Posted on by Terrin Waack

BRISTOL, Tenn. — Though there are no irons in the fire right now, Matt DiBenedetto is ready to strike as soon as they’re hot. A team owner needs to show interest in order for that to happen. His future in racing depends on it.

News broke Thursday that DiBenedetto will not be returning to Leavine Family Racing next season.

“I don’t want to retire yet,” DiBenedetto said Friday at Bristol Motor Speedway. “I’m only 28 years old, just getting started. I want to win in the Cup Series. That’s my goal. I’m here to keep climbing the ladder, not go backward.”

RELATED: Erik Jones’ ‘close’ contract | Christopher Bell’s 2020 plans

DiBenedetto has been a full-time fixture in the Monster Energy Series for five seasons now. This was his first in LFR’s No. 95 Toyota, though. He used to race for BK Racing (2015-16) and Go Fas Racing (2017-18).

Next year is now up in the air, yet one thing is for sure: Cup is the only option.

“I want to win in Cup, so whatever gets me there,” DiBenedetto said. “… I’m not just going to be like, ‘Oh, this is a job and this will pay the bills. I’d rather live in a box knowing I put it all out there versus just taking a job.”

Through 163 starts in the premier ranks, DiBenedetto has notched two top-five finishes and eight top-10 showings. Both of the top-fivers and half of the top-10s were both this season.

DiBenedetto should start Saturday’s Bristol Night Race (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN/NBC Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) seventh, clocking a qualifying lap of 14.937 seconds (128.46 mph) around the .533-mile track. He had the fastest time in Friday’s second practice and fourth-best in the first.

RELATED: Complete Bristol schedule | Unofficial Bristol lineup

Overall, DiBenedetto is currently ranked 23rd in the championship standings with 397 points (leader Kyle Busch has 892; cutline Clint Bowyer has 559) with three regular-season races left until the 16-driver playoff field is set.

“Matt, in my opinion, has been doing an incredible job and he deserves to keep that ride,” Stewart-Hass Racing’s Daniel Suarez said. “I was very surprised to see that. If he wasn’t performing, well, he didn’t perform, right? I think he’s doing a better job than what people were expecting and what the team was expecting. So, it’s a little bit disappointing to see a good driver and a good guy to have something like that.

“All I can do is wish him the best, and hopefully he can find somewhere that actually trusts in him and trusts in him for real, not just for a year.”

RELATED: DiBenedetto’s driver page | Shop DiBenedetto gear

Similar sentiments run strong throughout the field — competition or not.

“I can’t imagine what he’s going through and his thought process,” Joe Gibbs Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. said. “It’s difficult. Tough time in the sport, it just is. I feel for him. He’s a good guy. He’s done an awesome job in that car, and hopefully he’ll get a good opportunity somewhere.”

The support has not only helped DiBenedetto personally get through this tough time with his head held high, it has also helped him reassure his wife. He said she has been a “big ball of tears.” Messages from fellow drivers and other owners, though, are visible proof DiBenedetto has been doing something right this season.

Hopes are it’s only a matter of time before any new opportunity arises.

“She knows, I think in her heart, my whole life I’ve always prevailed,” DiBenedetto said. “I’ve always pulled something out and kept on opening better doors. It’s all happened for a reason, so I think she knows that.

“But, of course, you wouldn’t be human if you weren’t worried.”

Posted on by Reid Spencer

BRISTOL, Tenn. – Denny Hamlin and Kyle Larson played a late game of King of the Mountain in Friday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series time trials at Bristol Motor Speedway.

After 38 drivers made qualifying runs, it was Hamlin who was left at the top of the peak.

RELATED: Unofficial qualifying results

Larson was the 34th driver to take to the track, and his impressive lap at 129.004 mph (14.874 seconds) put him on the provisional pole for Saturday’s Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race (7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Larson’s stay on the pinnacle, however, lasted less than a minute, as Hamlin followed with a lap at 129.330 mph (14.848 seconds) to secure his first Busch Pole Award of the season, his fourth at the .533-mile high-banked concrete short track and the 31st of his career.

Strapped in his car as he readied for his run, Hamlin was unaware that Larson had jumped to the top of the speed chart. Even when he came to the media center for his post-qualifying interview, Hamlin thought he had beaten Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Martin Truex Jr. to earn the first pole position of the season for Toyota.

“It was Larson?” Hamlin asked. “I was wondering why he was giving me the finger when he went by. I thought it was Martin — even better.”

Based on practice, though, Hamlin was confident he could make a run at the top starting position.

“I was confident, as long as the crew chief (Chris Gabehart) did his job, and I did my job, we definitely had a chance,” Hamlin said. “I’m proud of this whole team for giving me such a great car. The guys are on it right now — it’s just unbelievable what they’re doing with these race cars.

“I’m just trying to learn every week, doing everything I can to get better, and the results are showing it.”

Hamlin has three victories this season, his most since an equal number in 2016, and he comes to Bristol riding a wave of five straight top fives and four straight top-three finishes, including a win at Pocono.

Larson, on the other hand, hopes to break a winless streak of 69 races, dating to Sept. 9, 2017 at Richmond.

“I was just a little bit too tight to kind of roll through the center like I needed to and get to the gas just a little bit sooner,” Larson said of his qualifying run. “But, overall, I’m happy with how we qualified and the grip I had in my car. In practice, I was really loose. So hopefully we’ll have a good race tomorrow and try and get my first Bristol Cup win.”

Bristol is one of Larson’s favorite tracks, and he believes that the top groove will open up during the course of Saturday’s race, whereas the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Trucks on Thursday night seemed dedicated to the lower lanes.

“We got up there enough in practice, and honestly, it felt so far the same (as in previous races),” Larson said. “But you never know how it’s going to lay rubber down up there and things like that.”

Truex (128.995 mph) will start third, followed by Kurt Busch (128.813 mph). Aric Almirola claimed the fifth spot on the grid in the fastest Ford at 128.770 mph.

Among the four drivers fighting most closely for the final two spots in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, Ryan Newman will start 14th, Daniel Suarez 18th, Clint Bowyer 20th and Jimmie Johnson 30th. Newman and Bowyer currently occupy the last two provisional playoff berths, with Suarez six points behind Bowyer in 16th and Johnson 12 points in arrears.

Posted on by Holly Cain

If positive energy and the right mindset alone were enough to land Clint Bowyer in the 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, then the Stewart-Haas Racing driver would be leading the championship charge.

The good vibes will be helpful, however, as Bowyer has three regular-season races remaining to hold on to a playoff position. His positive mindset was on full display Friday following opening practice at Bristol Motor Speedway, where the series races Saturday (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). He was playfully trading barbs with reporters, pointing to nostalgic posters on the wall and full of the kind of enthusiasm he will need as the regular season closes out.

RELATED: Driver standings | Bowyer driver page

Bowyer, who was ranked as high as ninth place in the season standings following an early May race in his native Kansas, has been plagued by both bad luck and inconsistency in the weeks since.

He’s had only one top 10 in the last nine races and is coming off a 37th-place finish at Michigan in his No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford.

However, and that’s however with a capital H, despite the tough summer months, Bowyer is ranked 16th in the standings — six points up on 17th-place Daniel Suarez and 12 points up on 18th-place Jimmie Johnson. He trails 15th-place Ryan Newman by 10.

The top 16 in the driver standings following the Sept. 8 regular-season finale at Indianapolis Motor Speedway will advance to the 10-race playoffs that begin Sept. 15 at Las Vegas.

“Every time I get that feeling, ‘You’re in a good place, just ride right here,’ something happens,” Bowyer said. “A flat tire in Watkins (Glen) leading up to last weekend. Things were going good and we were gonna put probably a 30-pad on what we needed to. I mean, literally just trying to get to the end of the thing and survive, and couldn’t. So snake-bit, I’m definitely feeling that.’’

If a fond feeling for a venue can make even a subtle difference, then Bowyer should feel good about his chances at Bristol. He has never won a Cup race on the famous half-mile high-banks, but was runner-up in 2017. He led 120 laps and finished sixth in this night race last year and led 24 laps and finished seventh in the Bristol spring race earlier this season.

Beyond his performance at Bristol — 14 top 10s and seven top-five finishes in 27 starts — Bowyer just likes the facility and the atmosphere.

“Anybody that hates this place shouldn’t be in racing because this is the mecca of all race tracks,’’ Bowyer said. “This is the granddaddy of them all. There’s no question.

“A fan, if they want to be a fan of this sport, they need to learn short-track racing and they need to learn of Bristol Motor Speedway,’’ Bowyer continued. “There’s not a fan, a family member, a friend, anybody that I know that I wouldn’t point in the direction of Bristol Motor Speedway, so as a racer on the track, it’s no different.’’

And for the challenges of what is unfailingly a busy, action-packed night of racing, Bowyer says that’s exactly the draw for him. Bristol provides the sort of “old-school, hard-knocks” competition that attracted him to stock car racing.

“Just the unknown, being able to go for it, being able to not worry about an aero push or horsepower deficit or whatever the case may be — get ahold of the steering wheel, get ahold of the gas pedal and make something happen and this is a track where you can do that.”

MORE: Best lap averages at Bristol

Posted on by Staff Report

BRISTOL, Tenn. — NASCAR officials announced Friday that the Richard Childress Racing No. 2 Chevrolet driven by Xfinity Series points leader Tyler Reddick was handed an L1-level penalty after failing pre-race inspection four times at Bristol Motor Speedway.

The inspection issues mean that the RCR No. 2 will not be allowed to qualify and will start at the rear of the field for Friday night’s Food City 300 (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, PRN, SiriusXM). Additionally, Reddick will serve a pass-through penalty with a trip down pit road after the green flag.

RELATED: Bristol weekend schedule

NASCAR officials also ejected No. 2 car chief Cam Strader for the remainder of the weekend and tacked on 10-point deductions in both the drivers standings and team owner standings.

Reddick, the series’ defending champion, has three Xfinity Series wins this season. He rides a streak of five consecutive top-five finishes heading into Friday night’s 300-lap event.

Posted on by Terrin Waack

BRISTOL, Tenn. — Family finished first in this race.

David Ragan is retiring as a full-time NASCAR driver after this season to spend more time at home. The 33-year-old who has been in the sport since the age of 18 and his wife, Jacquelyn, have two daughters he wants to be around more. Julia is the eldest at 5; Meredith is 3.

“One of the things that was kind of a catalyst to this decision was they have some interest in different things they haven’t been able to do because of my schedule,” Ragan said Friday at Bristol Motor Speedway. “They can’t go and do extra gymnastics on the weekends or go to swim lessons because I’m leaving to go to the track or I’ve got a commitment somewhere. … I think it’s an important time in their years as they’re developing and growing older – learning the difference between right and wrong – that I’m there to show them, teach them and love them.”

RELATED: Ragan to retire after 2019 | Ragan through the years

Currently in the middle of his third consecutive year driving the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford, Ragan is ranked 30th in the Monster Energy Series champion standings with 256 points – for perspective, leader Kyle Busch has 892 – and his place in the standings did play a minor part in his Wednesday announcement that he will retire, he said. His last win was in 2013, and he has two Cup victories and 15 top fives since he began competing in the series full time in 2007. The highest he has ever finished in the standings is 13th in 2008.

The season isn’t over, though. There are three races, starting with Saturday’s Bristol Night Race (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN/NBC Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), until the NASCAR Playoffs begin. Ragan’s hope is to right the ship and have a sold, final run with his team.

“We admire David for making what I’m sure was a very difficult decision,” Front Row Motorsports team owner Bob Jenkins said of Ragan’s retirement in a statement. “We also commend him for his reason. David has always put family first, and as a father, I understand what it’s like to not be at that game or big event for your child.”

When Ragan looks back on his career, sure, he’d like to have won a title. But he’s not willing to stick around and see if that’ll eventually happen. The sacrifice is too large.

“I think, first off, we should be remembered for who we are, not the accomplishments that we had, the trophies that we had and the amount of zeros in our bank account,” Ragan said. “Those are material things that come and go. When I’m dead in the ground down the road, that stuff doesn’t make any difference. It’s the impact you have on others and what you do for your family, for others that you care about. So, I hope (people) remember me as a good guy, a guy who loves the Lord, loves my family and loves racing. That’s who I am.”

RELATED: Full Bristol schedule | Ragan’s driver page

There are specific events – the Rolex 24 at Daytona International Speedway and the Eldora Dirty Derby at Eldora Speedway – Ragan would love to participate in now that he’ll have a rather open schedule. Short tracks and late models are also on his radar. He could even break out his Legends car again.

Future plans include an increased involvement with Shriners Hospitals for Children, a sponsor he has a strong relationship with outside of work, too.

Then his TV deal with FOX as an analyst on RaceHub will be further discussed.

Long story short: Ragan will be around the racing world, still. Just not as much. Other responsibilities will take precedence.

“Gymnastics and swimming coach,” he said. “We’ll see how that goes. That’s a real-life stress.”

Posted on by Team Release

HARRISBURG, N.C. (AUGUST 16, 2019) – For Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Rookie of the Year contender Ryan Preece, his first Darlington Raceway throwback weekend means more than a new paint scheme. Preece and the No. 47 Kroger team will tribute Ron Bouchard, who not only raced the No. 47 in the NASCAR Cup Series from 1981-1987, but also raced for Bob Judkins, Preece’s grandfather who passed in October 2018.

The No. 47 Kroger Camaro ZL1 resembles the No. 47 Majik Market/Hawaiian Punch car, driven by Bouchard at Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway in 1984. Preece and Bouchard both began their racing careers at their roots in the Northeast, racing short tracks locally in the Modified Series. Bouchard, a native of Fitchburg, Massachusetts, won track championships at Stafford Motor Speedway, Thompson Speedway and Seekonk Speedway racing for Judkins before moving up to what was then known as NASCAR’s Grand National Division in 1981.

Ryan Preece Darlington Unveil Main

“This paint scheme means more to me than just running a throwback,” Preece said. “We lost my grandfather in October, and this is the perfect way to honor someone that meant so much to me in my racing career. Not only in the Modified Series but persuading me to continue fighting for my dream of racing in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. I couldn’t think of a more perfect way to run my first Cup race at Darlington Raceway, and I’m so grateful to Kroger for allowing us to race a paint scheme that Ron raced during his NASCAR tenure.”

PHOTOS: Every Darlington throwback scheme

Judkins, a legendary team owner in the Modified racing world, passed on Oct. 25, 2018. Judkins began building Modified cars in the 1960s, fielding cars for a multitude of top drivers including Ed Flemke Sr., Bugsy Stevens, Ron Bouchard, Brett Bodine and Jerry Marquis. Judkins was also the driving force behind what became known in Modified racing in the early 1970s as the “Pinto Revolution.”

In addition to running the same number, running in the Modified Series in the Northeast and Bouchard racing for Judkins, Bouchard and Preece have one final thing in common. Bouchard won Rookie of the Year in 1981 driving the No. 47 despite running only 22 races. Preece is in the hunt for the Rookie of the Year battle in his first season driving the No. 47 Kroger Camaro ZL1.

Bouchard began his career as a standout Modified driver, but pulled off one of NASCAR’s most stunning victories when he shot from third to first on the final lap at Talladega Superspeedway (then known as Alabama International Motor Speedway), passing Darrell Waltrip and Terry Labonte to score his lone premier series victory coming in just his 11th start during his rookie season.

The Bojangles’ Southern 500 from Darlington Raceway waves the green flag on Sunday, Sept. 1 at 6 pm ET broadcast on NBCSN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Posted on by Staff Report

Matt DiBenedetto continued to exhibit speed as his No. 95 Leavine Family Racing Toyota led final Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice at Bristol Motor Speedway on Friday after turning a fast lap of 128.848 mph.

DiBenedetto also was fourth-fastest in first practice at the .533-mile track just a couple hours earlier.

RELATED: Final practice results

Ryan Blaney recorded the second-fastest practice lap of 128.245 mph before he said he lost power steering in his No. 12 Team Penske Ford about eight minutes ahead of when practice was scheduled to end. Smoke billowed from the back of the No. 12, and his team evaluated the car afterward to determine its viability for qualifying.

Blaney, meanwhile, exited his car gingerly, holding his right shoulder — but said it was not a significant injury.

“When it (power steering) blows out like that, it was an instant snap,” Blaney told NBCSN. “Not sure what I did to my shoulder, but I just needed a second. Good thing we didn’t hit the wall or anything. … Luckily it happened now and not in the middle of the race.”

NASCAR added 12 minutes to what was a scheduled 50-minute practice session after a lengthy cleanup was needed from the No. 12’s power steering loss.

Aric Almirola in the No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford was third at 128.228 mph. Chase Elliott in the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet (128.219 mph) and Alex Bowman in the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet (128.168 mph) completed the top five.

Matt Tifft had vertigo symptoms after first practice at the .533-mile track, and visited the infield care center. Chase Briscoe drove the No. 36 Front Row Motorsports Ford in final practice, and Tifft will be evaluated before qualifying.

Monster Energy Series Busch Pole Qualifying is scheduled to begin at 5:35 p.m. ET (NBCSN/NBC Sports App).

FIRST PRACTICE

Denny Hamlin topped the leaderboard in the first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice Friday, recording a fast lap of 128.606 mph in his No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Hamlin, who has finished in the top five in each of the last five Monster Energy Series races, led three Joe Gibbs Racing cars in the top five in the 50-minute practice session in preparation for Saturday’s Bristol Night Race (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN/NBC Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

RELATED: First practice results

Erik Jones, who led both Xfinity Series practice sessions Thursday, was second-fastest in the No. 20 JGR Toyota (128.151 mph), while teammate Kyle Busch, an eight-time winner at Bristol, was fifth-fastest in the No. 18 Toyota (127.597 mph).

Joey Logano was the lone Ford in the top five, recording a lap of 127.852 mph in the No. 22 Team Penske car for the third spot on the leaderboard. Matt DiBenedetto was fourth in the No. 95 Leavine Family Racing Toyota (127.648 mph).

 

Posted on by Staff Report

Matt DiBenedetto revealed Thursday on social media that he will not return to Leavine Family Racing for the 2020 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season.

This is DiBenedetto’s fifth full-time season in the Monster Energy Series, but his first with LFR. The Grass Valley, California, native had 163 Monster Energy Series starts at the time of his announcement.

Four of DiBenedetto’s eight career top-10 finishes have come this season with LFR, including his only two top-five finishes in NASCAR’s premier series. The top fives came at Sonoma Raceway and New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Plus, he finished sixth at Watkins Glen International earlier this month.

Leavine Family Racing is affiliated with Joe Gibbs Racing, an alliance that began this season with LFR switching manufacturers to Toyota.

JAYSKI: Bell moving to No. 95?

Posted on by George Winkler

Goodyear has been working with NASCAR on plans to introduce a new tire in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series in 2021. Instead of the 15-inch tires currently used, the targeted size of the new tire is 18 inches and the change would coincide with the introduction of the Generation-7 vehicle.

The impetus behind the change, according to Goodyear’s Director or Racing Greg Stucker, is to help make the cars look more like the ones a customer would drive off the showroom floor.

RELATED: Bristol 101, tires, TV info, more

“There are not a lot of vehicles out there that run 15-inch wheels,” Stucker said. “Everything is from 17 (inches) on up, so that’s really the driving factor to try to make it a bit more relevant to what’s on the street today.”

As far as how the tires will perform in competition, Stucker says it’s too early to tell. Until track tests can be run with the Generation-7 vehicle and the new tires, he said it’s hard to say what the overall performance implications will be — plus the project is in the early stages.

Goodyear and NASCAR are currently looking at a possible timeline for when those tests will take place, but Stucker said nothing has been nailed down yet.

“NASCAR is the driver behind the new Gen-7,” Stucker said. “That was one of the goals to update the tire and wheel package and that’s what we’re working through now to plan exactly where we’re going to be.”

For now, Stucker said the goal is to outfit the Monster Energy Series cars with the new tires, and no plans are being made yet for NASCAR’s other national series.