Raceway. Jones had finished fourth in Saturday’s Federated Auto Parts 400, the second race in the 2019 NASCAR Playoffs’ Round of 16, but the disqualification bumped him to last-place 38th.

The Joe Gibbs Racing driver’s Toyota will go back to the NASCAR Research & Development Center in Concord, North Carolina.

RELATED: Richmond results | Race recap

Team Penske’s Brad Keselowski, who was fifth, is now credited with the fourth-place finish.

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series director Jay Fabian said the No. 20 entry failed its pass through the Optical Scanning Station and the issue dealt with the car’s rear-wheel alignment. He indicated inspectors did not find a part designed to fail to gain an advantage during the race.

“At the end of the day, the result is the same — it failed,” Fabian said.

Jones receives just one point rather than the 42 he would have earned had he passed inspection and is now 45 points under the playoff cutline with one race left (Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval) before four drivers are cut from the postseason field.

This means, instead of claiming the top four spots in the race, Joe Gibbs Racing holds just the top three spots at Richmond: Martin Truex Jr. won, Kyle Busch finished second and Denny Hamlin came in third. Jimmy Makar, Senior Vice President of Racing Operations at Joe Gibbs Racing, told reporters the organization did not have immediate plans to appeal the penalty.

The disqualification is the first in NASCAR’s top series since tougher post-race penalties and a new, expedited inspection process were installed this season. Four Xfinity Series teams have been disqualified this year, and one Gander Trucks team has been sent to the end of the finishing order.

“We’ve set the standard early in the year in what we expect, and teams have done a good job reacting to that,” Fabian said when asked if he was surprised the series’ first disqualification came in its 28th race of the year. “I think obviously as the pressure mounts and the season goes on, it doesn’t surprise me to see them pushing a little further and trying to get a little more out of their stuff, and like I say, sometimes it just crosses that line a little bit, and that’s all you need to fail.”