Posted on by Staff Report

Joey Logano, looking for his first Las Vegas win, took home Stage 2 in Sunday’s Pennzoil 400 presented by Jiffy Lube at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

The lead traded hands several times between Logano, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch and William Byron after Kevin Harvick dominated Stage 1. It was Logano that wound up with the stage win, however, aided by a costly penalty by Busch.

Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr., Keselowski and Denny Hamlin rounded out the top five.

RELATED: Full Stage 2 results

Keselowski took two tires during stage break to come off pit road first before ceding the lead to Logano on Lap 97. Busch then worked his way in front of Logano’s No. 22 Ford takes the lead on Lap 112, before Logano took it right back.

Busch re-inherited the lead on Lap 120, but got hit with a speeding penalty on Lap 129 to put a damper on his attempt to sweep the weekend at his home track. He worked his way back up to 18th by the end of the stage, however.

During green flag cycles, Byron took over at the front of the field to lead 21 laps before his pit cycle washed him back to a still-respectable 11th. Logano re-took the lead upon the No. 24’s pitting, and cruised the rest of the way.

The Final Stage is scheduled for 107 laps.

Finish Driver Team Race Points
1 Joey Logano Team Penske 10
2 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing 9
3 Martin Truex Jr. Joe Gibbs Racing 8
4 Brad Keselowski Team Penske 7
5 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing 6
6 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports 5
7 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing 4
8 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing 3
9 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports 2
10 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports 1

STAGE 1

Kevin Harvick cruised to his second stage win of the season when he took advantage of his pole position to dominate Stage 1 Sunday in the Pennzoil 400 presented by Jiffy Lube at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

The Stewart-Haas Racing driver and defending race-winner earned the Busch Pole on Friday, helping him lead 62 laps in the opening stage of the third race of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season.

Kyle Busch, going for the weekend sweep in his hometown after winning the Gander Outdoors Truck Series and Xfinity Series races earlier this weekend, was second.

Joey Logano, who has six straight top-10 finishes at Vegas, placed third.

RELATED: Full Stage 1 results

During green flag pit stops, Austin Dillon and Kyle Larson were hit with penalties for having too many men over the wall. They started fourth and seventh, respectively, but both wound up missing out on stage points. Michael McDowell’s team was later penalized for having his crew over the wall too soon.

Harvick’s SHR teammate Daniel Suarez led 12 laps after Harvick came in for his scheduled stop. The third-year-driver placed ninth in the stage.

Ryan Blaney was forced to come back down pit road on Lap 51 after he had a left rear tire going down. He sits 30th.

Finish Driver Team Race Points
1  Kevin Harvick  Stewart-Haas Racing 10
2  Kyle Busch  Joe Gibbs Racing 9
3  Joey Logano  Team Penske 8
4  Denny Hamlin  Joe Gibbs Racing 7
5  Erik Jones  Joe Gibbs Racing 6
6  Ricky Stenhouse Jr.  Roush Fenway Racing 5
7  Martin Truex Jr.  Joe Gibbs Racing 4
8  Chase Elliott  Hendrick Motorsports 3
9  Daniel Suarez  Stewart-Haas Racing 2
10  Brad Keselowski  Team Penske 1
Posted on by Staff Report

The No. 13 Germain Racing Chevrolet of driver Ty Dillon and No. 00 StarCom Motorsports Racing Chevrolet of driver Landon Cassill both will start Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (3:30 p.m. ET, FOX, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) from the rear of the field following unapproved adjustments.

The No. 00 team changed a gear Sunday and the No. 13 team swapped in a new engine.

PHOTOS: Lineup, team rosters

Dillon had qualified 14th, his best starting position since the Texas spring race in 2017. Cassill qualified 31st. The drivers officially will “keep” their starting positions, but will roll to the back of the field on the warm-up laps.

This story will be updated if other cars are forced to start from the rear.

Posted on by Brad Norman

Richard Childress Racing drivers Austin Dillon and Sunoco Rookie of the Year contender Daniel Hemric are the biggest movers on the Las Vegas odds board prior to Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race (3:30 p.m. ET, FOX, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

After Dillon opened at 70-1 odds (meaning a bet of $100 would win $7,000, should AD win on Sunday) on Tuesday, he’s now a 30-1 favorite after leading both the opening practice Friday and the lone practice Saturday afternoon in Sin City. Dillon also qualified fourth for today’s race, and his 30-1 odds equal those of Jimmie Johnson and are better than Daniel Suarez, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Alex Bowman.

MORE: Full Vegas odds

Hemric is an even bigger move. Opening at 125-1 odds, the driver of the No. 8 Chevrolet now is 70-1 — a huge jump for the rookie still looking for his first win in a NASCAR national series start. Hemric finished second to Dillon in both practices, and he qualified fifth. His Chevrolet and Dillon’s No. 3 ran the draft beautifully at Las Vegas, which utilizes both tapered spacers to target 550 horsepower and aero ducts to foster tighter racing.

Other notes on the pre-race odds updates:

• Kevin Harvick still is the race favorite, but dropped from 5-1 at open to 11-2.

• Clint Bowyer is one of the biggest fallers, going from 16-1 to 25-1.

• Despite qualifying eighth and posting the third-fastest time in final practice, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. fell from 40-1 to 60-1.

• Hendrick Motorsports driver William Byron plummeted, going from 66-1 to 100-1.

RELATED: Final practice results

Posted on by RJ Kraft

NASCAR is in the hometown of newly signed Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Bryce Harper this weekend — yes I am a big fan of that team as followers on Twitter know all too well — and Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick will start from the pole position for Sunday’s Pennzoil 400 presented by Jiffy Lube at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Does he merit a spot in your lineup? We’ve dissected the numbers to offer a suggested lineup worthy of your Fantasy Live consideration as you make roster decisions.

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

Remember that the garage locks at the end of Stage 2. Once the final stage starts, your roster is locked in.

RJ Kraft’s Fantasy Live lineup for race-day at Las Vegas:
1. Austin Dillon
2. Brad Keselowski
3. Joey Logano
4. Erik Jones
5. Daniel Hemric
Garage: Kevin Harvick

RELATED: Odds for Las Vegas | 10-lap averages from Vegas | Podcast: Fantasy Fastlane

Once again, I’ve ripped up most of my original lineup from the start of the week after seeing a taste of the new rules package on display. I’m keeping two Penske cars given how well they have run at Las Vegas in the past. Keselowski has three Las Vegas wins since 2014 and had the third-best 10-lap averages in final practice. Yes, he’s starting 19th, but I think we’ll see some movers from the middle on Sunday. Logano has been a top-10 machine at Las Vegas, will line up 10th on Sunday and has 27 stage points in the three previous Vegas races.

The Richard Childress Racing camp has looked stout this weekend with Dillon and Hemric topping both practice sessions and both atop the 10-lap board in final practice. I will acknowledge that it’s risky relying on both in your lineup, but the RCR group has found something early on with this package. The strongest reason to play them is the lack of ownership across leagues as of Saturday at 8:50 p.m. ET; Dillon was owned by 12 percent of players and Hemric by 5 percent. A real chance to gain points others might not if you believe they are for real.

The decision to play both RCR cars leads me to put an experienced hand in the garage, so I am tapping Harvick. He is on the pole, and Harvick won the 2018 All-Star Race where this package outline was first used. I preferred to save Harvick heading into the weekend, but the pole position swayed me. Truex seems a little off, and I’d like to save Kyle Busch for a host of upcoming tracks — ISM Raceway (Phoenix), Fontana, Martinsville, Bristol and Richmond. The uses with him are going to stack up real fast, so I will be more conservative with him early on.

The last spot in my lineup was a toss up between Ryan Blaney and Erik Jones. Blaney has the better Vegas history and starting spot but Jones had the better 10-lap average by quite a bit in final practice — sixth vs. 24th. I’ve also yet to use Jones this season — same with Blaney — and I want the last spot I have to be a driver I’ve yet to use. Giving the nod to Jones for now.

For the stage winners, I’m going Harvick in Stage 1, Logano in Stage 2 with Kyle Busch winning the race as a hedge for not having him in my lineup.

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

MORE: Play the Props Challenge today

1. The average starting position for the last three Las Vegas March winners is 2.67. O/U starting position of 4.5 for this year’s winner? I like the under here and it’s largely because the top four consists of Kevin Harvick, Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch and Austin Dillon. Harvick and Busch both have wins at Las Vegas and Dillon had shown speed all weekend long. Hamlin has yet to win at Las Vegas, but I like having Harvick and Busch in the top four of this prop.

2. After showing speed at Atlanta, will rookie Daniel Hemric finish in the top 15? I am a resounding yes for this one. He and Richard Childress Racing teammate Austin Dillon have been fast all weekend as RCR has finished 1-2 in both practices. Hemric also topped the 10-lap board in final practice and qualified fifth. He enjoyed a really good run at Atlanta before a cut tire ruined his finish. I’m in on Hemric maintaining a top-15 spot throughout the race and finishing in the top 15.

Posted on by Zack Albert

LAS VEGAS — A pair of Xfinity Series standouts learned from one of the circuit’s all-time greats Saturday afternoon, pushing eventual winner Kyle Busch to the limit at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Tyler Reddick and Christopher Bell ended their challenges with damaged cars, but with a learning experience and a fun time to show for it.

RELATED: Kyle Busch wins in double overtime at Las Vegas

Reddick and Bell crashed during the first of two overtime attempts in the Boyd Gaming 300, with Reddick — the defending series champ — losing control in a contest for the lead. His spin triggered a multicar incident that collected Bell, Austin Cindric and rookie Zane Smith in the fourth turn.

Reddick apologized to his team over their radio communications post-race, indicating that Busch’s clinging to the outside lane had placed his Richard Childress Racing No. 2 Chevrolet in a disadvantageous spot. With Busch controlling the aero cushion between them, he held on for his second win of the weekend.

The organization quickly offered its support in defeat, with Richard Childress and Randy Petree among those embracing Reddick and telling him that he had no need to ask forgiveness.

“No regrets on my end. It is what it is,” said Reddick, who led 62 laps, second only to Busch’s 98. “In the closing laps, you know it’s going to happen. People are going to go for the win, and we were in a spot where I think we could’ve gotten it. It didn’t go our way. Kyle did what he had to do and he won the race. Hat’s off to him.”

Before the series of late restarts, Reddick and Bell made a gutsy drive over the longest green-flag run of the race to produce a three-way battle for the top spot with 20 laps left in regulation. As Bell closed in on Busch, Reddick reeled in the front two. A full-contact clash between the two challengers went back and forth, trading bumps and scrapes as the laps wound down.

 

Afterward, both confessed no hurt feelings, both smiling in reflection over their hard-nosed skirmish.

“Tyler’s a badass. He’s really, really talented,” Bell said. “That was one of the most fun NASCAR races I’ve ran yet. Tyler was really good, Kyle was really good and I was right there in the mix. I feel like all three of us laid it all on the line today and Kyle got away with one, but maybe that’ll change the next couple of races.”

Said Reddick: “We got pretty aggressive there for a while. I was trying to slide in front of him and take the top (groove) away from him. We were just having fun being aggressive. It’s the end of the race. We understand what’s on the line. We’re just trying to get to Victory Lane.”

 

Posted on by Zack Albert

LAS VEGAS — A jumbled final practice at Las Vegas Motor Speedway offered an indication of what sort of race to expect in Sunday’s Pennzoil 400 presented by Jiffy Lube (3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). What it didn’t deliver: A clear prediction of a pre-race favorite with the 2019 Monster Energy Series rules package in effect.

Favorites and long-shots typically play well in the mecca of gambling, but even with the on-track time of a two-day test, practice and qualifying with the new package, the 1.5-mile facility remains a cauldron of unpredictability.

The final practice leaderboard wasn’t much help. Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Dillon and Daniel Hemric led the way, going 1-2 in both practices to back up their strength at the January test here. But other anomalies abounded: Kevin Harvick won the Busch Pole in Friday qualifying, but his best lap in Saturday practice ranked just 29th. Martin Truex Jr., another former Vegas winner and another third of last year’s Big 3 dominators, was one spot worse in 30th.

“There is a certain level of that because the ultimate speed is situational on the race track,” said Adam Stevens, crew chief of Kyle Busch’s No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, suggesting that less credence be given to practice speeds. “I am sure (Austin Dillon’s No. 3 team) didn’t run the lap they did and didn’t get some amount of help. We didn’t run some of the best laps we were running without some type of help. It’s all about who can stay in the gas the longest and navigate through traffic and get out front. The relativity of the speed chart is a bit like a superspeedway.”

Other characteristics of superspeedway racing — once reserved to two annual races each at Daytona and Talladega — may well apply in portions of Sunday’s 400-miler with the intention of tightening the competition.

RELATED: Las Vegas odds for Sunday’s race | Las Vegas 101

The rules package that NASCAR officials introduced for this season contains a tapered engine spacer designed to limit horsepower to a target level of 550. Aerodynamic devices take it a step further, adding downforce with the use of a larger spoiler and splitter, plus a wider radiator pan. Another apparatus in effect this weekend that wasn’t last weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway: ducts up front that transfer air to the side of the car away from the front tires to create a larger, more beneficial aerodynamic wake for cars behind the leader.

The effect thus far in Las Vegas: Drivers have been able to hold the gas pedal wide open for parts of a green-flag run until tire wear forces off-throttle time to navigate the turns. But they’ve also had to manage how well they run in traffic, using momentum and the aerodynamic forces of drafting in a pack to gain ground.

“I think that even though we’re on a grippier race track, it still looked like some cars were grip-limited and having to let out of the gas,” said Denny Hamlin, who will start second. “So I would suspect that Sunday, you’re still going to have to have a good handling car similar to what you had in Atlanta.”

The Las Vegas learnings thus far, however, may be tempered by the fact that tests, qualifying and practice do not equal full-field race conditions — a scenario that played out in Daytona’s Speedweeks with an intense Daytona 500 that didn’t resemble the tamer Clash exhibition or qualifying races.

MORE: Five key story lines for Sunday | See every car in Sunday’s field 

The full 2019 rules setup will make its next appearance in two weeks at Auto Club Speedway, then two weeks later at Texas Motor Speedway. It’s early, but the referendum on the package’s impact has already begun.

“If the fans like it, I’m into it,” said Jimmie Johnson, a four-time Vegas winner. “We’re here to put on a show and entertain the fans and represent our sponsors. It is difficult with this rules package in general, it’s kind of different than the way we all grew up in wanting more power and to go faster and faster. Sure, there’s some of this that isn’t what we expect to see at the Cup level, but it doesn’t take away the challenge, it doesn’t take away the hard work that goes into it, and they still pass out a trophy at the end of the day. I’m down for whatever, and if the fans buy into it and the fans like it, then that’s what I’m going to race.”

Posted on by Zack Albert

LAS VEGAS — Kyle Busch will aim for a tripleheader weekend sweep with a hometown flavor Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Busch completed the first two legs of the trifecta by scoring a dominating win in Friday’s Gander Outdoors Truck Series event, then surviving a pair of overtime attempts in Saturday’s Xfinity Series race. His attempt at the triple will come in Sunday’s Pennzoil 400 (3:30 p.m. ET, FOX, PRN, SiriusXM) for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.

RELATED: Full schedule for Las Vegas

“I thought this would be the toughest of the three,” Busch said from Victory Lane after Saturday’s Xfinity Series event. “We had a fast race car but we could never get the balance even in the race right there. I was either way too tight or way too loose, I could never find a happy medium. Overall, I feel like the Cup car is pretty good. The M&M’s Chocolate Bar Camry got some speed to it as well and we ran a lot out there in traffic and the pack. So it will be interesting tomorrow.”

Busch is the only driver in NASCAR history to have won races in three national series at the same track in the same weekend. Both of those came at Bristol Motor Speedway, first in 2010 and most recently in 2017.

Busch’s triumph in Saturday’s Xfinity event gave him a total of 197 wins in NASCAR national series competition. Five of those have come at 1.5-mile Las Vegas Motor Speedway — one in the Monster Energy Series (2009), two in Xfinity (2016, ’19) and two in Trucks (2018, ’19).

RELATED: Drivers with most all-time national series wins

Posted on by Reid Spencer

LAS VEGAS – It took successful a gamble, a serendipitous caution and a couple of overtimes for Las Vegas native Kyle Busch to win a second NASCAR Xfinity Series race on his home track, but Busch beat the odds in Saturday’s Boyd Gaming 300.

A lap down at Las Vegas Motor Speedway after an unscheduled pit stop for a loose wheel, Busch rallied to win his 93rd Xfinity race, extending his series record and bringing his victory total across NASCAR’s three national series to 197.

RELATED: Race results

Having also won Friday night’s NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series event, Busch will now go for the third three-race weekend sweep of his career in Sunday’s Pennzoil 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race (3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

After a wreck in the first overtime ruined the chances of reigning champion Tyler Reddick, Christopher Bell, Austin Cindric and Zane Smith, Busch held off John Hunter Nemechek in the second overtime, clearing the No. 23 GMS Racing Chevrolet off Turn 4 on Lap 212 and beating Nemechek to the checkered flag by .192 seconds a lap later.

But it was an early caution in the second stage of the race that put Busch in position to win. Busch had come to pit road with the loose wheel on Lap 15 and lost a lap to the frontrunning cars. At the end of Stage 1, won by Cole Custer, Busch’s crew chief, Ben Beshore, took a gamble in keeping the driver of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota on the track under caution for the stage break.

Busch returned to the lead lap with a wave-around but had to fight through traffic on old tires. A caution on Lap 59, however, gave Busch the opportunity he needed to pit for tires, and after restarting 17th on Lap 63, Busch charged to third by the end of the stage on Lap 90.

Passing Reddick for the lead on Lap 111, Busch was out front for a total of 98 laps, as the race went 13 laps beyond its scheduled distance.

“It was really tough to come back from one of those setbacks,” Busch said. “I wasn’t sure how we were going to be able to do it down a set of tires. We got a lucky break with a caution during the second stage.

“That kind of got us back on cycle, and we were able to put the first set (of tires) back on with fresh wheels so we didn’t have any more issues there.”

With Bell winning last week at Atlanta, the new Toyota Supras have won two straight races.

“It’s cool to be able to back up Christopher’s win last week and get the Supra back in Victory Lane with me,” said Busch, who won in his first of seven Xfinity starts this season. “I wanted to be the first one, but he had to show me up a little bit last week.”

Busch is the only driver to sweep three national-series events in the same weekend, a feat he accomplished twice at Bristol, in 2010 and 2017. But a sweep at his home track would be all the more meaningful.

RELATED: Busch eyes weekend sweep at Las Vegas

“I thought this was going to be the toughest of the three (races), because we could never get the balance right,” Busch said of the Xfinity event. “I was either way too tight or way too loose. I could never find a happy medium.

“Overall, I feel like our Cup car is pretty good. The car has some speed. We ran a lot out there in the pack and in traffic, and it’s going to be an interesting race (on Sunday). Make sure everybody tunes in.”

Las Vegas native Noah Gragson ran third, followed by Austin Dillon and Daytona winner Michael Annett.

Ryan Sieg, Ross Chastain, Chase Briscoe, Custer and Justin Haley completed the top 10.

Nemechek ran side-by-side with Busch but couldn’t keep up off Turn 4 on the penultimate lap.

“We gave him a run for his money,” Nemechek said. “I’ve been beaten by Kyle too many times, in late model races and now in the Xfinity Series. Hopefully, we can come out on top and build momentum off of this.”

Bell grabbed the lead from Busch on Lap 181 but brushed the outside wall soon thereafter, and Busch regained the top spot on Lap 182. Busch was a quarter-lap away from the white flag when contact between Custer’s Ford and the Toyota of Brandon Jones caused the sixth caution and forced overtime.

On the first attempt, Reddick spun beneath Busch’s Toyota in Turn 4, knocked Bell’s Toyota sideways, and triggered a wreck that also collected Smith and Cindric.

That accident set up Busch’s winning dash and primed him for a possible sweep on Sunday.

“To do it here in Las Vegas at my home track would be huge,” Busch said.

The Xfinity Series is back on track on March 9 at for the race at ISM Raceway (4 p.m. ET, FS1).

 

Posted on by Staff Report

Richard Childress Racing flexed its muscle again in Saturday’s final Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with Austin Dillon and Daniel Hemric topping the leaderboard.

Dillon’s No. 3 Chevrolet, which also topped Friday’s opening practice, laid down a fast lap of 178.224 mph, while Hemric’s No. 8 came up at 177.072 mph. A trio of Fords completed the top five, with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. coming up third in his No. 17 and Aric Almirola and Brad Keselowski ranking fourth and fifth, respectively. Keselowski won the Las Vegas race in the 2018 Playoffs and was last weekend’s winner at Atlanta.

MORE: 10-lap averages from final practice | Full practice results

Reigning race winner and polesitter Kevin Harvick came up 29th on the speed charts.

MORE: Starting lineup for Sunday | See all the cars in the field

The afternoon session marked the final practice for the Monster Energy Series at Las Vegas; the morning session was canceled due to rain in the area.

Cars hit the track once again Sunday for the Pennzoil 400 (3:30 p.m. ET, FOX, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Posted on by Staff Report

The second Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice at Las Vegas Motor Speedway has been canceled due to inclement weather.

Officials put the session on hold roughly 20 minutes prior to the start of practice, which was slated to run from 11:30 a.m. – 12:25 p.m. ET. NASCAR elected to cancel the session several minutes later.

With persistent wet conditions in the area, NASCAR also canceled Xfinity Series qualifying (slated to begin at 12:40 p.m. ET). The lineup will be set by the rule book.

Final Monster Energy Series practice will begin when the track is deemed ready and will continue until 3:30 p.m. ET.

MORE: Full Las Vegas schedule