Posted on by RJ Kraft

TALLADEGA, Ala. – When Joey Logano holds the lead on the final restart at Talladega Superspeedway, he feels pretty good about his chance to close the deal. Three victories at the biggest track in the sport will do that to one’s confidence.

On Sunday, though, a victory was not in the cards in the slicing and dicing of superspeedway racing. The reigning Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion held the lead on Lap 184 of a scheduled 188 in the GEICO 500 as he was coming to the final restart. However, a swarm of Chevrolets led by eventual race winner Chase Elliott were too much for Logano to contain and he lost the lead for good with four laps to go.

“I thought I was in a pretty good spot,” Logano said after his fourth-place finish. “We led a bunch of laps (37 on the day) just at the end — the 1 (Kurt Busch, finished sixth) had a big run and I felt like I had to block that. When I blocked that, the 9 (Elliott) got underneath me. If I chose the bottom to block the 9, I had the 88 (Alex Bowman, finished second) behind the 9 and they were just going to go by me as soon as they formed a run. I was in not a very good spot.”

“Once I got on the outside, I thought that was going to be a better spot to be than the bottom. Teammates there didn’t race each other to the end, which is good on their part because it makes sure one of their cars won. If they got side by side, I could have gotten a run again and made something happen but they were selfless towards each other and that’s the way it finished out. I really think even if it was green to the end all the way to the checkered flag, it would have looked exactly the same.”

RELATED: Race results | Race recap

Coming to the final restart, Logano was in as much of a catbird seat as one could be at a superspeedway with fellow Ford driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – a 2017 spring race winner at Talladega – in third and set up to push the Team Penske No. 22 Ford to victory.

The Chevrolets, though, had other plans and worked together as a whole in a way not seen earlier this season at the Daytona 500.

“Once they dumped the 18 (Kyle Busch, finished 10th, was second on the final restart) and then they got underneath the 17 (Stenhouse, finished 25th, was third on the final restart) and dumped him out of the pack as well, it’s just me left and you kind of know you’re the next dumpee at that point,” Logano said. “You’re in trouble. I could defend as much as I could there. They’re going to go on one side or the other eventually. I couldn’t block it all with no help.”

Logano was the highest finishing Ford and earned his fourth straight top-five finish at the 2.66-mile Alabama track. But the 28-year-old was still left to lament the one that had just gotten away.

“Our Fords were fast. We showed speed in our cars,” Logano said. “If anyone could make a run at the Chevys, it was us. We were able to make quite a few runs up top to retake control of the race just the numbers weren’t on our side anymore.”

Posted on by Staff Report

The race-winning Hendrick Motorsports No. 9 Chevrolet of Chase Elliott has passed post-race inspection at Talladega Superspeedway with no issues.

The No. 9 Chevrolet was found to be compliant with the 2019 NASCAR Rule Book after Sunday’s GEICO 500. Additionally, the No. 88 Chevrolet of runner-up Alex Bowman and No. 47 Chevrolet of Ryan Preece also cleared inspection with no issues.

The Richard Childress Racing No. 8 Chevrolet of Daniel Hemric will be taken back to the R&D Center for further teardown this week.

With the post-race teardown complete, the race results are official.

The post-race process is part of a new, more timely approach to inspection for all three NASCAR national series. Competition officials announced in February that thorough post-race inspections would take place shortly after the checkered flag at the track instead of midweek at the NASCAR Research & Development Center in Concord, North Carolina.

Those inspections come with a stiffer deterrence structure that includes disqualification for significant rules infractions — “a total culture change,” according to Steve O’Donnell, NASCAR Executive Vice President and Chief Racing Development Officer. In the past, race-winning teams found in violation of the rules were penalized with post-race fines, points deductions and/or suspensions, but victories were allowed to stand.

Competition officials introduced the quicker post-race inspection timetable in an effort to make the results official on race day, aiming for a 90-minute target time frame to complete their scrutineering. The new post-race inspection process was also designed to deal with potential violations more promptly, avoiding any midweek news that might cloud the previous week’s results or the build-up to the following week’s event.

NASCAR will still inspect cars and parts at the R&D Center as needed, but the more comprehensive at-track inspection will take priority.

According to NASCAR statistical archives, the last time a premier series driver was disqualified occurred in 1973, when early retiree Buddy Baker was demoted to last place in the National 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The last time an apparent race winner in NASCAR’s top division was disqualified came on April 17, 1960, when Emanuel Zervakis’ victory at Wilson (N.C.) Speedway was thrown out because of an oversized fuel tank on his No. 85 Chevrolet.

Posted on by Zack Albert

TALLADEGA, Ala. — Alex Bowman was able to savor a solid 1-2 finish for Hendrick Motorsports as he came up just one spot shy of teammate Chase Elliott, the eventual race winner Sunday afternoon at Talladega Superspeedway.

A field-freezing caution after a pair of final-lap crashes thwarted Bowman’s chances of mounting a charge to win the GEICO 500. But scuttle any thought that the driver of the No. 88 was content to settle in for a comfortable, career-best second-place day with the checkered flag in the balance.

“Oh, I was going to be selfish as hell coming to the start-finish line there,” Bowman said, “but we just didn’t make it that far.”

RELATED: Race results | Race recap

Bowman led eight laps Sunday — his first this season — and spent plenty of time among the contenders in the final stage of the 188-lap race. Just before bedlam erupted on the backstretch on the final circuit, Bowman said that crew chief Greg Ives had implored him to make his move earlier, anticipating the chaos.

Though the potential for a final push to the front came up short, Bowman was able to taste his first top-five since placing fourth in the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course race last September. It also topped Bowman’s previous career-best, a third-place effort at Pocono Raceway last July.

All of the superlatives provided a boost for a team and a driver that had yet to crack the top 10 this season.

WATCH: Last laps at ‘Dega

“It feels great just to get the monkey off our back,” Bowman said. “This year’s been horrendous. It’s been pretty embarrassing, quite honestly, the mistakes that I’ve made and the amount of things that we’ve kind of let happen and caused on ourselves. Really good execution today and really proud to kind of reset after that off weekend and hopefully keep the momentum going.”

Posted on by Staff Report

Chip Ganassi Racing driver Kyle Larson went for a ride on a last-lap wreck Sunday at Talladega Superspeedway, emerging from a multi-flip wreck no worse for wear.

Hendrick Motorsports driver William Byron and Front Row Motorsports driver David Ragan made contact coming out of Turn 2 on the final lap of Sunday’s GEICO 500, with Byron’s No. 24 Chevrolet hitting the outside wall and turning back to the inside of the pack. His car smashed into Larson’s car, and the No. 42 Chevrolet was sent off the track toward the inside retaining wall — where it made heavy contact, and flipped down the apron.

“That was probably the longest flip I’ve ever had,” Larson said after he was checked out of the infield care center. “I didn’t know if it would ever stop. … It was a little bit scary, but thankfully I’m all right.”

RELATED: Race results

All drivers involved in the incident — Larson, Ragan, Byron, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Jeffrey Earnhardt — exited the cars under their own power and were eventually cleared from the medical center.

“I was in the middle there after we took the white flag and I just got loose and wrecked the 24 (of Byron),” Ragan said after the race. “I spun him out across my nose and he collected a few other cars. That last wreck was my fault. I was pretty stupid to wreck like that when you are running 10th or 15th on the last lap.”

For Larson, it was yet another incident on what he’s dubbed a “crappy” start to his season so far. He finished the race 24th and currently sits 21st in the points standings.

“Thanks to the fab shop and Chip Ganassi Racing for building safe race cars,” Larson said. “Like I said, that was scary. So, I’m just thankful that I’m OK. … As soon as we left the restart zone we were kind of just in a bad spot. When you’re like that and everybody is four or five-wide, you know something crazy is going to happen.”

MORE: Wreck brings out red flag

Posted on by Reid Spencer

TALLADEGA, Ala. – Chase Elliott seized the lead in the GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway during a four-lap shootout to the finish and took the checkered flag under caution after Kyle Larson barrel-rolled behind him.

Elliott’s victory broke a Chevrolet drought in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series dating to last October at Kansas Speedway and broke a seven-race Ford stranglehold on the 2.66-mile track.

The first driver not from Team Penske or Joe Gibbs racing to win this season, Elliott crossed the stripe ahead of Hendrick Motorsports teammate Alex Bowman, who scored his career-best finish but regretted he didn’t have the chance to make a move on Elliott on the last lap.

RELATED: Full race results
SHOP: Elliott gear

On a day when Chevrolet drivers faithfully executed a game plan to work together, Elliott scored his first win at Talladega and the fourth of his career. Elliott had taken the checkered flag in three of Chevrolet’s four 2018 wins, including the triumph at Kansas.

“What a day!” Elliott said. “A huge thanks to all my partners, my team, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet — there was a lot of teamwork done today.

“We just had a plan, and we executed really well. Obviously, it could have gone either way, but fortunately everybody stayed together and stayed the course and we got a little help on the last lap with the caution.

“I appreciate all the support, man. This is special. This is close to home for me and sort of feels like a home race.”

Sunoco Rookie of the Year contenders Ryan Preece and Daniel Hemric ran third and fifth, respectively, as Chevrolets claimed four of the top five positions. Joey Logano was fourth in his Team Penske Ford.

Kyle Busch was 10th in the top-finishing Toyota, extending his streak of top 10s to start the season to 10 races.

After taking the white flag, Elliott held the lead over Bowman, when David Ragan over-corrected on the backstretch and turned William Byron’s Chevrolet across traffic. After contact from Byron’s car, Larson slid toward the inside wall beside Jeffrey Earnhardt’s Toyota, got airborne and began rolling. NASCAR called the sixth caution of the afternoon, and a half-lap later, Elliott crossed the finish line to seal the win.

RELATED: Larson’s ‘longest flip’

“It was a really crazy day, well‑executed day on the Chevrolet teams’ behalf,” Elliott said. “Proud of that effort. That last lap was going to get wild. I don’t know exactly what Alex had up the sleeve. I know he was coming with something.

“We’ll take it.  Unbelievable feeling. The crowd was intense. We’re proud to get it done for them.”

Bowman confessed to mixed feelings after his runner-up finish.

“I’m not just going to let him win, right?” Bowman asked rhetorically. “I’ve got to try. I knew I could get to his quarter panel. I was pretty confident I could get to his quarter panel through the tri‑oval. Who knows who is going to get to the line first? At that point, I thought I could do it. Depends on the car behind you, where he goes.

“It would have been fun to try, but happy for Chase, Nationwide (Bowman’s sponsor), everybody that lets us keep doing this thing. I’m glad to kind of turn the season around. It’s been a rough start to the year. These guys deserve way better than the finishes they’ve had. To come home second, it’s not a win, but headed in the right direction.”

RELATED: Bowman planned move on Chase

Logano had control of the race on Lap 182 of 188, when contact between the cars of Aric Almirola and Chris Buescher sent Buescher’s Chevrolet spinning on the backstretch. Matt DiBenedetto couldn’t avoid Buescher’s Chevy and lifted it off the pavement with enough force to rip the hood off DiBenedetto’s Toyota.

The cars of Martin Truex Jr. and Justin Haley were also damaged in the wreck. Haley was unable to continue and retired from his Cup debut in 32nd place. Elliott, who led a race-high 44 laps, grabbed the lead from Logano after the restart on Lap 185.

The race just 10 laps old when a crash in Turn 1 eliminated a handful of cars expected to contend for the victory. Fighting for the second position, Bubba Wallace had a strong run on close friend Ryan Blaney, and the nose of Wallace’s Chevrolet rubbed across the rear bumper of Blaney’s Ford, getting both cars out of shape.

As Blaney righted his car and moved forward, Wallace steered his Chevy toward the apron and lost control, spinning across traffic near the front of the pack. Clint Bowyer’s Ford slid up the track into the Mustang of Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Kevin Harvick, knocking Harvick’s car into the outside wall.

RELATED: Wallace ignites wreck

After futile attempts to repair the cars, Wallace and Harvick retired from the race, along with Michael McDowell and Matt Tifft. Denny Hamlin also sustained damage in the wreck and soon was three laps down and out of contention. After hitting the wall on Lap 83, Hamlin took his car to the garage.

“The No. 22 (Joey Logano) pulled up and he checked up a little bit,” Wallace said of the crash. “I went to go to the bottom, where I was safe. I don’t know if I crossed (Blaney’s) bumper or whatever. But it got him wiggled down and shoved me even farther down than I wanted to go.

“So I went back up just to stay off the apron and it just unloaded. It’s just unfortunate, but I tried not to wreck my buddy, Ryan, and it cost our day and some others’.”

During the Lap 11 accident, debris from McDowell’s car slammed into the nose of Jimmie Johnson’s Chevrolet, and on Lap 25, the No. 48 Camaro of the seven-time champion clobbered the Turn 3 wall. Though Johnson got to pit road without causing a caution, his race was effectively over.

Kurt Busch, Ryan Newman, Brendan Gaughan, Almirola and Kyle Busch completed the top 10.

Posted on by Staff Report

Chris Buescher’s No. 37 Chevrolet got moved on the backstretch with seven laps to go, starting a five-car wreck and bringing out the red flag in Sunday’s GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. Buescher’s No. 37 moved up the track and smacked the outside wall, then was hit hard by Matt DiBenedetto’s No. 95 Toyota.

Martin Truex Jr., Justin Haley, who was making his Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series debut, and Aric Almirola also were involved in the incident.

RELATED: Full race results

Window nets for the drivers involved came down, indicating there were no serious injuries.

“We just got turned,” Buescher told FOX. ” … Good position there with just a handful of laps to go. Just got turned right, destroyed our race car.”

The red flag lasted for 8 minutes, 47 seconds.

 

Posted on by Staff Report

Which channels have NASCAR programming this week? We answer that and give you the weekly NASCAR television listings here in the NASCAR TV schedule.

Note: All times are ET.

MORE: Get the NBC Sports App | How to find FS1 | Get FOX Sports App | How to find NBCSN

Monday, April 29
Midnight, Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series GEICO 500 (re-air), FS1/FOX Sports App
6 p.m., NASCAR America, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1/FOX Sports App

On MRN
12:30 p.m., MRN Outloud

Tuesday, April 30
3 p.m., Glory Road: “Battle of the Big 3,” NBCSN/NBC Sports App
5 p.m., Dale Jr. Download, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1/FOX Sports App
9 p.m., Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series GEICO 500 (re-air), FS2/FOX Sports App

Wednesday, May 1
4 p.m., NASCAR Decades, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
4:30 p.m., NASCAR Decades, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
5 p.m., NASCAR America, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1/FOX Sports App

Thursday, May 2
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1/FOX Sports App

Friday, May 3
3 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub: Weekend Edition, FS1/FOX Sports App
3:30 p.m., Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Busch Pole Qualifying, FS1/FOX Sports App (Canada: TSN2)
4:30 p.m., NASCAR RaceDay: Dover, FS1/FOX Sports App
5 p.m., NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series: JEGS 200, FS1/FOX Sports App

On MRN
11 a.m., Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice
Noon, NASCAR Xfinity Series practice
1 p.m., NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series qualifying
2:30 p.m., NASCAR Xfinity Series final practice
3:30 p.m., Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Busch Pole Qualifying
4:30 p.m., NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series JEGS 200

Saturday, May 4
6 a.m., Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Busch Pole Qualifying (re-air), FS1/FOX Sports App
5 p.m., NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series: JEGS 200 (re-air), FS1/FOX Sports App
9 a.m., Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice, FS1/FOX Sports App, (Canada: TSN2)
10 a.m., NASCAR Xfinity Series qualifying, FS1/FOX Sports App (TSN App)
11 a.m., NASCAR RaceHub: Weekend Edition, FS1/FOX Sports App
12 p.m., Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series final practice, FS1/FOX Sports App (Canada: TSN2)
1 p.m., NASCAR RaceDay: Xfinity, FS1/FOX Sports App
1:30 p.m., NASCAR Xfinity Series: Allied Steel Buildings 200, FS1/FOX Sports App (Canada: TSN2)

On MRN
9 a.m., Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice
noon, Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series final practice
1 p.m., NASCAR Xfinity Series Allied Steel Buildings 200

Sunday, May 5
12:30 p.m., NASCAR RaceDay, FS1/FOX Sports App
2 p.m., (postponed) Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Gander RV 400, FS1/FOX Sports App, (Canada: TSN2)

On MRN
1 p.m., Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series: Gander RV 400

Monday, May 6
Noon, Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Gander RV 400, FS1/FOX Sports App (Canada: TSN2)
6 p.m., NASCAR America, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1/FOX Sports App

On MRN
11:30 a.m., Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series: Gander RV 400

Posted on by Staff Report

Chase Elliott survived the see-saw battle at the front to win Stage 2 in Sunday’s GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway as manufacturers lined up to work together at the 2.66-mile track. Elliott led a group of three Chevrolets to grab his first stage win of the 2019 season.

Hendrick Motorsports teammates Alex Bowman and William Byron finished behind Elliott, in second and third place, respectively. Ryan Blaney, in the No. 12 Ford, broke up the Chevrolet party by coming in fourth place. Austin Dillon, in the No. 3 Chevrolet, rounded out the top five.

RELATED: Full Stage 2 results

The first two stages featured 26 lead changes with Aric Almirola (27 laps) and Elliott (22 laps) leading the most laps.

Finish Driver Team Points
1 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports 10
2 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports 9
3 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports 8
4 Ryan Blaney Team Penske 7
5 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing 6
6 Kurt Busch Chip Ganassi Racing 5
7 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing 4
8 Daniel Hemric Richard Childress Racing 3
9 Joey Logano Team Penske 2
10 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing 1

STAGE 1

Ty Dillon took advantage of fuel issues for the leaders to win Stage 1. Dillon jumped to the lead with six laps to go as Martin Truex Jr. had to conserve fuel to make it to the stage finish on Lap 55. It was Dillon’s second stage win of the season.

Truex had taken the lead only after Aric Almirola and Brad Keselowski had to pit for fuel. Almirola, who led the most laps in the opening stage (27 laps), got a penalty for speeding on pit road, knocking him back to 26th place.

RELATED: Full Stage 1 results

Alex Bowman, Austin Dillon, Chase Elliott and Daniel Suarez rounded out the top five in Stage 1.

Earlier in the stage, there was drama as the caution flag came out on Lap 10 for a six-car wreck that Bubba Wallace ignited when he was trying to move past Ryan Blaney. Wallace collected Denny Hamlin and Michael McDowell and elsewhere in the field Kevin Harvick, Clint Bowyer and Matt Tifft were involved.

RELATED: Wallace ignites wreck

Wallace, Tifft, Harvick and McDowell were all knocked out of the race.

Finish Driver Team Points
1 Ty Dillon Germain Racing 10
2 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports 9
3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing 8
4 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports 7
5 Daniel Suarez Stewart-Haas Racing 6
6 Ryan Newman Roush Fenway Racing 5
7 William Byron Hendrick Motorsports 4
8 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing 3
9 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing 2
10 Matt DiBenedetto Leavine Family Racing 1
Posted on by Staff Report

Bubba Wallace started a six-car wreck on Lap 10 of Sunday’s GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway when his No. 43 Chevrolet got loose in Turn 1 while he was working with the No. 12 Ford driven by Ryan Blaney.

Wallace’s car wobbled after getting close to Blaney and made contact with the No. 11 of Denny Hamlin. Then, Wallace’s car moved up the track and slammed hard into the No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford, driven by Michael McDowell.

“It was just unfortunate. I was trying not to wreck my buddy Ryan and cost us and some others, so I apologize,” Wallace told FOX. “We were fast. I was just trying to ride and not wreck somebody, and I wrecked myself.”

RELATED: Race leaderboard

Farther back in the field, Clint Bowyer, in the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford, Kevin Harvick, in the No. 4 SHR Ford, and Matt Tifft, in the No. 36 Front Row Motorsports Ford, also were involved. The Nos. 4, 34, 36 and 43 were all ruled out of the race while the No. 11 stayed in. The No. 11 later left the race during Stage 2.

“I am not really sure what happened,” McDowell said. “I didn’t see a lot of it. Looked like the 43 was being real aggressive and making stupid moves at the beginning of the race.”

Posted on by Staff Report

TALLADEGA, Ala. — A total of eight cars will drop to the rear of the field before the start of Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway for unapproved adjustments. An additional car is dropping to the rear for a driver change.

The penalties affect all four Joe Gibbs Racing entries and both Roush Fenway Racing cars among the group of nine.

RELATED: Every car in the field | No. 1 car chief ejected | Full Talladega lineup

Those teams will fall to the rear of the 40-car field during pace laps before the start of Sunday’s GEICO 500 (2 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). The total list (presented numerically by car number):

  • The No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing Ford of Ryan Newman, which qualified 24th in Saturday’s Busch Pole Qualifying.
  • The No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota of Denny Hamlin (qualified 23rd)
  • The No. 17 Roush Fenway Racing Ford of Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (qualified sixth)
  • The No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota of Kyle Busch (qualified 22nd)
  • The No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota of Martin Truex Jr. (qualified 20th)
  • The No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota of Erik Jones (qualified 27th)
  • The No. 27 Premium Motorsports Chevrolet of Reed Sorenson (qualified 37th)
  • The No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Ford of Cody Ware (qualified 40th)
  • The No. 62 Beard Motorsports Chevrolet of Brendan Gaughan (qualified 29th)

Gaughan’s No. 62 will be dropping to the rear because of a driver change. Tyler Reddick went from winning Saturday’s Xfinity Series race to qualifying the No. 62 in Gaughan’s place. Gaughan was attending his son’s first communion and was not at the track Saturday.