Posted on by Brad Norman

MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Frustration boiled over for Cole Pearn, crew chief of the No. 78, after watching Martin Truex Jr.’s shot at clinching a Championship 4 berth slip away in the final lap of Sunday’s race at Martinsville Speedway.

And Todd Gordon, crew chief of race-winning driver Joey Logano, doesn’t blame him.

MORE: Full Martinsville results | Truex Jr.: ‘He ain’t winning the war’

Pearn and Gordon exchanged words on pit road after watching their drivers bump and bang around the final lap at the .526-mile track. Truex Jr. had taken the lead from Logano as the white flag dropped, but the Team Penske driver rallied and initiated contact in the final turn to win.

“I used a few choice words I probably shouldn’t have,” Pearn told NBCSN. “But it’s racing. You’re competitive. You care about it. We put our entire lives into this and when you come that close you get emotional.”

https://twitter.com/colepearn/status/1056688977258991616

Logano’s last-lap move on Truex Jr. to not only secure a grandfather clock, but also a coveted playoff spot at Homestead-Miami Speedway, was met with a mix of both cheers and boos from the crowd.

PEARN: ‘Not surprised coming from him’

Gordon knows that if he were in the No. 78 team’s position, he wouldn’t be pleased with the outcome, either. But he stands by his driver’s decision and believes the move was clean.

“He’s frustrated,” Gordon explained to NBCSN after hearing Pearn’s comments. “If roles were reversed, I would be, too. It’s what short-track racing is. It’s where this all came from. It’s probably frustrating for them on that end, but it’s something we got done today.”

With two more races left in the three-race Round of 8, there is no guarantee Truex Jr. will have the opportunity to defend his 2017 championship. The team hasn’t won in 14 races, and despite being 25 points above the cutline, emotions will continue to run high as time ticks away to lock down a spot in Miami.

“I’m happy I don’t have a baseball bat or a jackhammer right now,” Pearn said with a wry smile.

Posted on by Staff Report

Following the seventh Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs race, here’s a brief look at the playoffs picture. The 10-race postseason is one race into the Round of 8. There are two more races before the field is whittled to four, with four drivers eliminated from the postseason following Phoenix (Nov. 11).

Winner

Joey Logano appeared to have missed his chance at victory after Team Penske teammate Brad Keselowski passed him on a late restart. Given a second chance, Logano didn’t misfire. He retook the lead on Lap 460, held off an aggressive Keselowski and then bumped Truex Jr. out of the way on the final turn of the final lap to win.

MORE: Race results

Who’s hot

Martin Truex Jr. We know Martin Truex Jr. hasn’t won at a short track, and Sunday’s post-qualifying inspection failure sent the No. 78 to the back of the pack. But the reigning Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion impressively drove through the field, earning stage points and a third-place finish to leave Martinsville second in the standings.

Kyle Busch. The pole-sitter never quite looked like the best car in the field, but he was awful close to it. A top-three finish in both Stage 1 and Stage 2 coupled with a fourth-place finish had Busch looking like he’s rounding into championship form.

Who’s not

Clint Bowyer. Bowyer started second and as the most recent track winner, was a popular pick to win the race. But the No. 14 team sank throughout the race with a variety of issues, including damage to the front of his Ford after he drilled William Byron on pit road. A late spin on Lap 456 (of 500) after battling with Jimmie Johnson sent Bowyer dropping to 21st place.

Aric Almirola. Almirola’s numbers suggested Sunday would be a slog for him, and it was. The first-year Stewart-Haas Racing driver ran in the top 15 all day, and was in the top five on the final restart. Typically, that equals a pretty good day. It’s not enough at this point in the season, though.

BUBBLE WATCH

Rank Driver Points to cutoff
1. Joey Logano WINNER
2. Kyle Busch +46
3. Martin Truex Jr. +25
4. Kevin Harvick +25
————— CUT-OFF LINE —————
5. Kurt Busch -25
6. Clint Bowyer -31
7. Chase Elliott -42
8. Aric Almirola -50

Next race

The Monster Energy Series travels to Texas Motor Speedway for a Sunday race on Nov. 4 (3 p.m. ET, NBCSN/NBC Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). It is the second race in the Round of 8.

Who it favors

Kevin Harvick. Harvick is one of three playoff drivers to have a win at Texas over the last 10 races at the 1.5-mile facility. Yes, Kyle Busch has two wins to Harvick’s one during that time frame, but Harvick’s No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford has been the fastest machine on intermediate tracks this year.

Who it hurts

Aric Almirola. Stewart-Haas Racing’s overall team speed on intermediate tracks helps Almirola, but this historically has not been a good track for him. The last 10 Texas races have yielded zero top-10 finishes for Almirola; every other playoff driver has at least three. His best finish during this stretch is 12th-place, and Almirola really needs a win this round.

Posted on by Zack Albert

MARTINSVILLE, Va. — One of Martin Truex Jr.’s greatest opportunities to finally scratch the short-track win column fizzled in another last-lap classic Sunday at Martinsville Speedway. With it, an automatic berth to the Homestead-Miami championship finale also evaporated.

Joey Logano snared the title shot that Truex thought he deserved in the First Data 500, finishing off their lengthy battle in the late going with a final-corner shove that sent both cars skittering across the start/finish line. As feverishly as the on-track action unfolded in the Round of 8 opener, almost as spirited was the post-race debate over what was fair game, given the high-pressure scenario.

MORE: Watch the wild finish

“I raced him as hard as I race everybody,” Truex said. “I took the lead from him fair and square and then he gave me a cheap shot. It’s a cheap win. I hope he’s proud of himself.”

Truex’s Furniture Row Racing No. 78 Toyota surged into the conversation for the win with a methodical march past several daylong contenders. With the laps remaining reaching single digits, he found himself to the low side of Logano’s Team Penske No. 22 Ford, and the two cars rooted for position lap after lap.

Once Truex cleared Logano shortly after the white flag fell, Logano sized him up for the final set of turns and applied liberal amounts of front bumper. Logano had just enough momentum to finish first, with Denny Hamlin sneaking in for second place as Truex fought for control under the checkered flag.

“It was fun all the way up to the last turn, and he decided to just knock me out of the way,” Truex said. “So, I get that he wants to go to Homestead and I don’t know, man. I don’t race like that. I don’t appreciate it when others race me like that. Little bumps, obviously, we run into each other all the time, but just to deliberately knock me out of the way for the win, I thought was a cheap shot, in my opinion, and I’ll remember that if he’s in front of me coming to the checkered flag.

“He may have won the battle, but he ain’t winning the damn war,” an emotional Truex continued. “He ain’t.”

Not surprisingly, team owner Roger Penske took exception with Truex’s assertion that Logano’s tactics were not above board. Somewhat surprising was the forceful nature of his rebuttal.

WATCH: Penske on Truex: ‘He should know better’

“He’s a racer and should know better than to say that,” Penske said. “That’s as clean a shot as you can have in a race like this. … To me, I’m really looking forward. We want to go to Miami. Joey ran a great race. As far as I’m concerned, that’s just a comment that I don’t think we deserve. We’ll race him day after day. Stirring some controversy that he’s trying to spread. From my perspective, Joey drove a great race.”

Logano admitted to making a hawkish move, but expressed that his approach was far less blatant than Hamlin’s infamous nudge of Chase Elliott in last year’s playoff race at Martinsville.

“As a race car driver you think about a lot of things, but my goal was not to wreck him in any way,” Logano said. “My goal was to win the race, but I don’t want to win by dumping somebody. I want to win by making a move, and that’s the classic bump and run. That is the move that our sport — and Martinsville in particular — was built on. I feel like I owe it to my race team to do everything I can to be able to win a race and get ourselves to have another shot at a championship. That’s my job. They did their job today and I had to do mine.”

WATCH: Logano reacts to Truex’s comments

Truex had rallied all day, recovering from a starting spot in 33rd after issues in morning inspection and making a strong bid to end an 0-for-77 career drought at short tracks. Now he’ll need to regroup again over the round’s next two races at Texas and Phoenix. Truex’s postseason cushion remains strong, 25 points above the cutoff line for elimination, but the gilded opportunity for an automatic pathway to the Nov. 18 championship race still slipped away.

Some of the last-lap fireworks were a product of the high stakes; some could be attributed to Logano’s aggressive nature. Cole Pearn, Truex’s crew chief, suggested it was a bit of both.

“I guess it’s just gasoline with a match, right? A lot on the line and that’s how he races,” Pearn said. “Nothing surprising. He’ll get out and talk about short-track racing and whatever, but we passed him clean. I mean, whatever. It is what it is. Just tough to take. I mean, just wanted it really bad for this team and to be able to go to Homestead and have a shot at it. We’re still alive. Just tough to take when you’re that close.”

RELATED: Crew chiefs exchange words

Posted on by Reid Spencer

MARTINSVILLE, Va. – Joey Logano provided his own interpretation of the Golden Rule in Sunday’s First Data 500 at Martinsville Speedway, as in, “Do unto others as others didn’t do to you.”

With a guaranteed spot in the Championship 4 Round of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series at stake, Logano moved the Toyota of Martin Truex Jr. out of the way in Turns 3 and 4 of the final lap to win for the first time at the .526-mile short track and claim his berth in the title race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

RELATED: Race results 
SHOP: Logano gear

“Just thinking about Miami, man,” Logano said unapologetically after climbing from his car to an evenly divided chorus of cheers and boos from fans in the frontstretch grandstand. “Some are going to like it, and haters are going to hate a little bit, but I’m a hard racer. I don’t think that’s a secret to anyone. We’re here to win a championship this year.”

Truex, who cleared Logano off Turn 2 on the final lap after an extended side-by-side battle, vowed that Logano wouldn’t win his first title this season.

MORE: Ford Hall of Fans 6 finalists selected

“He may have won the battle, but he ain’t winning the damn war,” promised Truex, who slid across the finish line in third place after Denny Hamlin edged him for second in a wild scramble off the final corner. “That’s it. I’m not letting him – I’m going to win the championship …

“I was next to him for six laps. I never knocked him out of the way. We were going to race hard for it in my book. I cleared him fair and square. We weren’t even banging doors for me to pass him. He just drove into the back of me and knocked me out of the way. It’s short-track racing, but what goes around comes around.”

RELATED: Truex on Logano’s last-lap move

From past experience, Logano knows that retaliation can be sudden and decisive. In 2015, after turning Matt Kenseth to win a playoff race at Kansas, Logano appeared a likely winner at Martinsville and a favorite for the championship until Kenseth pile-drove him into the Turn 1 wall at Martinsville and ended his Playoff run.

But that incident seemed a distant memory on Sunday evening, as Logano savored his second victory of the season, the 20th of his career and the cherished grandfather clock trophy that comes with a Martinsville win.

“We raced hard there,” Logano said. “He raced really clean, and I laid the bumper to him, so I don’t expect him to be happy. We had to do what we’ve got to do, and maybe there’s something he’s got to do, and we’ll hash it out, I’m sure, one way or another.

“But that was our shot. It may be our only shot, so we had to make it happen.”

WATCH: Logano reacts to Truex’s comments

Hamlin, who had an excellent long-run car but couldn’t fight his way past fourth-place finisher Kyle Busch and fifth-place Brad Keselowski in time to challenge for the win, nevertheless had a ringside seat for the pyrotechnics between Logano and Truex.

“I think the 22 (Logano) saw he was in a vulnerable position,” Hamlin said. “They were side by side for two laps. The 22 was on the outside. That’s a position where you can’t do anything to the leader. So it looked like to me that he conceded the spot on the white-flag lap. Once I saw that he conceded the spot, followed in behind him, I knew we were in for an exciting Turn 3 and 4.

“I knew it was coming. Everyone probably saw it was coming. I just think it would have been still a cool battle if they would have just stayed side by side. I think the 22 thought he wasn’t going to win that way.”

Despite finishing third, Truex leaves Martinsville tied for third on the playoff grid with 10th-place finisher Kevin Harvick, 25 points ahead of Kurt Busch (sixth Sunday), the first driver below the Championship 4 cut line. Harvick is the last driver above the cut line due to a tiebreaker because Truex currently has the higher Round of 8 finish. Kyle Busch sits second on the grid, 46 points ahead of his brother.

Chase Elliott, who ran seventh, is 31 points behind Harvick. Stewart-Haas Racing teammates Clint Bowyer and Aric Almirola are 42 and 50 points out of fourth, respectively. A late spin cost Bowyer dearly. He finished 21st, one lap down.

Posted on by Staff Report

Each race except the spring Charlotte race is comprised of three stages — Stage 1, Stage 2 and the Final Stage. The Coca-Cola 600 added a fourth stage. Drivers who finish in the top 10 in Stage 1 and Stage 2 earn additional race points, with the winner of each stage earning 10 points, second place earning nine points, third place earning eight points, etc., down to one point for 10th place. Stage 3 of the Coca-Cola 600 awards points in the same manner as Stages 1 and 2 in the other races.

The Final Stage produces the race results and awards points across the field.

Below is a cumulative running tally of how many stage points drivers have earned this year, as well as their stage wins — a stage win will provide an additional bonus point per win of the postseason.

Through Homestead-Miami 
Note: Does not include points earned for the Can-Am Duels at Daytona

2018 TOTAL STAGE POINTS
RANK DRIVER TEAM STAGE POINTS STAGE WINS
1. Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing 375 19
2. Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing 350 6
3. Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing 309 3
4. Brad Keselowski Team Penske 287 5
5. Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing 284 10
6. Ryan Blaney Team Penske 269 6
7. Joey Logano Team Penske 258 5
8. Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing 251 5
9. Clint Bowyer Stewart-Haas Racing 244 1
10. Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports 234 4
11. Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing 178 3
12. Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing 170 1
13. Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports 132 0
14. Erik Jones Joe Gibbs Racing 111 0
15. Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports 71 0
16. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing 57 2
17. Paul Menard Wood Brothers Racing 56 1
18. Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing 52 0
19. William Byron Hendrick Motorsports 41 0
20. Michael McDowell Front Row Racing 36 0
21. Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing 35 0
22. Daniel Suarez Joe Gibbs Racing 34 0
t-23. Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing 29 0
t-23. AJ Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing 29 1
25. Kasey Kahne Leavine Family Racing 14 0
26. Ty Dillon Germain Racing 12 0
27. Matt Kenseth Roush FenwayRacing 11 1
t-28. Chris Buescher JTG Daugherty Racing 7 0
t-28. Trevor Bayne Roush Fenway Racing 7 0
t-30. Darrell Wallace Jr. Richard Petty Motorsports 5 0
t-30. David Ragan Front Row Motorsports 5 0
32. Daniel Hemric Richard Childress Racing 1 0

 

Posted on by Staff Report

What channels are NASCAR races on 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 Go | How to find NBCSN

MONDAY, October 29
6 p.m.: NASCAR Race Hub, FS1
7 p.m.: NASCAR America, NBCSN/NBC Sports App

On MRN
Noon: Motorsports Monday (with hosts Woody Cain and Joey Meier)

TUESDAY, October 30
4:30 p.m.: Glory Road: “David Pearson and the 1968 Rebel 400,” NBCSN/NBC Sports App (re-air)
5 p.m.: NASCAR America, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
6 p.m.: NASCAR Race Hub, FS1

On MRN
7 p.m.: NASCAR Live (with host Mike Bagley)

WEDNESDAY, October 31
4 a.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series: Texas Roadhouse 200, FS1 (re-air)
5 p.m.: NASCAR America: Wednesdays with Dale Jr., NBCSN/NBC Sports App
6 p.m.: NASCAR Race Hub, FS1
4 a.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series: Texas Roadhouse 200, FS2 (re-air)

On MRN
Noon: Crew Call (with hosts Sammi Jo Francis and Rocko Williams)
1 p.m.: NASCAR Coast to Coast (with hosts Kyle Rickey and Hannah Newhouse)

THURSDAY, November 1
5 p.m.: NASCAR America, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
5:30 p.m.: Dale Jr. Download, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
6 p.m.: NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race at Kern County Raceway Park, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
6 p.m.: NASCAR Race Hub, FS1

On MRN
1 p.m.: Throwback Thursday: 1973 Lone Star 500

FRIDAY, November 2
2 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN2)
3 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series practice, NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN App)
4 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series pole qualifying, FS2
5:30 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series final practice, NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN App)
7 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Busch Pole Qualifying, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN App)
8 p.m.: NASCAR RaceDay: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, FS1
8:30 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series JAG Metals 350, FS1

SATURDAY, November 3
6 a.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series JAG Metals 350, FS1 (re-air)
12:30 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice, CNBC/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN App)
1:30 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series pole qualifying, CNBC/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN App)
3 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series final practice, NBC Sports App (NBCSN joins in at 3:30 p.m. ET) (Canada: TSN App)
4 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series Countdown to Green, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
4:30 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series O’Reilly Auto Parts 300, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN2)
6:30 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series Post-Race Show, NBCSN/NBC Sports App

SUNDAY, November 4
11:30 a.m.: Classic NASCAR — 1998 Daytona 500, FS1
Noon: NASCAR RaceDay, FS1
1 p.m.: NASCAR America, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
2:30 p.m.: NASCAR Cup Series Countdown to Green, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
3 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series AAA Texas 500, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN1, 4)
7 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Post-Race Show, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
7:30 p.m.: NASCAR Victory Lap, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
10 p.m.: Glory Road: “Blacker,” NBCSN/NBC Sports App (re-air)
10:30 p.m.: Glory Road: “NASCAR Goes Road Racing,” NBCSN/NBC Sports App (re-air)

Posted on by Staff Report

The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series and Camping World Truck Series will be in action at Texas Motor Speedway. The Monster Energy Series and Xfinity Series head into their second races of the Round of 8 in the NASCAR Playoffs, while the Camping World Truck Series enters the second race in the Round of 6. Check out the full schedule below, which is subject to change.

MORE: You can win a trip to Miami

Note: All times are ET

MORE: How to find NBCSN

SUNDAY, NOV. 4
1:00:00 p.m.: Driver/crew chief meeting
2:30:00 p.m.: Driver introductions
2:45:00 p.m.: Re/Max Skydive Team Exits Plane
3:00:00 p.m.: Moment of Silence
3:00:15 p.m.: Intro and Invocation by Bret Shisler with Texas Alliance Raceway Ministries
3:00:50 p.m.: Presentation of Colors by Euless Police Department
3:01:00 p.m.: Pledge of Allegiance by Local Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts
3:01:35 p.m.: National anthem by Air National Guard Band of the Southwest
3:02:50 p.m.: Flyover by 142nd Fighter Wing, Portland, Oregon
3:07:50 p.m.: “Drivers, Start Your Engines” by Major Ed Pulido, U.S. Army (retired)
3:16:20 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series AAA Texas 500 (334 laps, 501 miles), NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Results) (Canada: TSN1, 4)

PRESS PASS (Watch live)
6:30 p.m.: Post-Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race

THURSDAY, NOV. 1
4:05-4:55 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series first practice (No TV) (Results)
6:05-6:55 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series final practice (No TV) (Results)

RELATED: VIP experience for Ford fan

FRIDAY, NOV. 2
2-2:55 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series first practice, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Results) (Canada: TSN2)
3:05-3:50 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series first practice, NBC Sports App (Results) (Canada: TSN App)
4:10 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series qualifying, FS2 (Results)
5:35-6:25 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series final practice, NBC Sports App (Results) (Canada: TSN App)
7 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Busch Pole Qualifying, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Results) (Canada: TSN App)
8:30 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series JAG Metals 350 (147 laps, 220.5 miles), FS1 (Results)

PRESS PASS (Watch live)
12:30 p.m.: Joey Logano
12:45 p.m.: Chevrolet
1 p.m: Gray Gaulding
1:15 p.m.: Aric Almirola
1:30 p.m.: Christopher Bell, Cole Custer and Daniel Hemric
3:30 p.m.: Kyle Busch
3:45 p.m.: Martin Truex Jr.
4 p.m.: Hailie Deegan
7:45 p.m.: Post-Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series qualifying
10:30 p.m.: Post-NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race

SATURDAY, NOV. 3
12:30-1:25 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series second practice, CNBC/NBC Sports App (Results) (Canada: TSN App)
1:40 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series qualifying, CNBC/NBC Sports App (Results) (Canada: TSN App)
3-3:50 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series final practice, NBC Sports App (NBCSN joins in progress at 3:30 p.m. ET) (Results) (Canada: TSN App)
4:30 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series O’Reilly Auto Parts 300 (200 laps, 300 miles), NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Results) (Canada: TSN2)

PRESS PASS (Watch live)
6:45 p.m.: Post-NASCAR Xfinity Series race

 

Posted on by Staff Report

Stage 2 stayed green for the 130-lap duration, and Joey Logano led every one of those laps. The Team Penske driver banked a playoff point and 10 race points for winning Stage 2 on Sunday at Martinsville. It was a strong start to the race for the playoff driver, who finished second in Stage 1 by nipping Kyle Busch at the start/finish line.

Logano couldn’t pass Jimmie Johnson to put the Hendrick Motorsports driver one lap down over the final five laps of Stage 2, and their battle allowed Hamlin to catch Logano for a thrilling last-laps duel. Logano took his No. 22 Ford to the outside and barely held off Hamlin for the stage win.

Busch, the polesitter, finished third in the second stage. Martin Truex Jr. (playoffs) and Kurt Busch (playoffs) rounded out the top five. Full Stage 2 results are below.

Truex Jr.’s run to fourth was especially impressive. A failed post-qualifying inspection Sunday morning sent Truex Jr. to the back of the pack to start Sunday’s 500-miler, and he spent the first half of the race chugging his way through the field.

Stewart-Haas Racing teammates and playoff drivers Kevin Harvick and Aric Almirola both slipped outside the top 10 in Stage 2 after earning points in Stage 1.

Driver Team Race Points
1 Joey Logano Team Penske 10
2 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing 9
3 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing 8
4 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing 7
5 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing 6
6 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing 5
7 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports 4
8 Clint Bowyer Stewart-Haas Racing 3
9 AJ Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing 2
10 Brad Keselowski Team Penske 1

 

Hamlin wins Stage 1 with late pass

Denny Hamlin passed polesitter and Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch for the lead with less than 15 laps to go in Stage 1 on Sunday at Martinsville Speedway, and held on to win the opening stage. Busch led 100 laps in Stage 1, but lost the lead to Hamlin on two separate occasions.

Winning Stage 1 earned Hamlin 10 race points; the typical playoff bonus point will not go to Hamlin’s total in the standings, though, because he has been eliminated from the postseason.

RELATED: Stage 1 results

Busch, who was in first place in the standings entering the Round of 8 opener, finished third in the stage to earn eight race points and pad his lead over the cutline. Joey Logano passed Busch for position on the final circuit of the 130-lap stage to finish second.

Playoff drivers Clint Bowyer (Stewart-Haas Racing) and teammate Kurt Busch rounded out the top five. Full results are below.

Martin Truex Jr., who was sent to the rear of the field after failing post-qualifying inspection Sunday morning, appeared to be in jeopardy of finishing outside the top 10 in the opening stage, but rallied late to finish eighth and earn points. Chase Elliott, 11th in Stage 1, was the only playoff driver not in the top 10.

Stage 2 ends on Lap 260; the race is scheduled to end after 500 laps.

Driver Team Race Points
1 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing 10
2 Joey Logano Team Penske 9
3 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing 8
4 Clint Bowyer Stewart-Haas Racing 7
5 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing 6
6 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing 5
7 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing 4
8 Ryan Blaney Team Penske 3
9 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing 2
10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing 1

 

Posted on by Zack Albert

MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Jimmie Johnson has been unique, both in his accomplishments and his relationships with sponsors over the course of his NASCAR career. Johnson has carried a single brand — Lowe’s — as his lone full-season backer for 18 years.

A new chapter begins in 2019, but with another primary sponsor signing up for a full-season ride in the Monster Energy Series.

Hendrick Motorsports and Ally Bank made the joint announcement Sunday afternoon at Martinsville Speedway, revealing a two-year agreement that will put the financial service company on Johnson’s No. 48 Chevrolet for all 38 races (including exhibitions) of each season in the Monster Energy Series.

RELATED: Career highlights for JJ

“To enter this new chapter in my racing career and have one sponsor once again, it says a lot about Hendrick Motorsports and the value of this 48 car, then also our sport. As today unfolds with the media buys they’ve done and the way they’re going to advertise in our sport, as you see them engage next year and really using NASCAR as a marketing tool for their company, you’ll all be very, very impressed with their vision and the importance they see in NASCAR racing and the main reason why they’re here and involved.”

Ally was named GMAC until 2010 and has maintained a relationship with Rick Hendrick that has spanned his motorsports and auto sales ventures. The company’s investment with a multi-year package provides an extra layer of security for the team and its seven-time champion driver.

“I wasn’t worried about it because I had pieces, but what’s really so special about this deal is Jimmie’s had his car by one sponsor all these years, and now he’s going to have one sponsor,” Hendrick said. “It was kind of like it was from heaven. Just everything lined up.”

As for the full-season buy-in, Hendrick was overjoyed. “You don’t get me speechless sometimes, but that kind of got me speechless.”

RELATED: All of Jimmie’s wins

Ally CEO Jeffrey Brown attended Sunday’s First Data 500, watching Johnson’s No. 48 tackle Martinsville with his company’s logo as an associate backer. For Brown, the decision to align itself more closely with Johnson through a full-time sponsorship package was a crucial component.

“I think it’s simple. I talked about our philosophy and our mantra is really, ‘Do it right,’ ” Brown said. “And if we’re going to do something, we’re going to do it right. We’re going to control, so ultimate control for the full season was very important.”

With four races left in the season, talks are already underway for the partnership’s goals for 2019 and beyond. That includes a national advertising push, plus the exposure from Johnson’s social media outreach and his personal interests.

“I feel that this is really, really a good fit and they really want to support me as an individual and the things that I’m into and why I love racing,” Johnson said. “So I think out of the gate from a primary standpoint, this is a home run and it can only get better from here if I can loop in either endorsement or associate sponsors from here.”

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