Posted on by Staff Report

The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series are off to Kansas Speedway this weekend, their first visit to the 1.5-mile track this season, site of Saturday night’s Digital Ally 400.

Here are all the things you need to know for Saturday’s event under the lights.

RELATED: Full Kansas schedule | Who’s the favorite?

TRACK DETAILS

Kansas Speedway is a 1.5-mile tri-oval with 17-20 degrees of variable banking in the turns, 9-11 degrees of variable banking on the frontstretch and 5 degrees of banking on the backstretch. The track has an asphalt surface.

The track held its inaugural Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race on Sept. 30, 2001 where NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon took the checkered flag.

Since then, there have been 15 different race winners in 26 held at the Kansas track. Speeding has been an issue since 2016 at the track, totaling 36 penalties in the last six races.

With another night race ahead of us, five drivers have 15 or more top-five finishes in night races since 2015. Kevin Harvick has 20, Joey Logano has 19, Denny Hamlin has 17, Kyle Busch has 16 and Martin Truex Jr. has 15.

HORSEPOWER, AERO DUCTS, GOODYEAR TIRES
Teams will use the 2019 rules package with a target horsepower of 550 and aero ducts as part of the aerodynamic devices.

The return of single-car qualifying began last weekend at Dover International Speedway for all three national series, including the Xfinity Series and Gander Outdoors Truck Series. The rules change was announced last week, ending a run of five-plus years for multi-car, multiple-round qualifying for all three circuits.

RELATED: Single-car qualifying at all oval tracks

The track surface at Kansas has weathered over the years, made obvious by the Cup Series teams experiencing two seconds of tire fall-off over the course of a fuel run in both races in 2018. The 2019 rules package with higher downforce has resulted in slightly less tire fall-off this season because of less slide in the corners. Four-tire stops should still be the goal in the race.

While both the Cup Series and Gander Trucks will run the same right-side tire code at Kansas, each series will run its own left-side code. Cup Series cars will use the same code they used last weekend in Dover, while the right-side code is what was used at Las Vegas and Texas earlier in 2019. Teams are required to run inner liners in all four tire positions, as they do on all oval tracks greater than one mile in length. Air pressure in those inner liners should be 12-25 psi greater than that of the outer tire.

This weekend will mark the first time Truck teams have run the left-side tire code. This code features a construction update to align with other speedway and a compound upgrade to give the Truck more grip. They did, however, run this right-side code at Texas, which features an update and moves the trucks from a multi-zone tread to a single treat tire. Gander Trucks teams are also required to run inner lines in all four tire positions.

Cup Series teams will have three sets of Goodyear tires for practice, one set for qualifying and nine sets for the race. Gander Trucks teams will have six sets for the race weekend.

FACTS AND FIGURES

  • Team Penske has won three of the last four races on 1.5-mile tracks. Although, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin won the most recent one in March at Texas.
  • Four drivers have finished in the top 10 in all three 1.5-mile races in 2019. They’re Aric Almirola, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick. No driver has finished in the top five in all three.

PHOTOS: Memorable Kansas moments

  • Two drivers are currently on top-10 streaks. Kyle Busch started his streak at Phoenix in 2018 and has 13 total. Joey Logano’s streak started at Bristol and is four races long.
  • Six different drivers have won the last nine races at Kansas Speedway.
  • Stage winners often don’t win at Kansas. Last season, Ryan Blaney won Stage 1 in May but finished 37th and Kyle Larson won Stage 2 and finished fourth. In October, Joey Logano won Stage 1 and finished eighth and Kevin Harvick won Stage 2 and finished 12th.

LIVE COVERAGE
The Digital Ally 400 will air on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio at 7:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, May 11. Fans can also follow along on the live leaderboard on NASCAR.com, get in-car audio on RaceView and watch in-car cameras on NASCAR Drive. Be sure to set your Fantasy Live lineup and sub in your garage pick (if needed) before the end of Stage 2 when rosters lock for good.

The Digital Ally 250 will air on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio at 8:30 p.m. ET on Friday, May 10.

RELATED: Three on-track events to be streamed on NASCAR.com

2018 RACE WINNER
Kevin Harvick started on the pole and led 79 of the 267 laps last May to score his third Kansas victory. There were six cautions for 31 laps with 13 lead changes. Harvick and Stewart-Haas Racing have not yet won in 2019.

Posted on by PJ Walsh

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

After stops at a few short tracks, pack-racing at Talladega and last week’s clash at the Monster Mile, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series returns to a 1.5-mile race track for the first time since visiting Texas on March 31.

And with a return to a 1.5-miler also comes a return of the high-downforce, low-horsepower race package.

Now that we’re 11 races into the 2019 season, we finally have some data to lean on when trying to project which drivers will be fast this weekend at Kansas.

With this in mind, I’ll use results from Las Vegas and Texas — both 1.5-mile race tracks with low tire wear — to make my NASCAR Props Challenge picks for Saturday’s Digital Ally 400.

RELATED: Make your picks, too

1. Which driver will finish higher? Denny Hamlin or Brad Keselowski?

Denny Hamlin has been among the best drivers at the 1.5-mile tracks this season, including a win at Texas.

Keselowski’s numbers are skewed due to a mechanical issue at Texas, but I still lean Hamlin because his series-best average finishes of 5.5 at Las Vegas and Texas are too good to ignore.

Pick: Hamlin

RELATED: More coverage from The Action Network

2. Over/Under 1.5 drivers lead over 80 laps at Kansas?

I think passing is going to be difficult Saturday night as the cooler track temps will result in even less off-throttle time.

Because of this, we should see a handful of drivers dominate laps led as opposed to them finishing more evenly distributed.

Pick: Over

3. Martin Truex Jr. has four straight top-five finishes at Kansas. Does this streak continue?

Truex has been awesome at Kansas in his career, but he hasn’t been close to as dominant with this aero package at similar race tracks.

Add in the fact that he’s coming off a win last week at Dover and I think this is a nice pivot spot to not only follow the data, but differentiate ourselves from the majority of Props Challenge players who will likely expect a top-five finish.

Pick: No

4. Over/Under 42.5 race points for Ryan Blaney?

To go over, Blaney would need something along the lines of a top-five finish in the race overall, as well as top fives in both stages. Can he do it? Sure.

But should we expect that? No.

Pick: Under

Download the FREE Action Network app to finish reading this article and get the rest of PJ Walsh’s NASCAR Props Challenge Picks.

Posted on by Staff Report

NASCAR fined two crew chiefs from the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series for lug nuts not properly installed following the Monday race at Dover International Speedway.

Both race teams had one lug nut not safe and secure in post-race inspection.

RELATED: Full race results

NASCAR fined crew chiefs from the No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing team (Billy Scott) and No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing team (Chad Johnston) $10,000 apiece for the infraction.

Daniel Suarez drove the No. 41 to an 11th-place finish, while Kyle Larson (No. 42) finished third.

Posted on by Staff Report

Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin addressed on Tuesday his reason for a visit to the infield care center following Monday’s race at Dover International Speedway.

The culprit? Likely carbon monoxide poisoning, said Hamlin, who was hit with nausea and double vision after finishing 21st at the 1-mile concrete oval.

Hamlin finished three laps down in his No. 11 Toyota, which took on damage after he says the car was hit by debris — the result of which knocked out the right rear crush panel and allowed fumes into the vehicle.

RELATED: Full Dover results

“That kind of hampered the very end of the race for us but it certainly wasn’t a deciding factor if we raced good or bad,” Hamlin told reporters Tuesday, according to the Associated Press. “It was just a tough race in general. It’s one of the more physically grueling race tracks we go to anyway. Then you do something like that, it makes it even worse.”

Monday’s finish was the second consecutive result outside of the top 10 for Hamlin, who was 36th at Talladega Superspeedway. He previously had finished in the top 10 the first nine races of the season, nearly matching teammate Kyle Busch’s streak of 11 consecutive top 10s to start the year.

RELATED: Hamlin slips in Power Rankings

Posted on by Staff Report

Kevin Harvick’s long-promised Millennial-inspired paint scheme for the Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race has been released, and all we can say is — OMG!

Busch Beer in November said it would sponsor a millennial look if Harvick did not win the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Well, Harvick didn’t win — he finished third — and the beer brand came through.

Personally, we like the “AF” addition to the hood, the emojis, Snapchat filters and avocado toast.

MORE: Buy the diecast today! | All-Access look at the car

 

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Since Bradley McCaskill first started racing full seasons in 2000, he’s run as few as eight races in a season to as many as 30.

This summer is shaping up to be on the high end of what he’s used to.

McCaskill, who’s run the CARS late model tour the last four seasons, had plans to just run the tour full-time again this season. His car owner, Ronald Renfrow was planning to run a full season himself at Southern National Motorsports Park, but on the first night he and McCaskill split racing a twin bill, which McCaskill won.

Since he already has a win at Southern National, a 0.400-mile asphalt oval in Lucama, North Carolina, and since the track has a new tire deal to make it more affordable to race there, McCaskill decided to do a full-season there, as well as race the CARS tour.

“The schedules don’t really conflict with each other, so since we have the two cars we thought, ‘well shoot, we’ll both run the full season over there since we already have one win’ ” McCaskill said.

Southern National Motorsports Park | Facebook | Twitter

Bradley McCaskill

The additional races this season will not be easy for McCaskill — “It’s more than we’ve been used to lately for sure,” he said — but being able to run every weekend, and compete at a top level, is made possible thanks to a strong cast behind the late model veteran.

“The biggest thing is just trying to balance racing with work and family life,” he said. “It always gets kind of tough. It all starts out as good intentions, but you have to have a great support system at home to be behind it all.”

McCaskill is very used to busy summers. For him, it’s all he’s ever known. He was always at the race track when he was young watching his dad race, and his parents got him into a race car at a very young age.

“I played sports growing up but all my coaches knew racing came before the sports did,” he said. “So I had a lot of conflicting schedules there when I was younger, but racing was always top priority.”

Bradley McCaskill Racing-Reference

It was through racing that he was able to start his own business, Graphix Unlimited, which designs, produces and installs decals and wraps on racecars and other commercial vehicles.

When McCaskill was younger, his then girlfriend (now wife), talked him into doing his own car decals. The man who had been doing his for years retired, and McCaskill decided it was time to turn his hobby into a full-fledged business.

“It was kind of one those things where we just started doing it as a hobby just to my own race cars and did a few other guys, friends of mine cars,” he said. “And one thing led to another and now we have two full-time employees that work with me.

“We’ve kind of stayed well connected with the racing world with the decals.”

Graphix Unlimited does everything in house, from design to installation. McCaskill said he has definitely never been the creative artistic type, but he knows how to make a car look good.

“Everybody likes to look at good looking race cars,” he said. “That’s something we always had fun with. I would not say I was ever really creative. We just like putting stuff together that looks cool.”

Graphix Unlimited Twitter | Instagram

McCaskill said his race team struggled last year, but a chassis switch this season has helped them come out much stronger in 2019. Along with the win at Southern National, they also have a few pole wins, and a strong run at Myrtle Beach Speedway.

Bradley McCaskill

Since they’re running a full season now at Southern National, the goal is to of course try to win a championship, but there isn’t pressure to succeed week in and week out.

“We’ve never really been a points racing type deal, we always just pick and choose where we’re racing to keep it fun,” he said. “And we’re still planning on doing that this year, just have fun. But any time you go to the race track the main goal is to win. So just win races is really the No. 1 goal.”

The increased schedule wouldn’t be possible without the support McCaskill said he gets from his wife, Mary Candace, who he said puts up with a lot of long hours and late nights, and his mom and dad, and team owner.

“My dad works side-by-side with me on the race car. He does probably just as much, if not more work than me on the car itself,” he said. “Extending that out to the last couple years we started racing with Ron Renfrow, and what he’s done for my family as far as putting me in a car and us racing together, that’s helped out tremendously over the last couple years.”

“It’s a lot of work and a lot of heartache. It’s just all I’ve ever known I guess. It’s just the love of the sport, the competition. We do it as a family too so it’s a lot of family time together. But it’s a lot of hard work. I guess the satisfaction is when all the work does pay off and you’re sitting there in Victory Lane.”

The next race at Southern National will be this Saturday. The “Mom’s the Bomb” will feature late models, mini-stocks, bandeleros, and UCARs, beginning at 7 p.m.

Southern National Motorsports Park schedule

Posted on by Staff Report

Liberty University unveiled the patriotic paint scheme Hendrick Motorsports driver William Byron will display in the Coca-Cola 600 (May 26, 6 p.m. ET, FOX), and it’s a scheme that honors one of its own.

Byron’s No. 24 Chevrolet will take on a decidedly red, white and blue look for the most patriotic race of the year — and one which honors fallen service members with the NASCAR Salutes’ 600 Miles of Remembrance program.

According to a news release from the school, Byron’s car will honor U.S. Air Force Captain Mark Weber on the windshield header. Weber, who died in a helicopter crash in 2018, also was a Liberty student.

“It’s an honor to be able to have Captain Mark Weber’s name on our car in Charlotte,” Byron said. “It’s the least we can do to show our appreciation to him and his family for the sacrifice he made for our country. Racing at Charlotte Motor Speedway is already special to me as it is my hometown track and where I grew up racing. The 600 Miles of Remembrance makes it even more special with what it stands for.”

The 21-year-old second-year Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver is coming off his fourth front-row start this season at Dover, a Monday race at which he finished eighth. In his first season with crew chief Chad Knaus, Byron is 19th in the standings. He won his first career Busch Pole Award, at the Daytona 500 no less, earlier this year.

Posted on by Reid Spencer

DOVER, Del. — For once, everything that could go wrong didn’t go wrong for Kyle Larson.

No, he didn’t have a race-winning car at Dover International Speedway, but the No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet ran solidly in the top five throughout Monday’s rain-delayed Gander RV 400 and rolled across the finish line in third place.

RELATED: Dover race results | Bowman bumps Larson

Remarkably, the top five was Larson’s first of the season, and it came in the 11th Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series event of the season.

“It was solid,” Larson said. “I thought we ran inside the top five all race long. Fought tight early on. Freed it up. That’s where I feel like I was pretty good.

“The last run there after cycling through green flag stops, I was really loose. Got stuck in traffic. Was just looser in dirty air. Just made my tires pissed off. Had to just make sure I hit the bottom lap after lap to hold (Kevin) Harvick off.”

The handling may not have been perfect, but the result was satisfying.

“Yeah, it was good to finally have a clean race. I don’t think we’ve had a clean weekend all year long. I don’t know, what are we, 11 or 12 weeks into the season. It’s good to finally get a clean day, like I said. Thanks to our race team. Our pit crew did a good job today, as well.

“Nice day.”

Posted on by Reid Spencer

DOVER, Del. — For more than a fourth of Sunday’s Gander RV 400 at Dover International Speedway, Chase Elliott seemed destined to win his second straight race.

Starting from the pole, Elliott led the first 107 laps, but two-tire calls by Joey Logano and William Byron near the end of Stage 1 dropped him to third.

And though Elliott regained the top spot in the second stage of the race, he surrendered it to teammate Alex Bowman on Lap 224 and was never a factor for the win after that.

MORE: Full Dover race results

“Yeah, we just fell off there at the end of that second stage,” Elliott said. “That was the time of the race that we needed to be controlling it and not falling back.

“Just a bad time to have a bad half of a run and that is kind of what happened. So, we were fast, just not fast enough when it really mattered.”

Posted on by Staff Report

Two of the three NASCAR national series are headed to Kansas Speedway this weekend. The NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series and the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series will have three events live-streamed on NASCAR.com/live on Friday, May 10. These will include both Gander Trucks practices and the first practice in the Monster Energy Series.

The Gander Trucks will get things started at 9:30 a.m. ET with their opening practice. Gander Trucks final practice will follow at 11:30 a.m. ET. Bookmark NASCAR.com/live and don’t miss any of the action as the top drivers return to the track.

RELATED: Full Kansas Schedule

Once the Gander Trucks practices end, the Monster Energy Series will roll out at 12:30 p.m. ET for its first practice.

Commentary from MRN will be available on the live stream.

To recap, here is the full schedule of on-track activity being streamed on NASCAR.com:
— 9:30-10:30 a.m., ET: NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series First Practice
— 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m., ET: NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series Final Practice
— 12:30-1:30 p.m. ET: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series First Practice

Fast Friday will kick off on FS1 and the FOX Sports App at 3 p.m. ET with Monster Energy Series final practice. That will be followed by NASCAR Race Hub: Weekend Edition at 4 p.m. ET.  The Monster Energy Series Busch Pole Qualifying is at 7 p.m. ET, and the night finishes off with the Gander Outdoors Truck Series Digital Ally 250 at 7:30 p.m. ET.

Then, tune in Saturday May 11 for the Monster Energy Series Digital Ally 400 on FS1.