Posted on by Sponsored Content

NASCAR fans at Texas Motor Speedway got their own laps in Sunday morning before the AAA Texas 500 with the NASCAR Fitness Challenge Fan Lap Powered by Lilly Diabetes.

With Roush Fenway driver Ryan Reed and “Glass Case of Emotion” podcast co-host Kim Coon joining fans pre-race under a bright blue Texas sky, fans took a pledge to better manage their health then took a walk on the fastest 1.5-mile track in NASCAR.

“Something as simple as a walk can make all the difference for my health and my diabetes management, so it’s really cool for Lilly Diabetes and NASCAR to encourage fans in a fun way to get some good exercise,” said Reed, driver of the DriveDownA1C Ford, at the fan walk earlier at Texas Motor Speedway.

Visit DriveDownA1C.com for more information and join the conversation with the hashtag #DriveDownA1C on Twitter.

Posted on by Staff Report

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion Martin Truex Jr. will drive for Joe Gibbs Racing in 2019, giving the longtime team owner a powerful four-car operation with multiple Monster Energy Series champions.

Truex is leaving Furniture Row Racing after five seasons with the Denver, Colorado-based No. 78 organization. He’ll replace Daniel Suarez on the No. 19 team, bringing crew chief Cole Pearn along with him. Furniture Row announced in August it would shutter its operations at the end of the season, paving the way for Truex Jr. to become a marquee free agent.

RELATED: Key players in ‘Silly Season’

“Anytime you have an opportunity to bring two people of this caliber into your organization, it’s certainly an exciting time,” said Joe Gibbs, owner of Joe Gibbs Racing, in a team release. “They obviously have developed a chemistry that has led to tremendous success, including a championship. We’ve gotten to know them well over the past few years through the alliance and having been part of the Toyota family. They both make us stronger as an organization.”

JGR indicated that sponsorship plans for next season were still in progress and would be announced at a later date.

Truex, 38, has four wins and four Busch Pole Awards this year for Furniture Row, which operates in partnership with JGR. His performance has placed him among the championship contenders heading into the Round of 8 finale this weekend at ISM Raceway in Phoenix.

Truex will be Kyle Busch’s teammate in 2019, giving JGR a powerful 1-2 punch with two of the most recent Monster Energy Series champions. Erik Jones and Denny Hamlin complete the four-driver roster at JGR.

All but two of Truex’s 19 Monster Energy Series wins have come with Furniture Row and team owner Barney Visser. The Furniture Row Racing owner issued a statement appreciative of Truex and Pearn’s efforts.

“I want to personally thank Martin and Cole for their contributions in making Furniture Row Racing a championship-caliber team,” Visser said. “There’s no doubt in my mind that they will continue to be a winning driver/crew chief combination with Joe Gibbs Racing. They are outstanding representatives for NASCAR and I am proud to have been associated with them. But before Martin and Cole depart for a new endeavor we still have two races remaining, and hopefully we will be celebrating another championship at Homestead-Miami Speedway.”

Pearn has been with Truex for all 17 of his Furniture Row victories, and the driver-crew chief pairing will remain intact next season.

“Obviously to be able to make this transition and still be able to work alongside Cole is something that was very important to me,” Truex said in a release provided by the team. “There is also a real comfort level working with the JGR team and I wanted to stay in the Toyota family. We still have big goals for the remainder of this season, but it’s nice to know what we will be doing in 2019.”

RELATED: All of Truex’s wins | Truex through the years

Truex marched to his first title in NASCAR’s top division in 2017 by winning eight races, including the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. He is also a two-time champion in what is now called the Xfinity Series, going back-to-back in 2004-05.

Suarez’s tenure with Joe Gibbs Racing will end after two seasons in NASCAR’s top division. The Mexican-born driver made the transition to the Monster Energy Series after Carl Edwards’ departure in January 2017, moving up after claiming the Xfinity Series championship for JGR the previous season.

Suarez climbed the NASCAR ladder through the Toyota Racing system and is now one of the sport’s top free agents for 2019. Gibbs, who oversaw much of his stock-car racing development, wished him well in a statement from the team.

“We really appreciate everything Daniel has done for Joe Gibbs Racing over these past several years,” Gibbs said. “He has made the most of every opportunity from winning the championship in the Xfinity Series to making the jump into the Cup Series for us. We look forward to hearing about his plans going forward and know he continues to have a bright future in our sport.”

Posted on by Zack Albert

Stewart-Haas Racing announced Wednesday that production manager Tony Gibson will serve as interim crew chief for the No. 4 Ford and driver Kevin Harvick for the rest of the season.

SHR made the announcement in conjunction with its decision not to appeal the L1-level penalties issued to the No. 4 team after its win Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway. Those penalties included a two-race suspension for crew chief Rodney Childers.

RELATED: Penalties to No. 4 team shake up playoffs

Gibson, who turned 54 on Saturday, will return to the top of the pit box for this weekend’s events at ISM Raceway in Phoenix and the Nov. 18 season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The longtime crew chief moved to the role of production manager before the 2018 season, taking control of vehicle fabrication for SHR’s four-car fleet and reducing his travel duties.

Gibson’s task will be to help guide Harvick through the final stages of his bid for a second Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship. Wednesday’s penalty for an unapproved spoiler carried a 40-point deduction that leaves Harvick just three points above the elimination line entering Sunday’s Can Am 500 (2:30 p.m. ET, NBC/NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), the final event in the postseason’s Round of 8.

MORE: Updated playoff standings | All-time winners at Phoenix

Harvick has nine career victories at the 1-mile Phoenix track, including the series’ most recent race there in March. Gibson scored his first premier-series win as a crew chief at Phoenix, converting a gutsy two-tire pit-stop call into a victory for Ryan Newman in April 2010.

Gibson revealed in August that he had suffered a stroke on July 6. He indicated that the illness affected his vestibular system, which relates to the balance and orientation functions through the eyes and ears. He returned to work after a six-week recovery period.

Gibson has been a less frequent visitor to the track in his current role, which is based in SHR’s Kannapolis, North Carolina, shop. Gibson served as a substitute crew chief for Stewart-Haas Racing’s No. 10 team and driver Aric Almirola at Bristol Motor Speedway in April, filling in for Friday practice and qualifying while primary crew chief Johnny Klausmeier stayed home with family after the birth of his second child.

Posted on by Staff Report

NASCAR officials handed down L1-level penalties to two more Monster Energy Series teams Wednesday, docking the No. 12 Team Penske operation and the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing team for body panel infractions in last weekend’s event at Texas Motor Speedway.

The No. 12 Ford that Ryan Blaney drove to a runner-up finish in last Sunday’s AAA Texas 500 was found with unapproved door front crush panels, a violation of Section 20.4.17.6.b in the NASCAR Rule Book. That rule states that “all filler panels must remain permanently attached for the entire event.”

RELATED: Harvick loses 40 points

The No. 20 Toyota that carried Erik Jones to fourth place was found with infractions on the body and package tray. Those sections (20.4.h and 20.4.17.8.b) in the rule book note that “air cannot pass from one area of the vehicle interior to another. Vehicle package tray must remain flat and straight, front to back, with one break.”

The penalties for both organizations are identical, with each team losing 20 points in both the drivers and team owners standings. For the No. 12 team, crew chief Jeremy Bullins has been fined $50,000 and car chief Kirk Almquist has been suspended from the next two Monster Energy Series races. On the No. 20 team, officials issued a $50,000 fine to crew chief Chris Gayle and suspended car chief Jason Overstreet for the next two events.

Those punishments are in addition to L1-level penalties handed to the No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing team of Texas race winner Kevin Harvick. NASCAR officials issued penalties for an unapproved spoiler on the No. 4 car, stripping the team of the benefits associated with the win and shaking up the playoff picture.

Both violations, found after a post-race technical inspection at the NASCAR Research & Development Center, are applied to the race finish for both teams. Blaney and Jones each qualified for this year’s NASCAR Playoffs, but both have since been eliminated from championship contention.

MORE: Updated playoff standings

Officials also penalized one team in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series for a safety infraction for losing a ballast container during a practice session last Thursday at Texas. NASCAR officials suspended three crew members for the No. 35 NextGen Motorsports team — crew chief Ryan Bell, truck chief Jerry Kennedy and mechanic Patrick Magee — for the next three Truck Series events, a span that stretches until after the 2019 season opener at Daytona International Speedway.

Brennan Poole drove the No. 35 Toyota to a 15th-place finish in the NextGen team’s debut in the series.

Posted on by Staff Report

The No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing team has been issued an L1-level penalty following driver Kevin Harvick’s win Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway, an infraction that carries major championship implications in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.

The team violated Section 20.4.12 of the NASCAR Rule Book that is specific to spoilers. Spoilers must be used exactly as supplied from the manufacturer and not altered. The infraction was discovered in post-race tear down at the NASCAR Research & Development Center.

As a result, Harvick has been docked 40 driver points and the team loses 40 owner points as well. Harvick’s win at Texas no longer automatically qualifies the team for the Championship 4 in Miami. He will enter this weekend’s Round of 8 finale fourth among eight playoff drivers in the standings, three points above the cutline – should there be a tie for the final transfer spot, Harvick cannot use the Texas win in the tiebreaking procedure.

RELATED: Nos. 12, 20 also penalized

Additionally, both crew chief Rodney Childers and car chief Robert Smith have been suspended for the next two races – ISM Raceway at Phoenix and the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Childers also has been fined $75,000.

“It is not our desire to issue any penalties, but will do so when necessary to ensure each race and championship is contested on a level playing field,” Scott Miller, NASCAR senior vice president of competition, said in a statement. “We will now return our focus to Phoenix, and the battle for a championship.”

Greg Zipadelli, Stewart-Haas Racing’s Vice President of Competition, said in a statement that the team would not appeal the penalty. Tony Gibson, SHR production manager, will serve as interim crew chief for the No. 4 team and Nick DeFazio will be its interim car chief.

“We work tirelessly across every inch of our race cars to create speed and, unfortunately, NASCAR determined we ventured into an area not accommodated by its rule book,” Zipadelli said in the SHR statement. “We will not appeal the penalty. Instead, we will direct our immediate focus to this weekend’s event in Phoenix and control our destiny on the race track.”

RELATED: Race results

Other Monster Energy Series penalties announced in the Wednesday penalty report were:

• An L1-level infraction to the No. 12 Team Penske camp. Crew chief Jeremy Bullins is fined $50,000, and car chief Kirk Almquist is suspended for the next two races. Driver Ryan Blaney loses 20 driver points, and the team loses 20 owner points.

• An L1-level infraction to the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing team. Crew chief Chris Gayle is fined $50,000, and car chief Jason Overstreet is suspended for the next two races. Driver Erik Jones loses 20 driver points, and the team loses 20 owner points.

Posted on by @nascarcasm

The name “Jimmie Johnson” invokes many images. A seven-time Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion. A certain first-ballot Hall-of-Famer. A fitness fanatic. A man with a beard so perfectly and meticulously groomed that you wonder if he’s of this planet.

Well, you can add “Budding Merchandise Magnate” to that list.

As it turns out, Jimmie’s spontaneous reply to yet another keyboard schmo on Twitter telling him to retire has inspired what is sure to be the fashion must-have of the fall.

Anyways, you probably saw this tweet/reply/third-degree burn…

… “I’m far from done, JA” — a reply that became an inspirational motto we can all live by. It inspired a bad tweet from yours truly …

… which wound up inspiring a good shirt by Twitter user and race fan @LandonShaffner.

… which has led to this moment. YOU TOO can rock this stylish shirt. It is now available for purchase here. Order, and be awesome.

Join the legions of fans who support Jimmie and are out to spread the message that, as evidenced by the final turn at the Roval this year, Jimmie Johnson shows no signs of slowing down.

Before going any further allow me to add that Jimmie has several good years left in him, and will retire when he feels like it. He won’t call an unexpected news conference, saunter to the podium with his head down, and say “I still feel like I have several wins and a championship or two left to win, BUT @BooJimmyJonson7665876544, whose Twitter avatar appears to be a blurry picture of his cat, told me I should ‘Hagn it up’ so I have no choice but to follow his demand.”

I had a chance to speak with Mr. Seven-Time himself regarding this magnificent attire. He was forthright and honest with his answers, as he is known to be. This is NOT made up dialogue. These are Jimmie’s actual words.

NASCARCASM: “I’m far from done, JA” is a powerful message. One that resonates with both young and old. One suitable for anyone facing adversity whether in life or via a random troll on Twitter. Tell me how you came up with this motto.

JIMMIE JOHNSON: I saw the posts, and I’ve seen posts from people not being so kind and suggesting my work ethic, my focus, my talents, my desire, all that stuff, is out the window and that I should just hang it up. And I saw it one too many times and saw that post and responded with that caption.

NASCARCASM: Did you have any other potential responses composed other than “I’m far from done, JA” that you opted not to use? I would assume your Twitter drafts folder is quite the treasure trove.

JIMMIE JOHNSON: I try to keep it clean, and I did flinch a little. I had “jacka—” written out and then I shortened it to JA. I know there’s kids watching and reading and stuff, but I’ve seen enough abbreviations that I felt like it was safe to use it and it wasn’t ultimately vulgar so I felt like it would be just fine.

NASCARCASM: How did the idea for the shirt come about?

JIMMIE JOHNSON: Just looking around on Twitter and I think you either posted it or responded to somebody that was making a shirt and going to Martinsville with it, so when I saw the shirt I thought it was a super-cool idea. I had a chance to actually meet the guy in Martinsville and had some shirts made for my crew guys and a few buddies that I’ve distributed, and just having a little fun with it. Hopefully we’re in Victory Lane soon and can bust out the shirts and show everybody then.

NASCARCASM: Will these be available in children’s sizes? Not trying to put ideas in your head but if you post a picture of your kids in this shirt it’s gonna get ALL the likes.

JIMMIE JOHNSON: I’m not sure mom’s gonna approve of that one, so I’ll let you ask her. (AUTHOR’S NOTE: Nooooooope, you ain’t getting ME in trouble, Jimmie Johnson)

NASCARCASM: I think we all know what “JA” stands for, but if you could, please provide some G-rated options for what it could mean, just in case a small child or William Byron asks “What does that stand for?”

JIMMIE JOHNSON: We’ll investigate. I don’t have a clue. (AUTHOR’S NOTE: Potential substitutes include “Jedi Apprentice,” “Judgmental Accuser,” “Jerky Auctioneer” or “Jennifer Aniston,” just to name a few. Or you could simply tell your child that it’s Jimmie telling Justin Allgaier to wait his turn.)

NASCARCASM: In what other instances in life do you think the message on the shirt is applicable? It certainly applies to more than just racing. For example, just last week at Don Pablo’s the waiter tried to take my plate as I was scraping that last remnants of guacamole off my plate with a tortilla chip and I yelled “I’M FAR FROM DONE, JACKASS” at him. What would be some others?

JIMMIE JOHNSON: Anybody trying to steal your guacamole too soon is certainly appropriate. Or if they touch my ice cream. Both of those are worth fighting over.

NASCARCASM: If Chad Knaus had a shirt similar to this one, with a short motto and an image of his likeness, what would it say?

JIMMIE JOHNSON: This one 🤬. I think he would be a little less PC and more direct.

NASCARCASM: Have you had any other memorable tweets in recent years that you think also warrant a T-shirt?

JIMMIE JOHNSON: I think witty ones. Look, I’ve got thick skin and I make mistakes and if I spin out their driver I’m fine having the banter. I’ve never blocked anyone on any of my channels. I read it all, I see it all – the good, bad and the ugly. But the witty ones, even if it’s something not in my favor that’s witty, just be creative. You don’t have to be a jerk. Just be creative and have some fun.

NASCARCASM: One idea. Lemme know if you like it. If not, throw it right back. A version of this shirt for your new best friend Fernando Alonso that reads “Estoy lejos de terminar, imbécil.”

JIMMIE JOHNSON: I’ve sent him a shirt, I just need to send one now in the correct language.

NASCARCASM: Also, this is unrelated, but I told a couple people I would be interviewing Jimmie Johnson. More than one said “Please ask him how he keeps his beard so meticulously groomed to such a perfect length.” Can you enlighten us or is this a trade secret.

JIMMIE JOHNSON: Head to your nearest pharmacy, and buy a beard trimmer. Buy a No. 1 blade and use it every third or fourth day.

Posted on by Zack Albert

Aric Almirola says he spoke with Joey Logano on Monday night, ironing out their differences after an on-track dust-up last weekend at Texas Motor Speedway.

Almirola had pointed words for Logano after their close-quarters battle for position late in Sunday’s AAA Texas 500. Logano drove on to a third-place finish, while Almirola lost momentum and dipped to eighth place in the final order.

RELATED: Playoff standings | NASCAR.com roundtable on incident

Almirola’s post-race interview Sunday contained hints at possible revenge, but in an interview Tuesday with NASCAR.com, the driver of the No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford said that he’s on better terms with his Team Penske rival after their Monday evening phone conversation.

“I think we both know where each of us stands and I feel good about it,” Almirola said. “I know a lot of people are confused at why I was upset when you look at the replay, but the reality is that as race car drivers, we both know the situation that we were in, and he knows kind of where my head was at and what I was thinking and I know where his head was at and what he was thinking, and we’ll move on. We’ll go from there.”

Moving on for now involves just two more races on the Monster Energy Series calendar, this Sunday’s Can Am 500 (2:30 p.m. ET, NBC/NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at ISM Raceway in Phoenix and the championship finale Nov. 18 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Logano is locked into the four-driver hunt for the title, thanks to his victory late last month at Martinsville Speedway. Almirola sits in a must-win scenario at Phoenix to qualify for one of the two remaining Championship 4 slots.

RELATED: Phoenix schedule | Where is Almirola in this week’s Power Rankings?

Almirola said he didn’t quite have enough oomph to contend with eventual race winner Kevin Harvick or runner-up Ryan Blaney, but indicated that had he gotten past Logano for third place, he would have been in prime position had something happened between the two front-runners.

Almirola chalked up another portion of the conflict to the difficulties with racing two-abreast at the 1.5-mile Texas track, causing his car to get loose entering Turn 3 as he ran to the low side of Logano. With Logano already cleared for the Homestead finale, Almirola said he didn’t expect such a hard-fought contest for the spot.

“I was hoping he’d cut me a break to be quite honest and that didn’t happen to be the case,” Almirola said. “I feel like if we go to Homestead and for whatever reason I wasn’t in the championship that he would expect the same out of me. He would expect me to cut him a break if we restarted with 30 laps to go and he was third and I was fourth, I feel like he would expect me to cut him a break and let him go race for a championship, and that’s kind of what I was hoping for. Whether that was wrong or right of me is beside the point. I was mad and upset, and it didn’t work out for me.”

Almirola admittedly was bitter in his post-race interviews, having lost a chance to capitalize on any possible Harvick-Blaney trouble over the final laps. His tumble out of the top five also cost the Stewart-Haas Racing driver precious points in his fight to stay alive in the Monster Energy Series playoff picture.

“These are high-pressure times and the intensity level is incredibly high, and emotions run high in situations like this,” Almirola said. “I got cameras and microphones stuck in my face immediately upon getting out of the car and being upset, and everybody heard it.”

That heat-of-the moment response created some reaction of its own, with broadcast commentators and others on social media critical of Almirola’s stance on being raced hard in a late-race situation. The 34-year-old driver said he hasn’t let the opinions of others ruffle him as he continues to chase his first premier series title.

“If I worried about what other people thought, I wouldn’t be here where I’m at today,” Almirola said. “People are always going to criticize, especially on social media. It gives people that their opinions mean absolutely nothing still a platform to say whatever it is that they want. I really could care less what anybody thinks about what I said or what I did or anything about Texas or otherwise.

“The people’s opinions that matter the most to me are (team owners) Tony Stewart, Gene Haas, all the guys on my 10 team and everybody at Stewart-Haas Racing, the people at Smithfield, Ford Motor Company — the people that directly impact my life and my career. All that outside stuff is just noise.”

Posted on by Steve Luvender

Getting Dirty with Clint Bowyer

While iRacing is traditionally known for its NASCAR-style stock car racing roots, it also offers a diverse platform of different racing disciplines, including road racing and dirt racing.

Newly minted iRacing dirt champion Zach Leonhardi won an experience of a lifetime: teaming up with Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver and dirt aficionado Clint Bowyer to tear up some dirt on the Dirt Track at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Other drivers expressed their respect for the program that gave an iRacer an exciting shot in a real race car.

Dale Jr. Talks Sim Racing’s Role

Longtime iRacing community member Dale Earnhardt Jr. spoke about the importance of online racing in developing his own team — including meeting his longtime spotter, TJ Majors, and late model driver Josh Berry.

 

While Junior’s racing online a little less frequently these days — you know, family obligations, a recent book release, and his job with NBC Sports — he admitted he still turns some practice laps from time to time.

Roval Progress

iRacing shared a work-in-progress screenshot of the Charlotte road course, expected for release soon.

Look out for those turtles!

Bubba’s Battlestation

Maybe we’ll catch Bubba Wallace turn some laps on iRacing with his sweet updated PC setup — in between streaming Call of Duty, of course.


NASCAR PEAK ANTIFREEZE iRACING SERIES UPDATE

The NASCAR PEAK Antifreeze iRacing Series crowned Ray Alfalla as 2018 champion two weeks ago, holding off defending champ Ryan Luza in a thrilling late-race battle.

The now-four-time champ will accept his $10,000 prize and a NASCAR championship ring at Homestead-Miami Speedway during Ford Championship Weekend.

Relive the season finale in three minutes:

The start of the off-season means Most Popular Driver voting for iRacing Series has opened.

Speaking of virtual NASCAR champions, recently-crowned eNASCAR Ignite Series champ Zack Novak stopped by Martinsville Speedway for some recognition at the site of where he clinched his title.


IRACING PAINT SCHEMES OF THE WEEK

While Jimmie Johnson’s official new Ally Financial paint scheme hasn’t been unveiled yet, that hasn’t stopped creative iRacing painters from using their imaginations in creating their own fictional design concepts.

Scott Pierchorowicz assembled a design worthy of consideration, down to the iconic yellow No. 48 numbers.

Anthony Mahone took a different approach with his design concept.

Painter Justin Bland tweaked a classic mid-2000s Hendrick Motorsports design to create a new paint scheme idea.

 

DON’T TRY THIS AT HOME

Everybody can agree flying race cars are a bad thing, even in the virtual world. Check out this close call, in which a car flips over another, somehow not taking out an innocent bystander car.

We have a lot of questions.

Posted on by Jordan Bianchi

Ahead of Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Can-Am 500 at ISM Raceway in Phoenix (2:30 p.m. ET on NBC, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) — the final race in the Round of 8 — we take a look back on the 2014 race that propelled Kevin Harvick into the Championship 4 with a win, and Ryan Newman into the title mix with a late-race dump-and-run.

Coming Wednesday: A look back at the 2015 race.

The scene

The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series rolled into Phoenix for the Round of 8 elimination race with no drivers having clinched a spot in the Championship 4 the next week at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Non-playoff drivers Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Martinsville) and Jimmie Johnson (Texas) had won the previous two races in the round.

In the first year of NASCAR’s new multi-round, elimination playoffs format, Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin were tied atop the series standings by a two-point margin over third-place Ryan Newman, with Jeff Gordon provisionally holding the fourth and final transfer position. Carl Edwards and Matt Kenseth each trailed Gordon by point, with Brad Keselowski 17 points back and Kevin Harvick 18 points back.

RELATED: Current playoff standings

That Harvick found himself teetering on playoff elimination was a surprise as he had dominated the regular season and postseason and was considered the championship favorite. He found himself in a sizeable points hole, however, due to a crash in the Round of 8 opener at Martinsville, and entered ISM facing a virtual must-win scenario. Working in Harvick’s favor, ISM presented an ideal track for him to maintain his championship eligibility by winning, as he had won there earlier in the season and three of the past four overall.

Logano and Hamlin seemed like good bets to qualify for the championship finale at Homestead, but still found themselves vulnerable if they had a disastrous result at ISM. The remaining drivers were in more tenuous situations, either needing a win to clinch a berth or misfortune to befall other title contenders.

MORE: Full results from 2014 Phoenix

The action

Conventional wisdom suggested Harvick would be the driver to beat and he wasted little time fulfilling that expectation. After qualifying third he moved into the lead for the first time on Lap 44, then proceeded to lead all but five laps the remainder of the way.

While Harvick dominated to secure one of the four available transfer spots, the battle for the other three slots intensified and was compounded by both Hamlin and Logano encountering various issues.

MORE: Harvick’s winning move last week

A flat tire forced Hamlin to make an unscheduled pit stop early, and on two occasions he would go down a lap. He rallied to finish fifth. Logano was penalized for removing equipment outside of his pit stall, eventually fell a lap behind and narrowly missed being collected in an accident. He too rallied and finished sixth. Both drivers advanced.

The battle for the final position was between Gordon and Newman, with Gordon seemingly set to claim the spot through a second-place finish. But a desperate Newman completed a brazen pass on Kyle Larson on the final lap that saw Newman dive-bomb going into Turn 3 then slide up the track and into Larson, whose car body-slammed the wall. By advancing his position Newman gained one point, the difference he needed to break a tie with Gordon and qualify for the Championship 4.

Ryan Newman is all smiles
Sean Gardner | Getty Images

The winner

Harvick led nearly 85 percent of the laps on the afternoon — including the final 187 — and won by a comfortable 1.6 seconds over Gordon. It was Harvick’s fourth win of the season and third straight at ISM. And considering the circumstances it was as clutch a performance as any in recent NASCAR history.

“Wow, I guess that’s what it feels like to hit a walk-off in extra innings there,” Harvick said. “I could tell that we were probably going to have to win, because everybody was running up in the front of the pack that we were racing against. I think this says a lot about our team. We had our backs against the wall. We’re in Victory Lane and we get to go on.”

The impact

Harvick, Hamlin, Logano and Newman — none of whom had ever won a premier series title — were the four drivers who advanced to Homestead with their championship aspirations intact. And in a thrilling finale where each of the title contenders ran near the front for much of the race, Harvick prevailed. The Stewart-Haas Racing driver did so with an inspired charge where he was 12th after making his final pit stop to passing Hamlin for the lead with eight laps remaining, then held off Newman on a restart with three laps remaining.

Posted on by Staff Report

Goodyear Racing will bring a new right-side tire for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race this weekend at ISM Raceway in Phoenix for the Round of 8 finale.

The tire features a slight construction update for Sunday’s Can Am 500 (2:30 p.m. ET, NBC/NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), the ninth of 10 postseason races for NASCAR’s top division. The switch is intended to promote adequate cooling on a 1-mile track where braking and brake heat are often a factor. The left-side tire code remains the same one that has been in place since March 2016.

RELATED: Full schedule for Phoenix

The decision stemmed from a tire test Oct. 2-3 at the Arizona track. Denny Hamlin, Matt Kenseth, Kyle Larson and Paul Menard participated in the two-day session.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series also will hold races this weekend that will determine the four-driver championship field for each circuit. The tire combination for both of those series remains unchanged from their most recent race at ISM Raceway.