Posted on by Chase Wilhelm

LAS VEGAS — NASCAR Playoffs driver Chase Elliott was an innocent bystander in Jamie McMurray’s misfortunate in Sunday’s South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the postseason opener for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.

McMurray spun up the race track in Turns 3 and 4 on Lap 211 as a result of a cut tire. Running the high line through the corner, Elliott slammed into the No. 1 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet. The incident damaged the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet enough to end his day, finishing 36th.

Immediately after the crash, Elliott radioed to his crew that he was experiencing pain in his shoulder from the contact. Following a trip to the infield care center, Elliott said the pain quickly subsided.

“I’m OK now,” Elliott said. “It popped really big. My hand got caught in the wheel. I got to messing with it after and it popped again. All good and move on to Richmond.”

RELATED: Elliott describes shoulder injury

Elliott came into the day as the eighth seed of the 16-driver playoff field. The poor result now puts him in 14th place heading into Richmond and the Charlotte road course, the final two races of the first playoff round.

“It puts us in a hole to start, so not good,” Elliott said.

McMurray went on to finish 35th, a disappointing result for what might have been a strong day for the No. 1 team.

“I feel like our whole year has kind of went like that,” McMurray said. “There’s nothing you can do about it. I was thrilled with our speed. …I thought we had a car capable of winning today, so it’s frustrating, but, I mean, it’s much more frustrating to run bad.”

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 | Gets FOX Sports Go | How to find NBCSN 

Monday, September 17
6 p.m. NASCAR America, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
6 p.m.: NASCAR Race Hub, FS1

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

Tuesday, September 18
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, September 19
Midnight: Glory Road “Blacker” (re-air), NBCSN/NBC Sports App
12:30 a.m.: Glory Road “NASCAR Goes Road Racing” (re-air), NBCSN/NBC Sports App
5 a.m.: NASCAR Race Hub (re-air), FS1
5 p.m.: NASCAR America: Wednesdays with Dale Jr., NBCSN/NBC Sports App
6 p.m.: NASCAR Race Hub, FS1

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

Thursday, September 20
5 p.m.: NASCAR America, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
5:30 p.m.: Dale Jr. Download, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
6 p.m.: NASCAR Race Hub, FS1

On MRN
1 p.m.: Throwback Thursday: 1991 Miller 400

Friday, September 21
4 a.m.: NASCAR Race Hub (re-air), FS1
5 a.m.: Beyond the Wheel, FS1
8:30 a.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series first practice, NBC Sports App (Canada; TSN App)
10 a.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series final practice, NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN App)
11:30 a.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series first practice, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN2)
12:30 p.m.: NASCAR Decades: The 1970s (re-air), NBCSN/NBC Sports App
1:30 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series final practice, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN2)
2:30 p.m.: NASCAR Racing: K&N Pro Series West at Las Vegas, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
3 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series final practice (re-air), NBCSN/NBC Sports App
4:30 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series Qualifying, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN App)
5:30 p.m.: NASCAR America, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
6 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Busch Pole Qualifying, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN2)
7 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series Countdown to Green, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
7:30 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series Go Bowling 250, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN2)
9:30 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series Post Race, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
10 p.m.: NASCAR Decades: The 1990s (re-air), NBCSN/NBC Sports App
10:30 p.m.: NASCAR Decades: The 1980s (re-air), NBCSN/NBC Sports App

On MRN
10:30 a.m.: The Inside Line (with host Tyler Burnett) (Moved from original start time of noon)

Saturday, September 22
4 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series final practice (re-air), NBCSN/NBC Sports App
5 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Busch Pole Qualifying (re-air), NBCSN/NBC Sports App
6 p.m.: NASCAR America, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
7 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Countdown to Green, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
7:30 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Federated Auto Parts 400, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN2)
11 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Post Race Show, NBCSN/NBC Sports App
11:30 p.m.: NASCAR Decades: The 1990s (re-air), NBCSN/NBC Sports App

Sunday, September 23
Midnight: Racing Roots: Martin Truex Jr., NBCSN/NBC Sports App
12:30 a.m.: Racing Roots: Ryan Blaney, NBCSN/NBC Sports App

Posted on by Staff Report

The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series will be in action at Richmond Raceway while the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series is off. The Monster Energy Series continues the Round of 16 of the NASCAR Playoffs, while the Xfinity Series Playoffs begin. Check out the full schedule below, which is subject to change.

Note: All times are ET

MORE: How to find NBCSN

SATURDAY, Sept. 22
6:50 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Driver Introductions
7:10 p.m.: Team Fastrax Skydive Team Jumps
7:16:45 p.m.: Pledge of Allegiance
7:17:15 p.m.: God Bless America: The President’s Own United States Marine Band
7:18:25 p.m.: Flyby TOT: Bandit Flight Team (Turn 1 to Turn 4)
7:20:30 p.m.: Invocation by: United States Navy Chaplain, Lieutenant James Block
7:21:14 p.m.: National Anthem by: The President’s Own United States Marine Band
7:22:25 Flyby TOT: (4 F-15’s) 159th Fighter Wing, Louisiana Air National Guard (Turn 1 to Turn 4)
7:27:30 “Driver’s, Start Your Engines” by: Tim Trudnowski, President, Automotive Jobber Supply in Spokane, WA
7:27:45 Flyby TOT: Bandit Flight Team (Backstretch to Frontstretch)
7:33 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Federated Auto Parts 400 (400 laps, 300 miles), NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN2) (Results)

PRESS PASS (Watch live)
— 3 p.m.: Roush Fenway Racing
— 10:45 p.m.: Post-Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race

FRIDAY, Sept. 21
8:30-9:15 a.m.: Xfinity Series first practice, NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN App) (Results)
10:50-11 a.m.: Xfinity Series final practice, NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN App) (Results)
11:35 a.m.-12:25 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series first practice, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN2) (Results)
1:30-2:20 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series final practice, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN2) (Results)
4:35 p.m.: Xfinity Series Pole Qualifying, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN App) (Results)
6:05 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Busch Pole Qualifying, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN2) (Results)
7:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series GoBowling 250 (250 laps, 187.5 miles), NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Canada: TSN2) (Results)

PRESS PASS (Watch live)
10:15 a.m.: Alon Day
10:30 a.m.: Brad Keselowski
10:45 a.m.: Chase Elliott
12:30 p.m.: Justin Allgaier, Christopher Bell, Ross Chastain
1 p.m.: Richmond Raceway
2:30 p.m.: Elliott Sadler
2:45 p.m.: Kyle Busch
6:45 p.m.: Post-Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series qualifying
9:30 p.m.: Post-NASCAR Xfinity Series race

Posted on by Staff Report

NASCAR Playoffs drivers Kevin Harvick and Erik Jones were knocked out of the South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway when the two collided midway through the race.

RELATED: Live leaderboard

Harvick’s No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford appeared to blow a right front tire and veered toward the outside wall on Lap 147 of 267. As Harvick’s Ford slowed, Erik Jones plowed into the rear of his car with his own No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.

Both cars sustained too much damage to continue in the race.

“It’s unfortunate we had that happen,” Jones told NBCSN. “Nothing Kevin can do, nothing we can do. It’s not the situation we need to be in. We have some work to do now.”

MORE: Best photos from Las Vegas

Jones had started the race on the pole and was riding a surge of momentum entering the race. Harvick entered the race as the No. 2 playoff seed.

“We’ve got to run well at Richmond and the Roval now,” Jones said after being released from the infield care center. “I thought it was going to be a pretty lackadaisical first round, run top 10 in each one. We were on pace to run top 10 today and probably run OK at Richmond. Just unfortunate we’re even behind. We don’t want to be in this spot and nothing we can do to prevent it now, but we’ll just have to move forward.”

The SHR veteran Harvick began the playoffs with 50 playoff points, so while the misfortune impacts him, it’s more of a slight dent into his standing. Jones, on the other hand, was hammered with repercussions. He drops to last place in the playoff standings with two races remaining in the Round of 16.

Posted on by Staff Report

Name: Charisse B.

Hometown: Virginia Beach, VA

Favorite NASCAR track: Richmond Raceway.

Favorite Monster Energy Drink: Muscle Monster and Monster Zero Ultra

Favorite Monster Energy event (besides NASCAR): Fitness Expos, MotoAmerica and UFC

Favorite Monster Energy athlete: Conor McGregor

Which character would you be in Talladega Nights: Jean Girard.

PHOTOS: Best of Monster Energy Girls

Monster Girl Charisse B Inset

Talladega or Daytona: Talladega

JetSki or Snow ski: JetSki

Beer or wine: Dark beer

What would you name your boat if you had one: I’ll name it “Vitamin Sea”.

You might not know this about me: I competed for American Ninja warrior; I can climb a rope without using my legs and I can do 20 pull ups.

Best part of being a Monster Girl: Interacting and meeting new people and how a simple picture can make a person smile are the best part working as a Monster Girl.

Best/craziest fan story/encounter: Best one I had was when one of my follower drove 3  hours just to have a fitness challenge with me during a fitness expo.

Posted on by Staff Report

Name: Jessi B.

Hometown: Charlotte NC

Favorite NASCAR track: Bristol Motor Speedway

Favorite Monster Energy Drink: Pink lemonade rehab

Favorite Monster Energy event (besides NASCAR): Moto GP

Favorite Monster Energy athlete: Kurt, of course 😎

PHOTOS: Best of Monster Energy Girls

Monster Girl Jessi B Inset

Which character would you be in Talladega Nights: Lucy Bobby

Talladega or Daytona: Daytona 500!!

Car or Truck: Car

JetSki or Snow ski: JetSki, I’d choose being on the water over snow any day.

Beer or wine: Depends on the occasion. Sitting on the beach – beer. Evening relaxing – wine.

What would you name your boat if you had one: “Nacho Boat”

You might not know this about me: I’m a certified scuba diver! I wasn’t kidding about my love for being on the water.

Best part of being a Monster Girl: I love all the opportunities Monster gives us girls. I can’t think of a better way to travel at such a young age, experience the world, travel with girls you love and get to witness and be a part of NASCAR history.

Best/craziest fan story/encounter: One of our favorite fans, he’s the cutest little kid ever and loves all of the Monster Girls, brought us personalized Monster cookies one race and totally made all of our days. Sorry race fans, standards are up, you have to bring us cookies in exchange for photos.

Posted on by Staff Report

Brad Keselowski won Stage 2 in the South Point 400 on Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway pulling away from Martin Truex Jr. on the high line during a late restart to capture the green-white-checkered flag. Keselowski, who won the previous two races in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, kept some of that momentum going in the opening race of the NASCAR Playoffs.

The same could not be said for Kevin Harvick, who wrecked in Turn 1 on Lap 147 and collected Erik Jones in the process. Both playoff drivers were knocked out of the race and will need to make up ground in the next two races in order to advance to the second round, although Harvick’s 50 playoff points have him in a better spot than Jones.

RELATED: Stage 2 results

Keselowski outpaced Kurt Busch, who finished second in the stage. Truex, the winner of Stage 1, finished third, with seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson in fourth and non-playoff driver Jamie McMurray in fifth place.

Kyle Larson, who went a lap down in Stage 1, rebounded to finish 10th in Stage 2 thanks in part to an early caution for debris that allowed the No. 42 to come to pit road and work on a problem with the right-front side of the car.

Finish Driver Team Race Points
1 Brad Keselowski Team Penske 10
2 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing 9
3 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing 8
4 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports 7
5 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing 6
6 Joey Logano Team Penske 5
7 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports 4
8 Ryan Blaney Team Penske 3
9 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports 2
10 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing 1

Stage 1

Martin Truex Jr. won Stage 1 after passing Kevin Harvick’s No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford on Lap 60 and riding to the green-white-checkered flag at Lap 80. It was the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing team’s eighth stage win of the season.

The first stage was not as smooth for fellow playoff driver Kyle Larson, who had to bring his No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet to pit road on Lap 71 because of a right-front tire starting to go down. Larson finished the stage one lap down in 25th place.

RELATED: Stage 1 results

Harvick finished second, with playoff drivers Alex Bowman, Kurt Busch and Chase Elliott rounding out the top five. Ryan Newman, in 10th place, was the only non-playoff driver to gain a stage point.

Kyle Busch, Joey Logano (leader of 33 of the first 34 laps), pole-sitter Erik Jones and Aric Almirola finished sixth through ninth, respectively.

Finish Driver Team Race Points
1 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing 10
2 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing 9
3 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports 8
4 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing 7
5 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports 6
6 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing 5
7 Joey Logano Team Penske 4
8 Erik Jones Joe Gibbs Racing 3
9 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing 2
10 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing 1
Posted on by Staff Report

Ever wonder what goes on in a driver meeting? We’re here to help.

This year, we’ll publish the actual rules video your favorite Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers will watch before climbing into their stock cars. Above is the video for the South Point 400 (Sunday, 3 p.m. ET, NBCSN/NBC Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Posted on by RJ Kraft

Erik Jones will start out front for Sunday’s South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (3 p.m. ET on NBCSN/NBC Sports App, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) and gives fantasy players plenty to consider when setting their lineups. There were three practice sessions for the playoff opener, giving players lots to digest. 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 playoff game works

Remember that the garage locks at the end of Stage 2. Also, your garage play can only be swapped for a driver of similar classification (a playoff garage driver can only be swapped for a playoff driver in your lineup; a non-playoff garage driver can only be swapped for a non-playoff driver in your lineup).

RJ Kraft’s revised Fantasy Live lineup following the lineup being set:
Playoff driver 1: Kevin Harvick
Playoff driver 2: Martin Truex Jr.
Non-playoff driver 1: Jamie McMurray
Non-playoff driver 2: Ryan Newman
Garage: Kyle Busch

MORE: Fantasy analysis for Las Vegas | Driver stats | 10-lap averages | Full lineup 

Analysis: The Fantasy Live Playoff Game is here! I’m not going to overthink this — in fact I am sticking with my original five drivers. I’m taking the Big 3 — they’ve been the best all season, have been the top three drivers on 1.5-mile tracks and have won all seven races at that track length. I think Harvick and Truex have the two best cars of the Big 3, so they get the start and I will have the 2015 champion in the garage. For the garage, I think it’s important to protect your playoff plays in the early going.

The speed out of Erik Jones and Ryan Blaney gave me something to think about and I will utilize one of them for a bonus pick. Kyle Larson’s knack for the high line and recent results at Las Vegas were food for thought as well. Joey Logano’s strong qualifying spot and history at Las Vegas was also a consideration, but at the end of the day I’m dancing with the dates that brought me success all season — the Big 3.

For the non-playoff plays, I like McMurray here. The veteran driver qualified the best of the non-playoff drivers (12th) and is coming off two straight top 10s. For the other spot, I am going with Newman. He topped Saturday’s first practice and was in the top five on the speed chart in final practice. Despite the fact that he announced Saturday that he is leaving RCR at the end of 2018, he has a plenty to offer owners for this race with four top 15s in his last five Las Vegas starts. I also considered Daniel Suarez, but his lack of 1.5-mile success — just two top 10s in 18 career starts at that track length and no top 10s on 1.5-mile tracks this year — was enough to scare me off.

For the bonus picks, I am taking Jones to win Stage 1. From there, I am doubling down on Harvick to win Stage 2 and pick up another race win. I am also taking Harvick to win the championship as my shot for the 60-point bonus pick that must set prior to the start of this race. He’s been so consistent all year and has a knack for coming up big in clutch spots. It’s hard to go against that.