Posted on by Steve Luvender

Drivers competing in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series playoffs are formidable competitors. They face grueling conditions in the cars, demands from their teams, and expectations from their sponsors and fans.

No one’s ever asked — maybe for good reason — what if we combined two drivers from NASCAR’s championship playoffs into one super-driver?

Thanks to the power of the Internet, we’re giving you the ability to create your own driver face-swap mashup monstrosity to create the ultimate playoff driver.

Why? Because we could. Also, we wanted to give you nightmares.

Check out some of our favorites.

MORE GENERATORS: Code words | Dale Jr. selfie

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As the remaining races in 2018 dwindle, Hendrick Motorsports finds itself in unfamiliar territory.

Three of its four drivers — Jimmie Johnson, Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman — advanced to the 2018 NASCAR Playoffs. And those same three drivers are in precarious positions after falling victim to incidents in Sunday’s wild playoff opener at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

MORE: Updated NASCAR Playoffs standings | Las Vegas results

“We could have closed with a top-five finish that would have really helped and given us a cushion,” Johnson said post-race after finishing 22nd. “Today was really a good day for the Lowe’s team. We had good speed in the car, good pit stops, everything was going well and unfortunately, cut a right-front tire.”

“That is the most speed we have had on a 1.5-mile (track) all year,” Bowman said, his No. 88 coming up 19th after a late incident.

For the organization that’s struggled all year to find speed — particularly at 1.5-mile tracks —  flashes of speed (in spite of subpar finishes) on an intermediate may ordinarily bring a touch of encouragement. Johnson was running as high as third, while Bowman and Elliott ran more than 70 percent of their laps in the top 15.

The NASCAR Playoffs change that. Mid-race speed doesn’t mean much if the finish puts a driver on the wrong side of the cutline. So, while the organization is making some strides, is it too late for 2018?

“Playoffs, man” Johnson said. “… It means so much to everybody to be in the playoffs and have a shot at a championship. Everybody is just trying really hard.”

“Everyone is trying really hard” — that’s important, as obvious as it seems. A friend in the industry pointed out the following recently; if a driver makes the next round of the playoffs, that means someone else doesn’t. For all three Hendrick drivers to advance to the next round, they’ll have to outrun four other playoff competitors over the next two weeks to remain in contention. That sounds simple, but who would they eliminate? The majority of the playoff field has been strong throughout 2018 and with the way it’s been running, Hendrick isn’t beating the Kyle Busches or Kevin Harvicks of the field yet.

Perhaps Hendrick’s saving grace in this round of the playoffs is the next track on the circuit: Richmond Raceway. Because it’s a short track, there’s less emphasis on aero, where the team has struggled this season. Elliott finished second to Kyle Busch in the spring event at the Virginia track, while Johnson recorded a sixth-place result. In the series’ most recent trip to a short track with Bristol Motor Speedway, Elliott (third place), Bowman (eighth place) and Johnson (ninth place) all placed in the top 10.

The key for these three drivers — and the majority of the field, really — is to run well at Richmond before the Charlotte road course, which is being treated like the Talladega of road courses. The tests proved its unpredictability and no one wants to go into that weekend with a precarious position in the playoff standings.

My prediction for the HMS camp is that with a strong Richmond showing (and a whole lot of care and prayers at the Roval), Johnson and Elliott will advance on points and Bowman will be eliminated after the opening round. ‘Seven-Time’ has the experience of prevailing under pressure and is well-versed in how to protect his position or slightly advance it when needed, even if the No. 48 team can’t find a way back to Victory Lane right now. Elliott seems more likely, too, as the only Hendrick driver who has won this season and, at times, the team that has shown the most speed among the four-car stable. For a newcomer like Bowman, his chances seem less likely given that he doesn’t have the precious experience of running in the playoffs.

Regardless, for all three of these teams — and the No. 24 of William Byron that did not make the playoffs — this is a rebuilding year. Half of its drivers are new, the Camaro ZL1 is new and they’re still playing catch-up to the rest of the field. Any elimination from the playoffs gives Hendrick teams more opportunities to focus on preparing for 2019 and beyond. It may be too late for 2018 for some, but there’s plenty of racing left for these four wheelmen’s careers.

And let’s be honest; it’s Hendrick Motorsports and they can’t stay down for too long.

Posted on by Reid Spencer

If Justin Allgaier was starting to feel complacent about his regular-season championship in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, watching Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoff opener at Las Vegas Motor Speedway was all it took to inject a dose of reality.

Kevin Harvick, an odds-on choice to qualify for the Championship 4 race at Homestead-Miami Speedway, fell out on Lap 73, after a hard crash into the Turn 1 wall, taking pole winner Erik Jones with him.

All told, 11 of 16 playoff drivers had issues of varying severity at Vegas, and that was more than enough to make Allgaier take notice, with the Xfinity Playoffs set to begin with Friday’s Go Bowling 250 at Richmond Raceway (7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

RELATED: Xfinity Series Playoffs page

Allgaier left the Las Vegas cutoff race with a seven-point lead over second-place Christopher Bell. Elliott Sadler and Cole Custer, who are tied for third, are 28 points back. But the Las Vegas Cup event was an object lesson in just how fleeting a points lead can be.

“Obviously, for us, you have to feel good about where we’re at,” Allgaier said on Tuesday at NASCAR Xfinity Series media day at Charlotte Motor Speedway. “We’ve had a lot of momentum on our side, we’ve had great finishes, great race cars. But on the flip side, it’s the playoffs. We know how this goes. If you watched the Cup race on Sunday, you saw guys that you’d say, ‘Man, they’re a lock to make it to the next round, and they have plenty of points to bank’ — and they don’t have that anymore.

“I think, from my standpoint, we don’t have nearly the margins some of those guys had on the Cup side. So I’m excited about the playoffs. We’ve done our job. We’ve executed well. But on the flip side of it, until we get a win, or until we get enough points that nobody can pass me, I’m not going to be super pumped about it until we get to that point.”

Regardless of what happens in the playoffs, Allgaier has had a banner year. In seven previous full seasons in the Xfinity Series, he won five times. This year alone, his third with JR Motorsports, he has more than doubled that total.

“That’s special,” Allgaier acknowledged. “That doesn’t happen because I changed who I was. I didn’t learn how to drive at the beginning of 2018 and say, ‘Hey, let’s go win a bunch of races.’ That’s not at all what happened. Our team has clicked — our No. 7 team especially, but JR Motorsports as a whole.

“The camaraderie, the excitement, the fire, the passion … I tell people all the time: you can pay people to do a job, whatever it is, whether we come in here and we vacuum these floors or go out and race on the race track. But you can’t hire someone to have passion for what they’re doing. And right now, we have a bunch of guys who have passion.”

BRIEF STINT IN NASCAR’S FASTEST LANE HAS HELPED COLE CUSTER

NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoff driver Cole Custer got his first taste of competition in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series this year, driving a car fielded by owner Rick Ware in March at Las Vegas and in June at Pocono.

Custer finished 25th and 26th, respectively, in the two races, but he believes that experience will help him immensely as he seeks his first Xfinity title.

The most valuable lesson he learned?

“Driving cars that are harder to drive than the Xfinity cars,” Custer said. “Once you drive something that’s harder to drive, it makes you feel like Superman when you go back into the slower cars. I’d say that’s the biggest thing.

“Also, the Cup cars are so touchy to drive. They’re very, very hard. So I think you learn more when you drive those cars.”

Custer also has gained confidence exponentially in his second season as an Xfinity driver, and his second year with Ford.

“Last year we were just thrashing to get to the race track with the new Xfinity team and then also switching over to Ford,” Custer said. “It was definitely a little bit tough the first year but now that we’re in a rhythm.

“We have all the tools that they provide, (and that has) helped us a lot — especially the simulator. Having the second year has helped us a ton.”

XFINITY PLAYOFF SCHEDULE COULDN’T BE BETTER FOR CHRISTOPHER BELL

Christopher Bell couldn’t ask for a better array of races as the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs approach.

Though he has no more than two career starts at any of the six tracks that will determine who races for the championship at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Bell has scored at least one top five at each of them — with the exception of the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course, at which no one has yet raced.

The driver of the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota has one victory in two starts at Richmond, site of the playoff opener. He also has a win in his only race at Kansas, the venue for the first race in the second round.

“I’m excited for the playoffs,” Bell said. “The schedule actually works out really well for me. We’ve got Richmond, Dover, the Roval (Charlotte road course), nobody really knows what to expect. I feel like we’re going to be really fast at Richmond. I’ve already won there earlier this year. So I feel good.

“And then the second round is Kansas, Texas, Phoenix, which are all race tracks that I’ve run extremely well at and Joe Gibbs Racing runs extremely well at. I’m really happy right now with where we’re at.”

MORE: Xfinity Series schedule

Posted on by Staff Report

Dale Earnhardt Jr. left the door cracked open for racing beyond Friday night’s GoBowling 250 at Richmond Raceway in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. In a spontaneous Q&A with fans on Twitter, Earnhardt responded to a question about whether Friday (7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN/NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) would be his final race.

RELATED: Schedule for Richmond | Xfinity entry list | Dale Jr.: Richmond may be last race

Earnhardt said he’d only run races for JR Motorsports that involve sponsorship packages that help fund races for the other four teams. He went on to say when the team runs five cars in a given week, it stretches the company thin.

Earnhardt is running in this weekend’s NASCAR Playoffs opener in Xfinity because, as he said, it was part of an agreement with Unilever and Hellmanns that he do so; an agreement that was in place before he decided to walk away from full-time racing after the 2017 season.

RELATED: Breaking down the Xfinity Playoffs field | Dale Jr. through the years

Sweetening the scene for Junior fans is that he’ll have his old spotter back this weekend, TJ Majors, who currently spots for the No. 22 Team Penske Ford driven by Joey Logano in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.

Junior told a fan he got permission from Roger Penske, himself, for Majors to spot this week. But as for Steve Letarte stepping in as Junior’s crew chief? That won’t be happening, Junior says, because of Letarte’s commitments to broadcasting for NBC Sports.

However, although the band won’t be totally back together, we wouldn’t bet against Letarte dialing up Junior for an in-car interview or two.

Posted on by Steve Luvender

With NASCAR racing at Richmond Raceway this weekend, drivers like Xfinity Series racer Spencer Boyd are getting ready by turning some virtual laps.

You may not know it, but underdog NASCAR driver Timmy Hill is one of the best iRacing drivers online. This week, he streamed a race on Twitch, showing off his thoughtful, calculated manner of racing that’s earned him one of the highest iRating scores on iRacing.

NASCAR PEAK ANTIFREEZE iRACING SERIES UPDATE

Logan Clampitt won his first race in nearly two years Tuesday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway — the second race of the NASCAR PEAK Antifreeze iRacing Series playoffs. While Clampitt didn’t make the eight-driver playoff field, it was still a breakthrough victory for the Californian, who led the most laps in the race.

Catch the race recap from the Brickyard:

With two races until the Championship 4 is set, three spots are still up for grabs following Michael Conti’s victory in the post-season opener at Darlington.

 

IRACING PAINT SCHEMES OF THE WEEK

iRacing painters had some fun with the release of iRacing’s Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 race car.

Jordan Werth brought Scott Riggs’ 2005 car into the year 2018, and it looks sharp on the new Camaro ZL1.

Dustin Winegardner re-created a stunning version of Jimmie Johnson’s rookie car that looks even better on the Camaro ZL1 than it did in 2002. What do you say, Lowe’s Racing? Can we see this one on the real track? Please?

 

DON’T TRY THIS AT HOME

Think you love iRacing? Well, you probably don’t love it as much as iRacer and commentator Wil Vincent, who showed off his iRacing ink.

Posted on by Chase Wilhelm

The NASCAR Playoffs got off to a wild start in Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series postseason opener at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, as it felt like nearly every driver in 16-driver field found trouble of some sort at some point during the race.

Two of those competitors in a precarious position leaving Las Vegas were a couple of young favorites to potentially make deep runs in the field.

RELATED: Updated playoff standings | Every incident in Vegas

Polesitter Erik Jones slammed into the back of Kevin Harvick to end his day on Lap 148, while Chase Elliott ended the day early after getting caught up in Jamie McMurray’s mess on Lap 212.

“All good and move on to Richmond,” Elliott said. “It puts us in a hole to start, so not good.”

“It’s not the situation we need to be in,” said Jones. “We have some work to do now.”

MORE: Harvick, Jones wreck out | Elliott, McMurray collide in final stage

Unfortunately for both Elliott and Jones, their positions in the playoff standings — 14th and 15th respectively — have put them in quite the hole with Richmond Raceway and the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course remaining in the first of three elimination rounds. Elliott fell back six spots from his original seeding, while Jones fell five slots.

So who has the best opportunity to rebound as both now find themselves on the outside looking in?

ANALYSIS: Wild Las Vegas opening leaves competitors reeling

With all the unknowns that await Elliott, Jones and the rest of the playoff drivers at Charlotte road course, Saturday night’s race at Richmond (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN/NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) is of the utmost importance. Elliott and Jones have both seen similar up-and-down results at the 0.75-mile Virginia short track.

In six races, Elliott has collected two top-10 finishes, including a runner-up result in this year’s spring race. For Jones, three races have produced finishes of 38th, sixth and and 13th, respectively.

Looking at stats alone, Elliott gets the nod for producing better results at Richmond over Jones. However, Jones has had more consistent finishes recently, finishing no worse than 16th in the final 10 races in the regular season, while Elliott had four finishes of 13th or worse in that same span. Both of them also earned first-career victories, as well.

FINAL VERDICT: Elliott has slightly better odds over Jones to rebound from Las Vegas and make the Round of 12. The Hendrick Motorsports driver has a smaller deficit to dig out of (-9 points to the last transfer spot, while Jones is -19). Yes, Jones has put together a more consistent string of results over the past two-plus months, but Elliott nearly won Richmond in the spring. The win at Watkins Glen could also give Elliott a little more confidence going into the Charlotte road course.

Posted on by Team Release

HARRISBURG, N.C. (September 17, 2018) – Alon Day, the first driver from Israel to ever compete in NASCAR’s top series, will make his 2018 Monster Energy Series debut on Sept. 22 in the Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond Raceway. Day will drive the BK Racing No. 23 Best Bully Sticks Toyota Camry.

Day, a 26-year-old native of Tel Aviv, Israel, was the 2017 Champion of the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series. As a result of his outstanding achievements in NASCAR’s Euro Series, Day has the unique distinction of being the first stock car driver from outside of North America to be selected for the NASCAR NEXT program (Class of 2016), an initiative to feature NASCAR’s future stars.

LONG FORM: A brand new Day in Europe

Day previously has competed in NASCAR’s Camping World Truck and Xfinity Series. In 2017, he made his Cup Series debut at the Sonoma road course. The Richmond race marks his first on a Cup Series oval track.

As a longtime dog lover and a health food advocate, the partnership between Day and Best Bully Sticks was an easy decision for both parties. Best Bully Sticks is a brand of TDBBS, LLC, a Richmond, Va.-based market leader in providing healthy, natural dog treats and chews.

“I am so excited to be back in the Monster Energy Cup Series again this year and to be sponsored by Best Bully Sticks,” Day said. “Best Bully Sticks is an up-and-coming brand, and as an up-and-coming driver, I know we share similar values about working hard to establish ourselves. My team and I are eager to introduce the NASCAR audience and their dogs to Best Bully Sticks.”

Posted on by Staff Report

Name: Shay M.

Hometown: Miami, Florida

Favorite NASCAR track: Daytona International Speedway

Favorite Monster Energy Drink: Monster Absolutely Zero

Favorite Monster Energy event (besides NASCAR): MotoGP!

Favorite Monster Energy athlete: Gronk

Which character would you be in Talladega Nights: Cal Naughton. I’m competitive, so when an opportunity comes I take it, and when it comes down to it, I do what’s right.

Monster Girl Shay M Inset

PHOTOS: Best of Monster Energy Girls

Talladega or Daytona: Daytona, loyal to my sunshine state!

Car or Truck: Convertible

JetSki or Snow ski: JetSki, I’m a tropical gal and I love anything on the water.

Beer or wine: Champagne Showers! Best of both worlds wine with the bubbles!

What would you name your boat if you had one: MARLIN Monroe

You might not know this about me: I have a black belt in taekwondo and know some pretty killer moves with my nun-chucks

Best part of being a Monster Girl: Being a part of the team and all the wonderful girls who are special in their own way and attending all the really cool events nationwide!

Best/craziest fan story/encounter: A young girl came up to me and said she wanted to be just like me when she grew up & we danced! It was touching & that’s my goal to inspire others & be a role model.

Posted on by Staff Report

Name: Dessie M.

Hometown: Pittsburgh, PA

Favorite NASCAR track: Pocono

Favorite Monster Energy Drink: MANGO Loco!

Favorite Monster Energy event (besides NASCAR): MotoGP in Austin is always one of my favorites!

Favorite Monster Energy athlete: There’s so many amazing monster athletes that I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know! It’s too hard to pick just one! They’re all so talented!

Which character would you be in Talladega Nights: I’m obsessed with Will Farrell. So I would definitely pick Ricky Bobby. Hahah “I don’t know what to do with my hands.”

Talladega or Daytona: Daytona

Monster Girl Dessie M Inset

PHOTOS: Best of Monster Energy Girls

Car or Truck: Car

JetSki or Snow ski: JetSki

Beer or wine: Both!

What would you name your boat if you had one: The DesSea.

You might not know this about me: I have had four knee surgeries all on my left knee from sport injuries.

Best part of being a Monster Girl: Traveling with such an amazing crew and experiencing so many incredible races!

Best / craziest fan story/encounter: I was with my bestie Kayla and we had a fan rush up to us for a picture because they recognized us from when we were on The Amazing Race!

Posted on by Staff Report

Name: Morgan A.

Favorite NASCAR track: It’s too close to call Bristol or Talladega

Favorite Monster Energy Drink: Rehab

Favorite Monster Energy event (besides NASCAR): Monster Music Fest

Favorite Monster Energy athlete: Kurt Busch (DUH!)

Which character would you be in Talladega Nights: Hands down, Ricky Bobby!

Talladega or Daytona: Talladega

Morgan A monster girl
MARIO BARBERIO

PHOTOS: Best of Monster Energy Girls

Car or Truck: Truck

JetSki or Snow ski: JetSki

Beer or wine: Sex on the Beach

What would you name your boat if you had one: Reelin’ You In

You might not know this about me: I’m a realtor, boutique owner (Abel Fashion) and Psychiatric RN. I previously raced a modified. Grew up at the dirt track with my Dad and brother who raced 410 Sprint Cars.

Best part of being a Monster Girl: Traveling the country and representing a sport that I am genuinely passionate about. I also love meeting fans and taking photos with babies and puppies!

Best/craziest fan story/encounter: At Watkins Glen 2 years ago a fan, who called himself Captain America, proposed to me. Now every year we always joke about his proposal and take a new “family” photo!